Newton’s third law of motion states that for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. The opposing forces in Netflix’s Beef get the opposite reaction part right, but as for the equal…well, that’s up for debate.
Danny Cho (Steven Yeun, Minari), a struggling contractor, has on what any normal day would be just an annoying encounter with Amy Lau (Ali Wong, American Housewife). Unfortunately for Danny and Amy, on the day their paths cross neither have any – pardon my language – effs left to give.
Danny’s receipt-less return of grills is denied, and Amy’s spent two excruciatingly long years trying to sell her business only to be deprived, once again, of the satisfaction of closing the deal. Some cosmic force has placed them in the parking lot outside the business at the root of their anger at precisely the moment in time when neither can control their actions.
A near miss in exiting the lot escalates from honks and flipping the bird to a high-speed chase through residential streets which are, thankfully, free of small children or wandering pets. A few minutes of intense road rage should be enough to get this insane reaction out of their systems. But, no, Danny and Amy have found an outlet for all their pent-up feelings. What begins as a simple dispute escalates into a life-altering – and life-threatening – showdown.
If you’ve ever had one of those days when the slightest provocation sets you off, when even the tiniest of misunderstandings sets you down a path of uncontrollable anger you can, at least briefly, empathize with Amy and Danny.
Danny’s just struggling to make a living as a contractor, trying his best to get his laidback bro involved in procuring a home for their elderly parents. Amy simply wants to be able to devote more time to her artistically-inclined young daughter by selling her hugely successful business. Neither intends to resort to criminal activity. And neither Amy nor Danny is able to fully comprehend the long-lasting, widespread destruction their inability to get on with their lives after a road rage incident will cause.
The 10-episode limited series is deliciously dark and twisted and serves as a brutal takedown of classism. Beef dives into a wide variety of topics including racism, sexism, porn addiction, catfishing, and infidelity. We even get a little religion, couples therapy, the horrors of investing in Bitcoin, and online sleuthing, with a side serving of mansplaining, fraud, and hoplophilia thrown in.
Beef creator, writer, and showrunner Lee Sung Jin admitted the series is inspired by his own experience with road rage. “It honked at me, cursed at me, and drove away,” said Lee, describing his fateful encounter with a white SUV driver. “And for some reason on that day, I was like, ‘I’m going to follow you.’”
Lee didn’t continue to pursue the other driver, but the incident sparked the idea of two random people who escalate a situation to a point of no return. And with Steven Yeun and Ali Wong as the victims/aggressors, Lee’s Beef is a riveting, alternately hilarious and terrifying showcase of absurdity.
Beef doesn’t require you to side with either Amy or Danny. There isn’t an obvious villain, and your allegiance will shift not just from episode to episode but scene to scene. Ali Wong perfectly captures a successful businesswoman who stifles her emotions behind a carefully manufactured smile and agreeable attitude. Amy’s husband, George (Joseph Lee, Searching), is so disconnected from her feelings that when she attempts to explain how truly frightened she was by her initial encounter with Danny, he suggests she return to journaling her feelings. This is the same man who enrolled their child in mindfulness classes so she can be her truest self and who creates sculptures that resemble cartoonish monster penises.
Wong is incredible at showing how Amy’s switch can flip from calm, cool, and controlled, to manic and merciless within a scene. Steven Yeun is Wong’s equal in taking Danny, who appears to be a decent man under normal circumstances, from a hardworking contractor to a rage-fueled monster. Their shared scenes are infused with anger and loathing, and witnessing the build-up of their frustration and then the laser-focused manner in which they go about taking each other down is fascinating.
With Yeun and Wong in the lead, series creator Lee Sung Jin serves up a balanced dish that’s loaded with savory performances and marinated in timely societal issues.
GRADE: A
Beef premieres on Netflix on April 6, 2023. The 10-episode dark comedy stars Steven Yeun, Ali Wong, Joseph Lee, Young Mazino, David Choe, and Maria Bello.
