MONSTER

There’s a beautiful nuance in Hirokazu Kore-eda’s latest masterpiece MONSTER. Once again achieving brilliant performances from child actors—much like the top films in his masterful filmography NOBODY KNOWS and SHOPLIFTERS. Returning to his native Japan after helming two features abroad (THE TRUTH and BROKER), MONSTER opens with a building on fire, and fifth-grade Minato (Soya Kurokawa) watching the inferno from a nearby balcony. What soon transpires is a RASHOMON-style story structure, told through the perspective of three different characters—Minato’s single mother Saori (Sakura Ando), eccentric school teacher Mr. Hori (Eita Nagayama), and Minato himself. As the truth is slowly revealed, a story of friendship, love and coming of age unfolds, all with Kore-eda’s humanistic signature touch. MONSTER continues the Japanese auteur’s winning streak at Cannes winning Best Screenplay after winning the Jury Prize for LIKE FATHER LIKE SON in 2013 and the Palm d’Or for SHOPLIFTERS in 2018. HIFF is honored to have presented these Kore-eda classics in Hawai‘i and to bring his latest soon-to-be masterpiece to local audiences.