Monster (2023 film)

Monster
Theatrical release poster
Kanji怪物
Revised HepburnKaibutsu
Directed byHirokazu Kore-eda
Written byYuji Sakamoto
Produced by
Starring
CinematographyRyuto Kondo[1]
Edited byHirokazu Kore-eda
Music byRyuichi Sakamoto
Production
companies
Distributed by
  • Gaga
  • Toho
Release dates
  • 17 May 2023 (2023-05-17) (Cannes)
  • 2 June 2023 (2023-06-02) (Japan)
Running time
125 minutes[2]
CountryJapan
LanguageJapanese
Box officeUS$20.7 million[3]

Monster (Japanese: 怪物, romanized: Kaibutsu) is a 2023 Japanese psychological dramatic mystery thriller film directed, co-produced, and edited by Hirokazu Kore-eda from a screenplay written by Yuji Sakamoto.[4] It stars Sakura Andō as a mother who confronts a teacher after noticing disturbing changes in her son's behavior.[5] The film marks the first time Kore-eda has directed a film he did not write himself since Maborosi (1995). This was the last scoring project by Ryuichi Sakamoto (no relation to Yuji Sakamoto), who died two months before its release; the film is dedicated to his memory.[6]

Monster had its world premiere at the 76th Cannes Film Festival on 17 May 2023, where it competed for the Palme d'Or and was honored with the Queer Palm as well as the Best Screenplay award. The film was released in Japan on 2 June 2023. It received widespread critical acclaim with special praise for its screenplay, direction, acting, editing and musical score and appeared in many lists of top ten years best.

  1. ^ "Monster". Goodfellas. Archived from the original on 1 October 2023. Retrieved 19 April 2023.
  2. ^ "KAIBUTSU". Festival de Cannes. Archived from the original on 4 October 2023. Retrieved 7 May 2023.
  3. ^ "Monster (2023)". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved 25 August 2024.
  4. ^ Goodfellow, Melanie (18 November 2022). "Hirokazu Kore-Eda's New Film 'Monster' Unveiled, As Gaga, Toho Set June 2023 Release". Deadline. Archived from the original on 19 April 2023. Retrieved 19 April 2023.
  5. ^ Booth, Ned (19 April 2023). "'Monster' Trailer: Hirokazu Kore-eda Returns To The Cannes Film Festival With His Latest Drama". The Playlist. Archived from the original on 25 April 2023. Retrieved 19 April 2023.
  6. ^ Rooney, David (17 May 2023). "'Monster' Review: Hirokazu Kore-eda Measures the Weight of Bullying on Childhood Friendship in Tender But Diffuse Drama". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on 24 May 2023. Retrieved 21 May 2023.