I’ve said it here on this site many times that Hirokazu Kore-eda is my favorite director working today. And yet, his most recent film, The Truth, was very different from the norm. It wasn’t shot in Japan and followed a French family, so culturally it wasn’t what we expect from him and, unsurprisingly, it also wasn’t his best. And although Kore-eda’s latest, Broker, doesn’t quite make it back to Japan, in terms of its exploration of family and class structure in Asia, this is closer to his wheelhouse.
Set in South Korea, Broker explores the cultural phenomenon of baby boxes, which are hatches that people can leave unwanted babies. Parasite star Song Kang-ho and Gang Dong-won (Peninsula) play low-level criminals who steal babies from the baby boxes to sell on the adoption black market. When a mother returns after leaving her baby, she joins the two on a road trip to interview the prospective new parents.
Also in the cast are Bae Doona, Lee Ji-eun, and Lee Joo-young. Lim Ju-hwan, Park Ji-yong, Im Seung-soo, and Kang Gil-woo.
Kore-eda debuted the film at Cannes, where it won the Ecumenical Jury Award and the Best Actor Award for Song Kang-ho.
Broker opens in theaters on December 26th.
