Oh violence, sweet violence. This world may have its corners of tranquility and beauty, but without those other corners of rage and anger, we would not truly get to appreciate the good. Sometimes anger is that beautiful, good. Glorious, frenetic catharsis like this is on full display with Netflix’s newest series Beef.
Netflix’s Beef follows the mayhem and chaotic aftermath of a road rage incident. After the manic interaction between the two volatile characters, we watch as the equally volatile lives they live unravel and intertwine.
Featuring stellar performances from Ali Wong and Steven Yeun, Beef is a whirlwind of rage that seldom relaxes. Let’s not waste any more time and get into this review.
Steven Yeun as Danny in Netflix’s original series Beef. Image provided courtesy of Netflix and A24 Studios.
The Downsides of Having Beef
While the series is not perfect, there is not a whole lot wrong with it. If there was anything that I thought stood out that could’ve been improved on, it would have been some of the pacing. Beef is a total of 10 episodes each around 35-40 minutes each. That’s awesome.
There is a lot crammed into each episode and it all plays out pretty quickly and interestingly. Although, the majority of the episodes all move at a healthy mix of break-neck speed and a cool calm reflection, there were plenty of moments where I wanted things to be the opposite.
This is, kind of, a segue into another slight issue I had with the show, structure. Not every moment was as impactful as I wish it was. Later down the line when things happen there were precise moments, I remember thinking, “I wish that previous moment was edited/written/structured a bit better.” I don’t always have solutions to how, nor does it really matter, but it is something that I found some issue with.
Baseless Anger
One final, and very small piece I did not initially love, and still can’t say I enjoy too much, are the backstories. There is a purpose and reason for both of them being the way they are and it gets wrapped into the story later on. The parallel storytelling of young Amy, then cutting to young Danny should have hit me harder.
Ali Wong as Amy and Joseph Lee as George in Netflix’s original series Beef. Image provided courtesy of Netflix and A24 Studios.
Both stories were good and interesting contextualizations, but I don’t think they were too needed.
Maybe it’s me personally not receiving it too well, or maybe the writing does not do it for me, but to be totally honest, I could have done without the infancy and high school portions all together. Adding on to that even more, all scenes of flashbacks could have been taken out. These characters don’t need context for themselves. Violent road rage is an interesting enough setting to show people at their most evil and move on from there.
It is perfectly alright to not provide context for characters. Limited series like this are, if anything, the most perfect time to skip backstories. Danny and Amy had good stories, but overall they could have been taken out for me.
That’s enough of the complaining and nitpicking. Let us talk about what was great about Beef.
Beauty in the Evil
Entertainment media that centers on anger is rare. The most recent example that I can think of, or that I at least have seen, is 2015’s Mad Max: Fury Road. When anger and rage are the primary emotions, insane things happen. In other media- characters will get mad, verbally or physically spar, or just be upset for a scene. Maybe two scenes if you’re lucky. What separates Beef from everything else is how at any point in any episode, anyone could snap.
Ali Wong as Amy in Netflix’s original series Beef. Image provided courtesy of Netflix and A24 Studios.
Going into Beef, I was aware of Steven Yeun and Ali Wing’s great comedic abilities from past roles. I also know that Yeun could be dramatic and scary like in The Walking Dead and I Think You Should Leave. On paper in my brain, these two sharing the screen is a UFC main event dream match. In execution- it’s one of the most unsettling pairing of people since Mrs. Robinson and Ben from The Graduate.
Aggravators and Stress Causes
Somehow my brain forgot that this was an A24 production. When my anxiety started to spike that created a different layer of stress. Right off the bat, the chaos of the catalyst road rage is manic and angry. Yeun and Wong set the tone immediately and never let up. Not only is this scene a great indicator of what this rivalry would be like but also what these characters are like.
In addition to giving great performances throughout the series, it’s the believability that these characters would do these actions that makes everything more impactful. Whether the action is morally incorrect or plain entertaining, it makes sense that what they are doing is what they would do. Danny and Amy are not good people. They both go out of their ways to sabotage themselves and anyone in their path.
Steven Yeun as Danny in Netflix’s original series Beef. Image provided courtesyof Netflix and A24 Studios.
Speaking of sabotage: there comes a point where things do not need to happen. Generally, I find this point in shows to be unnecessary and exhausting. Beef is a rarity for me, because I wanted them to keep going. On numerous occasions, the words, “why are you still doing this,” came out of my mouth. That question was almost always immediately followed by some cheering and nail biting.
Littered Language
This may be a weird statement, but I love swearing. Cursing is the best method of negative mental expulsion. Over the years many shows have found new forms of insult conveyance and it is still changing for the better. With that said, there is nothing quite like hearing an utterly guttural F bomb. I wouldn’t say the dialogue in this series is smart, nor super realistic.
Realism isn’t always the main goal, and there’s nothing wrong with that, but Beef aims for the jugular. Rather than a release of anger, each expletive felt like a build in tension. Everyone within a thirty mile radius could see the mushroom cloud from Danny or Amy screaming too much.
Catharsis comes in many forms, and in the case of Beef, verbal venom is that release. Normally I don’t make sections dedicated to swear words, because that is weird, but it stuck out to me.
Coming Down from the Rage
With a quick wrap up, I wanted to touch on a few things I haven’t mentioned yet and want to praise them. The cast is terrific. Every performance is great to me. Some are better performed while others are better written, but they all have their own strengths. I didn’t want to spend too much time listing every actor in every role. Instead, I think it is easiest to just give one big collective praise.
Young Mazino as Paul, Steven Yeun as Danny, and David Choe as Isaac in Netflix’s original series Beef. Image provided courtesy of Netflix and A24 Studios.
Going back to the moments when things could have stopped but didn’t- amplification is awesome. By the end of the series, everything feels as dirty and broken as Danny and Amy become in the finale. If this series ended without the two going further at each other’s throats and not covered in blood, it would not have been great.
Simplistic subversions are a favorite trope of mine. Want to blame several possible characters on a super damaging event? How does the protagonist being an idiot sound? Great to me. Protagonist suspects their partner is cheating on them? What if instead of a secret plot we just make them tell each other the truth and make literally everything worse for everyone over time? Sign me up, pal.
I like a plot that will veer in a direction that will amplifiy whatever story is being told. Beef does that and it works a bunch. While there is not exactly a single plot, the many subplots that overlap into one large plot is great.
Ali Wong as Amy in the Netflix original series Beef. Image provided courtesy of Netflix and A24 Studios.
A Calm, Cool, and Collected Conclusion
Beef is perfect for those looking for a quick show to binge. 10 episodes may sound like a bit much, but again everything is about 35 minutes long. This show can easily be binged in a day or two. Beef is violent, funny, dark, shocking, and intriguing from the first horn honk to the final early 2000’s rock track closing the episode. Beef is great and I highly recommend it.
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