A non-subtitled trailer has been released for Hirokazu Kore-eda’s “Monster.”
Last August, I had mentioned that Hirokazu Kore-eda had wrapped production on a new movie. The plot is fairly secretive, but, judging from the trailer, it looks like the Kore-eda will be in genre territory.
The Japanese release date of June 3rd, 2023 sets up its world premiere next month at Cannes, where Kore-eda has been a mainstay.
Thierry Frémaux has compared “Monster” to Akira Kurosawa’s “Rashomon,” which tackled a mystery via multiple points of view. It clocks in at 126 minutes and stars Andō Sakura, Nagayama Eita, Kurokawa Soya, Hiiragi Hinata et Tanaka Yūko.
Kore-eda returned to Cannes last May with “Broker,” which garnered mixed-to-positive reviews from critics. This was his first film there since his 2018 Palme d’Or winner “Shoplifters,” but it was shot in Korean. “Monster” is his first Japanese film since his Palme winner.
“Shoplifters” ended up grossing $3.3 million in the U.S, and $69.4 million abroad, for a worldwide total of $72.7 million (I’m sure its budget couldn’t have been more than a million dollars). Regardless, this was the “I told you so!” moment for Kore-eda’s fans, many of whom have been praising the 57-year-old director’s works since his 1995 breakthrough “Maborosi”
Kore-eda is no spring chicken, he’s been in the game now for almost 30 years, releasing well-regarded films such as “After Life,” “Still Walking,” “Like Father Like Son” and “After the Storm,” but he never truly hit the big time until that surprise Palme d’Or win.