2019 Oscars Challenge: [7] “Shoplifters” – Best Foreign Language Feature

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

“SHOPLIFTERS”
Japan; Hirokazu Kore-eda

Director: Hirokazu Kore-eda
Producer: Matsuzaki Kaoru, Yose Akihiko, and Taguchi Hijiri
Writer: Hirokazu Kore-eda
Cinematography: Kondo Ryuto
Editor: Hirokazu Kore-eda
Composed by: Haruomi Hosono
Studio: Magnolia Pictures
Distributor: GAGA Pictures
Release Date: November 23, 2018
Run-time: 121 minutes

FILM SYNOPSIS: When an impoverished family that uses petty theft to supplement the parents’ poor wages takes in a seemingly abandoned and abused young girl, their devotion to one another grows even stronger. Running afoul of the law, however, the family is torn apart as its secrets are revealed.

With tons of acclaim headed into the season, my personal experience with the film was that the film was a little overrated. Aside from a few highlight performances, the film itself did not compare to its competition, like “Roma,” “Cold War,” and “Never Look Away.” The story of an unlikely family that gets by conning and stealing has multiple layers, with certain people learning they have the capacity for love, while others learn tough lessons about the choices they’ve made. On a mere story level, the film could probably compete, but when you’ve got films like “Roma” and “Cold War” which have extraordinary cinematography, with both of those films getting directing nominations as well, there’s very little chance for a film like “Shoplifters.”

PREVIOUS NOMINATIONS