#Song Gang-ho

[tomitaakanemi]

シークレット・サンシャイン

[leejieun]

BROKER : ONECLICK LIMITED EDITION - photobook

[beingharsh]

Broker (2022), dir. Hirokazu Kore-eda

[toastinthegrass]

[gregor-samsung]

브로커 [Broker] (Hirokazu Kore-eda, 2022)

[ladymacbeth3759]

My Favorite Films of All Time(Updated!) pt.2

Solaris (1972) dir. Andrei Tarkovsky

Breif Encounter (1945) dir. David Lean

In the Mood for Love (2000) dir. Wong Kar-Wai

Thirst (2009) dir. Park Chan-Wook

Call Me by Your Name (2017) dir. Luca Guadagnino

[entrehormigones]

[surprendslejour]

[laserpinksteam]

Film after film: Broker (dir. Hirokazu Kore-eda, 2022)

Another great film by Koreeda, who is incredibly skilled at combining sadness and laughter. It's a kind of a genre film, but also not: a young mother seems poised at giving her newborn to the church institution, which she does by leaving the child in a specially designed box outside the building. But then she comes back and discovers two men running a project of sneaking the abandoned newborns from the boxes and selling them to families who want to have children in this way (because, for instance, their relationships are not registered - there's a bunch of biopolitical statements smuggled here). They set off in a trip, being followed by two female-presenting cops (Bae Donna is the amazing standout) and being joined by a child, who blackmails them into remaining in their company - he soon becomes the film's comic relief. It's beautifully filmed and leisurely paced, never adding too much sugar into this melancholic story.

[moviemosaics]

Broker

directed by Hirokazu Kore-eda, 2022

[virusreviews]

Film of the Month

March 2023

브로커     Broker     (2022)

Dir. Kore-eda Hirokazu

From the renowned director Kore-eda Hirokazu, a collaboration with the international talent of South Korea creates a tear provoking story of found family. Kore-eda’s all-star cast are familiar faces to those wise to South Korea’s cinematic exports (see: Song Kang-Ho (Parasite and Snowpiercer) and Lee Joo-Young (Itaewon Class and Weightlifting Fairy Kim Bok-Joo). The harmony crafted from the story and the actors drives into any audience member’s open heart, found family is an uncommon event especially for Korean society yet no one could deny the hope and connection felt towards the characters in Broker. Unhurried and scenic, this film takes its time to tell a heartfelt story without aid of crammed action shots and contained studios. Without Kore-eda’s artistic direction, Broker would have fallen flat, missing the tangible sensitivity between the characters and their conflicts.

[rookie-critic]

Rookie-Critic's Top 25 Films of 2022: Honorable Mentions - Broker (dir. Hirokazu Kore-eda)

If you've seen Hirokazu Kore-eda's 2018 film Shoplifters, the themes of found family and unconventional relationships explored in Broker won't be anything new. What Broker does boast, however, is a story that, in its own way separate from Shoplifters, is profoundly beautiful. The characters and overarching trajectory of the plot in Broker is slightly more straightforward in its positive message and uplifting spirit than Shoplifters was, and, of course, it's yet another great acting showcase for Korean powerhouse Song Kang-ho. It's also an incredible acting showcase for K-pop star Lee Ji-eun, who is probably better known by her stage name IU. I hope Broker is a launchpad to seeing her in more stuff, because she is wildly impressive in this.

Currently available to rent/purchase on digital (iTunes, Amazon, Vudu, etc.) and on DVD & Blu-ray through Decal Releasing.

Read my full review of Broker here.

[leejieun]

BROKER : ONECLICK LIMITED EDITON - unreleased image postcard book

[stuff-diary]

Broker

Movies watched in 2023

Broker (2021, South Korea)

Director & Writer: Hirokazu Kore-eda

Mini-review:

God, Hirokazu Kore-eda is seriously one of the masters of modern cinema. His movies are as simple as they are brilliant. He knows how to find beauty in the smallest things, and his films always leave me with a warm feeling, even if they're usually sad and/or melancholic. The characters and societies he portrays in his work always feel so real and genuine. It also helps that he knows how to pick one great cast, as clearly shown here. In fact, this particular cast is so f**king good that I can't even pick an MVP, they really are that good. There's not a single line or facial gesture that doesn't feel natural and real. I had been looking forward to Broker for so long, and it actually ended up being even better than I expected. This is certainly one good way to start the year.

[toastinthegrass]

Romantic bastards.

[sweetsmellosuccess]

It's sort of curious that Hirokazu Koreeda, a director known for his penchant for ramshackle, thrown-together families in his films (see "Shoplifters," "Like Father, Like Son," etc.), takes as the lovable protagonists for his new film "Broker" a pair of child traffickers and the mother who abandoned her months-old son to them.

To be sure, we are meant to sympathize with them -- from their perspective, Sang-hyeon (Song Kang-ho), the trafficking "mastermind" and his assistant, Dong-soo (Dong-won Gang), are doing a helpful, righteous thing in bringing sad childless parents and the offloaded offspring of overwhelmed young mothers together, combining them into a loving match (nevermind the nature of the transaction, where they stand to make large sums of money on the black market) -- and see that deep down they aren't bad people, but Koreeda's ability to make humorous and lovable mutts out of scalawags feels a bit more dicey on this occasion.