{ "id": "epvxt6kb2x", "slug": "a-model-family", "title": "A Model Family (모범가족)", "updated": "2026-11-01", "topic_path": [ { "id": "culture", "label": "Arts and culture", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture" }, { "id": "culture.performance", "label": "Screen and stage", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen", "label": "Film and television", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.series", "label": "Series and fictional screen worlds", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.series" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.series.series_international_serials", "label": "International serial drama and telenovelas", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.series.series_international_serials" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.series.series_int_serials_east_asia", "label": "East Asian drama series", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.series.series_int_serials_east_asia" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.series.series_int_serials_east_asia.korean_contemporary_drama", "label": "Korean contemporary drama", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.series.series_int_serials_east_asia.korean_contemporary_drama" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.series.series_int_serials_east_asia.korean_contemporary_drama.thriller-crime-and-mystery-series", "label": "Thriller, crime, and mystery series", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.series.series_int_serials_east_asia.korean_contemporary_drama.thriller-crime-and-mystery-series" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.series.series_int_serials_east_asia.korean_contemporary_drama.thriller-crime-and-mystery-series.action-spy-and-legal-thrillers.crime-and-mystery-thrillers", "label": "Crime and mystery thrillers", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.series.series_int_serials_east_asia.korean_contemporary_drama.thriller-crime-and-mystery-series.action-spy-and-legal-thrillers.crime-and-mystery-thrillers" } ], "geo": [ { "id": "geo.asia.t2021.culture.performance.screen.series.series_int_serials_east_asia.korean_contemporary_drama.thriller-crime-and-mystery-series.action-spy-and-legal-thrillers.crime-and-mystery-thrillers", "label": "Asia (other) · 2021 and later: Crime and mystery thrillers", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.asia.t2021.culture.performance.screen.series.series_int_serials_east_asia.korean_contemporary_drama.thriller-crime-and-mystery-series.action-spy-and-legal-thrillers.crime-and-mystery-thrillers", "path": [ { "id": "geo.asia", "label": "Asia (other)", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.asia" }, { "id": "geo.asia.t2021", "label": "Asia (other) · 2021 and later", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.asia.t2021" }, { "id": "geo.asia.t2021.culture", "label": "Arts and culture", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.asia.t2021.culture" }, { "id": "geo.asia.t2021.culture.performance", "label": "Screen and stage", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.asia.t2021.culture.performance" }, { "id": "geo.asia.t2021.culture.performance.screen", "label": "Film and television", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.asia.t2021.culture.performance.screen" }, { "id": "geo.asia.t2021.culture.performance.screen.series", "label": "Series and fictional screen worlds", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.asia.t2021.culture.performance.screen.series" }, { "id": "geo.asia.t2021.culture.performance.screen.series.series_international_serials", "label": "International serial drama and telenovelas", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.asia.t2021.culture.performance.screen.series.series_international_serials" }, { "id": "geo.asia.t2021.culture.performance.screen.series.series_int_serials_east_asia", "label": "East Asian drama series", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.asia.t2021.culture.performance.screen.series.series_int_serials_east_asia" }, { "id": "geo.asia.t2021.culture.performance.screen.series.series_int_serials_east_asia.korean_contemporary_drama", "label": "Korean contemporary drama", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.asia.t2021.culture.performance.screen.series.series_int_serials_east_asia.korean_contemporary_drama" }, { "id": "geo.asia.t2021.culture.performance.screen.series.series_int_serials_east_asia.korean_contemporary_drama.thriller-crime-and-mystery-series", "label": "Thriller, crime, and mystery series", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.asia.t2021.culture.performance.screen.series.series_int_serials_east_asia.korean_contemporary_drama.thriller-crime-and-mystery-series" }, { "id": "geo.asia.t2021.culture.performance.screen.series.series_int_serials_east_asia.korean_contemporary_drama.thriller-crime-and-mystery-series.action-spy-and-legal-thrillers.crime-and-mystery-thrillers", "label": "Crime and mystery thrillers", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.asia.t2021.culture.performance.screen.series.series_int_serials_east_asia.korean_contemporary_drama.thriller-crime-and-mystery-series.action-spy-and-legal-thrillers.crime-and-mystery-thrillers" } ] } ], "excerpt": "A Model Family (모범가족, Mobeomgajok) is a 2022 South Korean Netflix crime thriller, 