Monster Review: Tender & Compelling Examination Of Childhood & Mental Health [Cannes]

Hirokazu Kore-eda returned to the Cannes Film Festival to debut his ninth feature film, marking his seventh entry at the popular international event and his first in which he does not pen the script for a feature since his debut. In his first Japanese language film since Shoplifters, the director collaborates with the renowned Japanese TV writer, Yuji Sakamoto. Monster reveals a story about adolescence, lies & deceit, and the consequences thereof from a humane perspective, slowly revealing intricate details of life’s biggest complications through three vantage points. The film demands a great deal of patience from you, but the payoff and the events leading up to it are well-earned emotional depositions.