Shoplifters (2018)

Director: Hirokazu Koreeda
Stars: Lily Franky, Sakura Ando, Kirin Kiki
Runtime: 121 minutes

Synopsis: A family of small-time crooks take in a child they find outside in the cold.

Performances: 8/10
Screenplay: 7/10
Costumes/Makeup: 9/10
Editing: 6/10
Cinematography: 8/10
Score/Soundtrack: 7/10

Verdict: A heartwarming film about the true meaning of family (yes, better than any entry in the Fast and the Furious franchise), "Shoplifters" also delves deep into the lives and struggles faced by people living in poverty in Tokyo.

Centered around an unconventional family that uses shoplifting as a way of coping with their misfortunes, Hirokazu Koreeda's Oscar nominated movie is enhanced by emotional performances and a sense of realism that highlighted the film's main themes. Koreeda's direction makes you care about every single character, and truly immerses the audience into their cruel, unjust world.

In a year filled with movies aimed at studying the lives of the less fortunate ("Roma", "Capernaum"), "Shoplifters", however. didn't quite have the impact some of the others had on me, and that is mainly due to the fact that the film never feels like one cohesive story, but rather a sequence of separate events that come together near the end. It's also at times cheesy (or poorly translated) and did make me check my watch as it is not exactly the fastest paced movie out there.

Nevertheless, "Shoplifters" is still definitely worth checking out if the plot or setting seem interesting to you.  

FINAL GRADE: 7.5/10