Hirokazu Kore-eda’sBrokerreceived a12-minute standing ovation following its premiereat the2022 Cannes Film Festival, NME reports. The first Korean-language project from the Japanese filmmaker,Brokerbeat out Park Chan-wook’s 2009Thirstfor the title of longest-ever standing ovation for a Korean film at the festival.
According to Korean news outletEDaily, the rousing standing ovation began with Cannes Film Festival executive director Thierry Frémaux. The film’s director and main cast—Song Kang-ho (Parasite), singer and actress Lee Ji-eun, Gang Dong-won (Peninsula), and Bae Doo-na (Sense8)—were in attendance for the overwhelmingly positive reception.
Kore-eda previously won the Palme d’Or at Cannes in 2018 with his Japanese-language crime dramaShoplifters.
Brokerstars Song Kang-ho as Sang-hyun, a “broker of goodwill” who sets up a baby box for parents looking to anonymously surrender their children. Working with Gang Dong-won’s Dong-soo, the men take it upon themselves to find new parents for the infants while also padding their pockets.
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Lee Ji-eun (also known as multitalented K-pop idol IU) joins the cast as So-young, a young woman who crosses paths with the men when she places her own baby in the box; Bae Doo-na and Lee Joo-young (Itaewon Class, Times) are police detectives on a mission to uncover the broker’s illicit operation.
Watch the trailer guaranteed to tug at your heartstrings here:
Positive reviews have been rolling in for the film since its premiere, withBBC’s Nicholas Barber raving:
Not only is it Kore-eda’s first Korean production, but it’s an accessible, high-concept genre movie that brings to mind the Coen brothers and such crowd-pleasing indies as Little Miss Sunshine. I can’t recall a non-English-language film which was so ripe for an English-language remake – or one that was so expertly crafted as to render a remake completely redundant.
Brokeris the Latest From Cinematographer Hong Kyung-pyo
The Hollywood Reporter’s David RooneydescribesBroker’s cinematography as “[ranging] from the ineffable despair of the rain-drenched opening to the possibility of hope and deliverance as a train cuts through the magnificent countryside.”
The “unfussy visuals” are the latest work from South Korean cinematographer Hong Kyung-pyo, whose impressive resume includes the internationally acclaimed thriller Parasite. The 2019 film was awarded Best Cinematography by the Korean Association of Film Critics and garnered several other nominations. Hong’s other cinematography credits include 2013’sSnowpiercerand supernatural horrorThe Wailing (2016).
South Korean audiences can catchBrokerin theaters beginning June 8; a North American release date is TBD.