10 episodes directed by Kim Jin-woo, starring Jung Woo as a professor turned drug courier after stealing cartel money.", "snippet": "A Model Family (모범가족, Mobeomgajok) is a 2022 South Korean Netflix crime thriller, 10 episodes directed by Kim Jin-woo, starring Jung Woo as a professor turned drug courier after stealing cartel money.", "node": "culture.performance.screen.series.series_int_serials_east_asia.korean_contemporary_drama.thriller-crime-and-mystery-series.action-spy-and-legal-thrillers.crime-and-mystery-thrillers", "markdown": "# A Model Family (모범가족)\n\n**A Model Family** (모범가족) is a 2022 South Korean crime thriller series released on Netflix, in which a cash-strapped college lecturer who unwittingly steals money belonging to a drug cartel becomes a drug courier to save his collapsing family. All ten episodes were released on August 12, 2022.[1](https://asianwiki.com/A_Model_Family)\n\n| Key fact | Detail |\n|---|---|\n| Native title | 모범가족 (Mobeomgajok) |\n| Network / release | Netflix, August 12, 2022, all 10 episodes at once[1](https://asianwiki.com/A_Model_Family) |\n| Director | Kim Jin-woo, known for *Good Doctor* (2013) and Netflix's *Love Alarm 2* (2021)[2](https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/amp/entertainment/shows-dramas/20220810/good-doctor-director-to-debut-netflixs-high-strung-suspense-series-a-model-family) |\n| Screenwriter | Lee Jae-gon[1](https://asianwiki.com/A_Model_Family) |\n| Lead cast | Jung Woo, Park Hee-soon, Yoon Jin-seo, Park Ji-yeon[3](https://www.justwatch.com/us/tv-show/a-model-family) |\n| Format | 10 episodes of about 45 minutes; TV-MA age rating[3](https://www.justwatch.com/us/tv-show/a-model-family) |\n| Audience score | 6.6/10 on IMDb from about 1,900 votes[4](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt21289712/ratings/) |\n\n## Spoilers\n\n### Premise\n\nPark Dong-ha ([Jung Woo](https://www.edgepedia.org/jung-woo)) is a part-time lecturer at a college and the head of a household on the verge of bankruptcy and divorce. He has failed to get tenure, his wife Kang Eun-ju (Yoon Jin-seo) asks for a divorce, and he has lost the money needed for his sick son's surgery. One day he comes across a pile of cash next to a dead body and takes it, not knowing it belongs to a drug cartel. With both the police and the cartel after the money, the cartel's second-in-command, Ma Gwang-chul ([Park Hee-soon](https://www.edgepedia.org/park-hee-soon)), offers Dong-ha a way out: working for him as a drug courier.[2](https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/amp/entertainment/shows-dramas/20220810/good-doctor-director-to-debut-netflixs-high-strung-suspense-series-a-model-family)\n\nDetective Kang Joo-hyun ([Park Ji-yeon](https://www.edgepedia.org/park-ji-yeon)), leader of an anti-drug crime team, investigates both Dong-ha and Gwang-chul.[1](https://asianwiki.com/A_Model_Family) The supporting cast includes Choi Mu-sung as Hwang Yong-soo, Kim Sung-oh as Choi Kang-jun, Oh Kwang-rok as Park Deuk-soo, Kim Shin-rock as Moon Jeong-gook, and [Shin Eun-soo](https://www.edgepedia.org/shin-eun-soo) as Park Yeon-woo, Dong-ha's daughter.[3](https://www.justwatch.com/us/tv-show/a-model-family)\n\n## Production and direction\n\nDirector Kim Jin-woo described the series as a mixture of Korean and European styles of thriller. In his account, Korean thrillers build fast-paced tension around the protagonist and the villain, while European-style series put more detail into the sub-characters, and he tried to blend the two approaches.[5](https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/entertainment/shows-dramas/20220817/interview-director-of-a-model-family-on-blending-korean-and-european-style-thrillers)\n\nThe title's irony was central to his conception. At the series' press conference in Seoul he said that a person looking in from the outside might call a family a model family, but a closer look raises the question of whether it can truly be called ideal, and that \"family\" holds a particular sense of uniqueness in Korean culture.[2](https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/amp/entertainment/shows-dramas/20220810/good-doctor-director-to-debut-netflixs-high-strung-suspense-series-a-model-family) He also said he wanted to explore different definitions of family, including the distorted, unconventional one that holds within a cartel gang, and that the conflicts within Dong-ha's family are mostly caused by a lack of communication.[5](https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/entertainment/shows-dramas/20220817/interview-director-of-a-model-family-on-blending-korean-and-european-style-thrillers)\n\nLead actor Jung Woo said he took the role because of the multi-layered character: a normal person who turns into a monster as he is pushed to the edge, with trauma from his past bringing out a different side of him.[2](https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/amp/entertainment/shows-dramas/20220810/good-doctor-director-to-debut-netflixs-high-strung-suspense-series-a-model-family)\n\n## Reception\n\nBefore release, the series drew comparisons to the Netflix original *Ozark* and the American crime series *Breaking Bad*.