shoplifters

Started by samsong, December 26, 2018, 06:28:53 PM

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samsong

no thread for this?  this year's palme d'or winner?

the first two thirds are so beautiful and brimming with compassion.  then it shits the bed and takes a turn towards the prosaic and manipulative, and ultimately falls flat, especially the more i sit with it. (the ending's a doozy, though.)  it's a shame because of how good most of the film is.  performances are all unbelievable, the best ensemble work this year.  sakura ando reminded me of setsuko hara in this film.  i hope she supernovas into stardom. 

highly recommend giving it a look.  Burning should have won the palme d'or though.

pete

just saw it this afternoon - I missed Kore-eda's last couple of films so it's a surprise to see him so sentimental all of a sudden. Love the warmth and the sense of humor. The film loses a lot of momentum in the third act and in a way introduces new villains/ conflicts the same way comic movies tend to do - just something to move the plot forward and to escalate the drama. I think Kore-eda is obviously a talented enough filmmaker that his characters stay interesting in spite of the weird choices, but I still wish he'd gone another way.
"Tragedy is a close-up; comedy, a long shot."
- Buster Keaton

wilberfan

I haven't seen the film yet, but does this change anything for those of you that have?

Kore-eda's "Shoplifters": What Was Lost in Translation

Spoiler: ShowHide
Quote
"Shoplifters" has much better subtitles–at least until a key scene near the end. In it, Osamu Shibata, the head of a fictive family of societal throwaways says–according to the English subtitles–to Shota, the boy he has lovingly fathered, "From now on, I'm not your father."

Unfortunately, that's not what he says in Japanese. As spoken by the actor Lily Franky, that pivotal line is: "So, I'll go back to being your uncle."

What difference does it make? For starters, what seems to be Shibata's rejection of the boy he bestowed with his own first name (both Osama and Shibata being pseudonyms) is anything but. He desperately wants to remain a part of Shota's life, as Kore-eda makes clear when Shibata subsequently runs after the bus Shota is riding. In fact, it is Shota who rejects Shibata by not looking back, though when he is out of sight the boy whispers, "Dad."

Robyn

Agree with Pete and Samsong that it kind of went downhill at the end, but everything before was absolutely wonderful, filled with at least two-three scenes that moved me to tears due to being so goddamn beautiful and human, including the rain scene that would make Woody Allen proud, and Aki's encounter with Man No.4; moments that doesn't necessarily mean anything in the grand scheme of the story, but don't need to go anywhere either. Disappointing that Kore-eda had to force a big drama in the end. Glad I decided to see it on the big screen anyway. Sakura Ando was great as per usual.

Quote from: wilberfan on January 17, 2019, 04:32:56 PM
I haven't seen the film yet, but does this change anything for those of you that have?

Kore-eda's "Shoplifters": What Was Lost in Translation

Spoiler: ShowHide
Quote
"Shoplifters" has much better subtitles–at least until a key scene near the end. In it, Osamu Shibata, the head of a fictive family of societal throwaways says–according to the English subtitles–to Shota, the boy he has lovingly fathered, "From now on, I'm not your father."

Unfortunately, that's not what he says in Japanese. As spoken by the actor Lily Franky, that pivotal line is: "So, I'll go back to being your uncle."

What difference does it make? For starters, what seems to be Shibata's rejection of the boy he bestowed with his own first name (both Osama and Shibata being pseudonyms) is anything but. He desperately wants to remain a part of Shota's life, as Kore-eda makes clear when Shibata subsequently runs after the bus Shota is riding. In fact, it is Shota who rejects Shibata by not looking back, though when he is out of sight the boy whispers, "Dad."



Spoiler: ShowHide
The translation in Sweden was "So, i'll go back to being just an normal old man" or something like that



pete

you know, in hindsight, the third act wasn't that much of a departure. I like the film resolves and what it stubbornly chooses to unresolve.

Quote from: Robyn on January 21, 2019, 11:08:09 AM
Agree with Pete and Samsong that it kind of went downhill at the end, but everything before was absolutely wonderful, filled with at least two-three scenes that moved me to tears due to being so goddamn beautiful and human, including the rain scene that would make Woody Allen proud, and Aki's encounter with Man No.4; moments that doesn't necessarily mean anything in the grand scheme of the story, but don't need to go anywhere either. Disappointing that Kore-eda had to force a big drama in the end. Glad I decided to see it on the big screen anyway. Sakura Ando was great as per usual.

Quote from: wilberfan on January 17, 2019, 04:32:56 PM
I haven't seen the film yet, but does this change anything for those of you that have?

Kore-eda's "Shoplifters": What Was Lost in Translation

Spoiler: ShowHide
Quote
"Shoplifters" has much better subtitles–at least until a key scene near the end. In it, Osamu Shibata, the head of a fictive family of societal throwaways says–according to the English subtitles–to Shota, the boy he has lovingly fathered, "From now on, I'm not your father."

Unfortunately, that's not what he says in Japanese. As spoken by the actor Lily Franky, that pivotal line is: "So, I'll go back to being your uncle."

What difference does it make? For starters, what seems to be Shibata's rejection of the boy he bestowed with his own first name (both Osama and Shibata being pseudonyms) is anything but. He desperately wants to remain a part of Shota's life, as Kore-eda makes clear when Shibata subsequently runs after the bus Shota is riding. In fact, it is Shota who rejects Shibata by not looking back, though when he is out of sight the boy whispers, "Dad."



Spoiler: ShowHide
The translation in Sweden was "So, i'll go back to being just an normal old man" or something like that

"Tragedy is a close-up; comedy, a long shot."
- Buster Keaton