My wife and I are in a blended relationship. I'm Iranian and she's Peruvian. So my family gatherings and cultural norms are always a bit confusing for her, and vice versa. So we related to "The Outsider" which tackles the subject of blending cultures in relationships with delicacy and humor from the outsider's perspective.
In this film, I think the lead woman was Irish and her boyfriend was Japanese, and she was visiting his family, but both my wife and I could relate. And in the Q&A afterwards, it seemed like the entire audience had similar experiences in their lives. My wife and I also liked learning about making mochi. It made me hungry watching the film.
Apparently the filmmakers tell stories from their lives about universal themes. They said their next film will be a drama about his concussion and how their roles changed from husband and wife to patient and caregiver. Sounds intense. We'll be looking for that one in next year's film festival.