[6](https://www.koreajoongangdaily.com/entertainment/director-kim-jinwoo-explores-the-meaning-of-family-in-latest-netflix-series/11469829) Critics were divided. Pierce Conran, reviewing for the *South China Morning Post*, gave it 1.5 out of 5 stars, writing that the title is a misnomer since the family is highly dysfunctional, and that the series itself falls apart within a few episodes.[7](https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/k-pop/k-drama/article/3189067/netflix-k-drama-review-model-family-breaking-bad-isnt-crime) Joel Keller of Decider found the scenario somewhat familiar but with its own intriguing twists and turns.[8](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/a_model_family/s01) An NME review described the show as twisting through domestic drama and organized crime over its 10-episode run to draw out the implications of its title.[9](https://www.nme.com/reviews/a-model-family-review-netflix-jung-woo-park-hee-soon-3291135)\n\nOn IMDb the series holds a 6.6/10 rating from about 1,900 users, with individual first-season episodes ranging from 6.5 to 7.4.[4](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt21289712/ratings/) TVmaze lists the show's status as Ended, with no second season produced.[10](https://www.tvmaze.com/shows/63084/a-model-family)\n\n## Availability\n\nThe series streams on Netflix, including in 4K with [Dolby Atmos](https://www.edgepedia.org/dolby-atmos) audio, and is available with Korean original audio plus dubbed and subtitled options in many languages across Netflix's international catalogs.[3](https://www.justwatch.com/us/tv-show/a-model-family) • [11](https://flixboss.com/series/a-model-family-81349413) In South Korea it carries a 15 rating, restricting it to viewers aged 15 and over.[11](https://flixboss.com/series/a-model-family-81349413)\n\n## References\n\n1. [A Model Family, AsianWiki](https://asianwiki.com/A_Model_Family)\n2. ['Good Doctor' director to debut Netflix's high-strung suspense series, 'A Model Family', The Korea Times (August 10, 2022)](https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/amp/entertainment/shows-dramas/20220810/good-doctor-director-to-debut-netflixs-high-strung-suspense-series-a-model-family)\n3. [A Model Family, JustWatch](https://www.justwatch.com/us/tv-show/a-model-family)\n4. [A Model Family (TV Series 2022) – Ratings, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt21289712/ratings/)\n5. [Interview: Director of 'A Model Family' on blending Korean and European-style thrillers, The Korea Times (August 17, 2022)](https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/entertainment/shows-dramas/20220817/interview-director-of-a-model-family-on-blending-korean-and-european-style-thrillers)\n6. [Director Kim Jin-woo explores the meaning of family in latest Netflix series, Korea JoongAng Daily (August 18, 2022)](https://www.koreajoongangdaily.com/entertainment/director-kim-jinwoo-explores-the-meaning-of-family-in-latest-netflix-series/11469829)\n7. [Netflix K-drama review: A Model Family, South China Morning Post (August 16, 2022)](https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/k-pop/k-drama/article/3189067/netflix-k-drama-review-model-family-breaking-bad-isnt-crime)\n8. [A Model Family: Season 1, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/a_model_family/s01)\n9. ['A Model Family' review, NME](https://www.nme.com/reviews/a-model-family-review-netflix-jung-woo-park-hee-soon-3291135)\n10. [A Model Family, TVmaze](https://www.tvmaze.com/shows/63084/a-model-family)\n11. [Where to watch 'A Model Family (2022)' on Netflix, Flixboss](https://flixboss.com/series/a-model-family-81349413)\n\n---\n*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Series and fictional screen worlds › International serial drama and telenovelas › East Asian drama series › Korean contemporary drama › Thriller, crime, and mystery series › Crime and mystery thrillers*\n\n*Initially written Oct 3, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*\n\n*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*\n\nLicense: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license\n", "same_as": [], "url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/a-model-family", "markdown_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/a-model-family.md", "license": { "name": "Edgepedia Community License 1.0", "url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license", "summary": "Free with credit, commercial use included. AI training is open to everyone. For other uses, organizations over USD 100M in revenue or 100M monthly users license separately.", "spdx": "LicenseRef-Edgepedia-Community-1.0" }, "credit": "\"A Model Family (모범가족)\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), https://www.edgepedia.org/a-model-family. Edgepedia Community License 1.0.", "credit_md": "\"[A Model Family (모범가족)](https://www.edgepedia.org/a-model-family)\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), [https://www.edgepedia.org/a-model-family](https://www.edgepedia.org/a-model-family). [Edgepedia Community License 1.0](https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license).", "credit_html": "\"A Model Family (모범가족)\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), https://www.edgepedia.org/a-model-family. Edgepedia Community License 1.0.", "speakable": "A Model Family is a 2022 South Korean Netflix crime thriller, 10 episodes directed by Kim Jin-woo, starring Jung Woo as a professor turned drug courier after stealing cartel money." }