TFF: ‘Shoplifters’ (2018) Festival Review

Hirokazu Kore-eda, one of Japans most highly-regarded filmmakers, returns to the world cinema with Shoplifters, a quiet, subtle family drama that took the Palme d’Or at this year’s Cannes Film Festival. The film focuses on a non-traditional, low-income family in Tokyo who take in a young girl who appears abandoned by her parents. The family, held together by the grandmother (Kirin Kiki), initially wants nothing to do with the child. But the young girl wins them over with her adorable face and a willingness to learn the family’s primary occupation – Shoplifting.

Each of the adults do work menial jobs – One cleans floors at a construction site, one at a garment factory; one works at a peek-a-boo booth at an adult arcade, where frosted glass prevents them from seeing their customers faces. It is the kids, Shota and Yuri, who do most of the stealing. From candy to shampoo to fishing rods, there is nothing these kids won’t attempt to steal.

Kore-eda takes the story of this rag-tag family and turns it into a modern day Japanese version of “Oliver Twist” with Sosuke Ikematsu coming off as a Fagan-like character, bringing lost souls into the realm. As the film progresses, you start to become more comfortable with the family, but yet, there always seems to be a mysterious undercurrent to who these people really are.

The performances in Shoplifters are universally good with Kiki as the matriarch of the group and Sakura Ando as the older “daughter” providing the film’s heart. The performances come off as very genuine almost in the style of a film directed by Mike Leigh, who uses improvisation extensively in his films. The cinematography by Ryuto Kondo utilizes tight interior shots in the home which is effective in suggesting a more claustrophobic living environment.

Kore-eda has two specific trademarks that flow through nearly all his films. The first, and probably most important, is nearly all his films deal specifically with family. After the Storm, Our Little Sister, Like Father, Like Son, and I Wish-all deal with specific family issues. His last film, The Third Murder, is actually a courtroom thriller. Basically, you know what you’re getting with his films.

Secondly. Kore-eda’s stories tend to move at a very relaxed pace, and Shoplifters is no different. He allows the audience to take in these characters slowly and dissect each of their secrets. At times though, the pace is almost at a standstill, most notably at the onset, and it becomes tedious. Once you get through the first half hour, it moves much more brisk. That is, until the end, where ending tends to drag on, becoming repetitive. For Shoplifters, the films editing is the biggest crime.

Shoplifters, for the most part, is a good film that could have been a great film. Although its meandering pace allows the audience to take in the issues surrounding the characters, it also makes me one who would be wearisome of their plight. There is a really good 100 minute movie buried somewhere in this 121minute film.

Worth A Watch
3

Festival Review

This review of Shoplifters is part out our Tallgrass Film Festival 2018 coverage. For more coverage, visit the Tour Page.

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