Film Review – Monster (2023)
During Monster one of the characters states that “what actually happened doesn’t matter.” As the film goes on, this statement seems to become increasingly true as the stories become intertwined with each other to give the audience the full picture of this plot. With incredible filmmaking and heartfelt cinematography, Hirokazu Kore-eda takes us back to Japan in his latest feature film, challenging us to find the truth and morality in a twisted and intricated story that ends up being much more complicated than how it looks on the surface. Even since I first saw it, many months ago, at the London Film Festival, I have been captivated by the way the movie tells its story with such gentle yet powerful tones.
Set in a suburban town in Japan, Monster follows three parallel stories that ultimately turn into one singular plot line. Initially, the film follows Saori Mugino (Sakura Andō), a single mother who is increasingly worried about some sudden and disturbing changes in the behaviour of her son, Minato Mugino (Soya Kurokawa). In order to put an end to this, Saori decides to confront Minato’s homeroom teacher Michitoshi Hori (Eita Nagayama) as well as the entire faculty, including Humiaki Shoda (Akihiro Tsunoda), the vice-principal of the elementary school Minato attends.
It is easy to see why this film won the Best Screenplay at the Cannes Film Festival, telling a story that spans across genres and national borders. With its intricated storytelling that reveals layer after layer the more we move through the movie, Hirokazu Kore-eda’s latest movie is a masterclass in screenwriting. The acting also elevates this movie: every single performer truly gives their best, delivering impressive performances, headlined by a stellar Sakura Andō. As the movie goes on, we discover more and more about each of them, making us root for and feel for every single character once it is their turn to show us their story.
Most of the film is told in three parts, each one is equally unique as it is dependent on the others for us to gain the full picture of the story. As such, it very much feels like we go on an emotional journey with the characters as we see how children deal with difficult situations, with a painful and poignant commentary on societal pressure and expectations. The setting is also key in this movie as the story is set in some key, recurrent places that we soon get to know. As the story develops, the audience also becomes familiar with the context and setting the characters move in.
The most fascinating thing about this film is the way it deals with the changing power dynamics in the movie, which are reinforced by the camerawork framing certain characters in a low or high angle depending on what it wants to convey. The overarching topic of the movie seems to be tied to the ever-present metaphor of animals – with the characters being compared to various animals as the film goes on – and monsters, with the film constantly asking us who the monster really is and constantly subverting our expectations in that regard.
Monster is beautifully directed and masterfully written, creating a film that is both painful, emotional, and somewhat tender and sweet in its final moments. The film is a necessary and powerful tale of happiness and acceptance while delivering a beautiful message of finding comfort and compassion even in the hardest and most cruel corners of the world, all through the eyes of children who sometimes appear to be a lot wiser than the adults that are supposed to look after them.
★★★★
In UK cinemas March 15th/ Sakura Andō, Eita Nagayama, Soya Kurokawa, Hinata Hiiragi/ Dir: Hirokazu Kore-eda/ Picturehouse Entertainment/ PG-13
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