By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 4.6
Director: Hirokazu Kore-eda
Starring: Bae Doona | Dong-Won Gang | Ji-eun Lee | Lee Joo-young | Song Kang-ho
Original language title: Beurokeo
Country: south_korea
Year: 2022
Running time: 127
IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt13056052/reference/
Chris says: “After a brief sojourn in France (THE TRUTH), director Hirokazu Kore-eda made this movie in South Korea rather than his home country of Japan, purportedly so he could work with the actor Song Kang-ho (he was most recently the patriarch in PARASITE.) As with its predecessor, the shift in locale does not mean any departure in style or tone, though some parts of BROKER might comprise his most overtly comedic work in many years.
“The plot, however, is the stuff of drama and suspense. Two men, Sang-hyun (Song) and Dong-soo (Gang Dong-won) run an illegal business in Busan where they steal abandoned infants from a church’s drop-off box (sort of like a Baby Safe Haven in Massachusetts) and sell them on the black market. It works swimmingly until So-young (Korean pop star IU), a teenage mother in the process of dropping off her own baby discovers their scheme and joins them to interview prospective adoptive parents. Meanwhile, two detectives (one played by Kore-eda alumnus Doona Bae, now middle-aged but still fabulous) sit in their unmarked car and watch this all play out.
“Although BROKER won the Jury Prize at Cannes, it isn’t on the elevated level as Kore-eda’s very best work (my top four, chronologically: AFTER LIFE, NOBODY KNOWS, STILL WALKING, SHOPLIFTERS.) Actually, it’s slightly flabby (maybe 10-20 minutes too long) and although he retains a knack for getting amusing (but not irritating!) performances out of children, this film’s humor and pathos do not always sit comfortably alongside each other. Of course, as veteran auteurs go, Kore-eda is still in a class of his own. He may be relying on variations on familiar themes, but no one else matches his sustained comfort and nimble touch with depicting makeshift families and finding those ingenuous, unforced grace moments that co-exist with the mundane. 4 cats
“(Screened at IFF Boston’s 2022 Fall Focus; theatrical release expected in late Dec./Jan)”
Michael says: “Sure, he’s one of my favorite directors, but perhaps because of the good but not great reviews I had seen for BROKER, I was taken by surprise at how much I enjoyed this one! It’s a bit of a flip side of his last Japanese-set feature, the award-winning SHOPLIFTERS, as both combine crime and created families, but both come at those themes from very different directions. BROKER is shot in South Korea, and boots a couple of actors more well-known to the U.S. audiences: Song Kang-ho, from PARASITE, and Doona Bae, a Kore-eda and Bong Hoon-ho alum (she co-starred with Song in THE HOST, and the TV series, Sense8. The complex story involves an infant being abandoned by his mother, the illegal selling of children, prostitution, murder, and found-families. It also features some of the most overt humor in a Kore-era film, with lots of laughs throughout. It also got me strongly with a few emotional scenes where I couldn’t stop the tears from flowing while I held back some sobs (that ferris wheel scene). It’s not a very subtle film, but the story unfolds beautifully, taking it’s time (hence the longer running time) so nothing really feels forced. Another scenes featuring Doona Bae talking on the phone while Aimee Mann’s Wise Up plays in the background even references MAGNOLIA in a way that really took me by surprise. I gotta say. I loved this film, and I hope you take the time to see it this week at the Coolidge Corner Theatre, or the Kendall Square Cinema. 5 cats”
Julie says: “Great heartfelt story with suspense,drama and some humorous moments. The cinematography was also very good. Yes perhaps a bit bloated but on the other hand there was a lot to tell in this story.”One of the best films I’ve seen this year. A must see! 4.75 cats”