Thursday, August 07, 2014
Master at work
Two families find that their sons were switched at birth.
OK. Going on from there, here is how the families and kids respond to this information 8 years down the road.
The circumstances seem a bit forced but once we accept the premise, the film sensitively demonstrates that family is more than blood kin and at the same time recognizes how these things matter.
The director Hirokazu Kore-eda takes his time here. The inevitable forces do not get manipulated. The law is involved. The switch is unfortunate but, well, nevertheless.
A Jury prize at Cannes for this wonderful film.
The fact that these are Japanese families may alter some of the details of what happens here but not really. It is all quite human in scope. Also intimate.
This is a great film. An unanswerable dilemma. Yet, the people deal. And the kids as well.
Very good. A 4 out of Netflix5.
Labels: films
