Monster

aka: Kaibutsu
Japan 2023, 126 minutes
Dir. Kore-eda Hirokazu
In Japanese with English subtitles
Rating: [M]
Genres: Foreign Cinema, Drama / Youth, LGBT

Topics: Parenthood.

Feat. Sakura Ando, Eita Nagayama, Soya Kurokawa

“Hirokazu Kore-eda riffs on ‘Rashomon’ in a poignant melodrama about rushing to judgment”~Indiewire

Aroview: Director Hirokazu Kore-eda returns home with his first Japanese film since the Palm d'Or-winning "Shoplifters" (2018) with this intricate, affecting childhood drama that unravels its mystery from multiple perspectives.

Typically gratifying and immersive in the details specific to the culture and environment, this one won the 'Queer Palm' at Cannes, though its sexuality is implicit through young folk not yet fully understanding of their own feelings and behaviours. From this uncertainty emerges an intricate, rewarding tale of a parent, a teacher and a student who are all grappling with their own versions of the truth.

NZ International Film Festival 2023