『A Dignified Rebellion of a Middle-Aged Lesbian Who Breaks Old Hometown Norms with Humor and Solidarity』
🎥 Film Overview
🎬 Title: Manok (이반리 장만옥, 2025)
🌍 Country: 🇰🇷 South Korea
🎞️ Genre: Comedy / Drama / Queer
⏳ Runtime: 122 minutes
📢 Director: Lee Yu-jin
🖋️ Screenplay: Lee Yu-jin
👩💼 Cast: Yang Mal-bok – Manok, Kim Jung-young – Geum-ja
🧩 Story Deep Dive (Spoilers)
🏡 The Most Revolutionary Election Campaign on Familiar Ground
Director Lee Yu-jin’s feature debut, “Manok”, boldly places a middle-aged lesbian at the center and unfolds a queer narrative in the deeply local setting of a village chief election in a rural hometown. The film does more than highlight the life of an LGBTQ+ person—it explores profound questions about family, hometown, and the “place” where marginalized people stand. It delivers both humor and heartfelt emotion. Critics have described it as “a warm and skillfully crafted mainstream queer comedy rarely seen in the Korean independent film scene.”
🎉 The Explosive Chemistry When ‘Iban-ri’ Meets ‘Manok’
- The protagonist Manok is a middle-aged woman who ran a lesbian bar called “Rainbow” in Seoul. After her mother’s passing, she closes everything down and returns to her hometown, Iban-ri. The collision between “Iban” (an old Korean slang term meaning “non-normative,” often referring to LGBTQ+ people) and the village name “Iban-ri” encapsulates the film’s central theme. To Manok, her hometown is both her mother’s embrace and the condensed space of the “ordinary” world that once suppressed her.
Back in a hometown that is still exclusionary, Manok decides to fight the persistent interference and prejudice of her ex-husband, who is the current village chief. She runs for the position herself. This election is not merely about local power—it becomes the most revolutionary political act in which Manok legally asserts her identity and existence within the community she once fled.
🌈 A Drama of Solidarity and Growth
The film plants warm moments of solidarity amid the comedic conflicts between Manok and the villagers. Her relationship with “Jaeyeon,” the transgender child of her ex-husband, becomes the emotional core of the story. Jaeyeon is a lonely yet quietly resistant presence in the village, and Manok becomes a queer elder figure who offers courage and hope, showing that one can truly exist as oneself even in one’s hometown. Their intergenerational bond reflects the new vision of community the film strives to suggest.
🎭 Actress Yang Mal-bok
Yang Mal-bok’s portrayal of Manok is the leading force behind the film’s success. She embodies the complexity of a middle-aged lesbian with realism and warmth, without exaggeration. Scenes where she hesitates in front of her campaign poster or exchanges sharply humorous lines with her ex-husband reveal Manok’s experience, wit, and emotional depth, drawing viewers into her world. Her performance received critical acclaim, winning a Special Mention in the “Korean Fantastic: Features” section at the 2025 Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival.
🌹 Director Lee Yu-jin’s Warm Gaze
Director Lee Yu-jin maintains a lighthearted yet warm tone while dealing with heavy themes. The chaotic, comedic episodes surrounding Manok’s election campaign employ familiar queer-comedy beats, but they arise not from caricature or mockery, but from deep affection for the characters. The cinematography that captures the rural scenery and the rustic yet endearing mise-en-scène vividly convey the setting where Manok’s struggle unfolds.
🌄 The Meaning of ‘Hometown’ for Everyone
“Manok” connects queer storytelling with local community politics to deliver a universal message: “Everyone deserves to be welcomed in their own hometown.” The film offers comfort and courage not only to the LGBTQ+ community but also to anyone who has long felt alienated from family or hometown. Manok’s victory is not merely about the village chief position—it represents a hopeful step toward the “inner Iban-ri” where anyone can exist without prejudice.
🎯 Personal (Preference-based) Rating
💕 Love Scene Level: ♥
⭐ Rating: ★★★★★
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