Time: 125 Minutes
Age Rating: M
Cast:
Sakura Andō as Saori Mugino
Eita Nagayama as Michitoshi Hori
Sōya Kurokawa as Minato Mugino
Hinata Hiiragi as Yori Hoshikawa
Yūko Tanaka as Makiko Fushimi
Director: Hirokazu Kore-eda

I had been hearing some great things about Monster for a while, and I had been meaning to watch it. I went in knowing next to nothing about the film, and after having seen it, I would probably rank it as one of the best movies of the past year. 

I won’t go into too much depth with the plot because I think it’s best not knowing too much before going in, that certainly helped my experience. The narrative structure has been compared to Rashomon, and that comparison is certainly accurate, with the film taking place from a few different characters’ perspectives. With each perspective shift, the story evolves into something different, and the story unravels brilliantly. Monster is something of a mystery drama, with a layered and twisty script, and callbacks, subtle hints and foreshadowing which help to keep you constantly engaged and guessing. It is also told with a lot of compassion and is emotionally hard hitting. At first the film appears to be about abuse in elementary school, and by the time it reaches the third act, it has become something more tender and empathetic. That being said, the ambiguous ending did admittedly bring things down a little for me.

There is some excellent acting in this, especially from the main four actors, with Sakura Ando as a mother, Eita Nagayama as a teacher, and the two main children played by Soya Kurokawa and Hinata Hiiragi. The latter two were the standouts, really capturing the innocence and vulnerabilities of their characters.

This is the first movie I have seen from Hirokazu Koreeda (who has made Shoplifters), and his work here is fantastic. It was incredibly and exceptionally crafted; the cinematography is stunning, the editing is perfect, and the final score from the late Ryuichi Sakamoto is beautiful and devastating. 

Monster is incredibly well crafted and performed, engaging, layered and emotionally compelling and poignant. I think it’s safe to call this among the best films from 2023.