“Shoplifters,” One of the Best Films of the Century, Is Coming to the Clinton Street Theater This Week

When Kore-eda Hirokazu’s Shoplifters was up for the 2018 Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film, even its most ardent fans knew that it would lose to its more famous rival, Alfonso Cuarón’s Roma.

Nevertheless, the ethereally beautiful and breathtakingly sincere Shoplifters remains one of the most significant films of the young century. And, on Friday, Aug. 4, audiences can experience it at the Clinton Street Theater as part of the venue’s Hanabi Japanese Film Festival.

When Shoplifters was released, Kore-eda had long been one of the most acclaimed filmmakers in Japan, having directed tender and piercing dramas like Still Walking (2008) and Our Little Sister (2015).

Still, Shoplifters marked a new high for the director and stars Lily Franky and Ando Sakura, who play, respectively, Osamu and Nobuyo, the patriarch and matriarch of a family of thieves struggling to survive in contemporary Tokyo.

While a less imaginative director might have molded Shoplifters into a ruthless crime saga, Kore-eda has little interest in banal violence. He simply savors the feel of the characters’ lives, whether they’re snacking on gluten cake, building a snowman, or leaping into the air during a blissful day at the beach.

What makes the film both wondrous and devastating is that, while Osamu and Nobuyo have built a family to facilitate their cons, their love for their adopted children is palpably real. By the time a heartbroken Osamu is racing after the bus carrying his son away from him, not even the most hardened cynic could deny their bond.

Kore-eda, who works fast, clearly has more masterpieces up his sleeve. But Shoplifters is likely to be his defining film—and if you love movies, you should do yourself a favor and see it on the big screen.

Tickets are $8; the movie begins at 7 pm.