‘Monster’ Director Kore-eda Hirokazu on Working With Composer Ryuichi Sakamoto on One of His Last Musical Compositions
variety.comJazz Tangcay Artisans Editor Kore-eda Hirokazu returns to Japan for his latest film “Monster,” which poses this question to audiences: “Who really is the monster?” While location scouting, the filmmaker was looking down at a lake, dark and almost black, and “I thought of Sakamoto Ryuichi music.
He was the only person who could do the music for this film.” It would mark the first time in years that the legendary composer behind “The Last Emperor” and “The Revenant” had worked on a Japanese title The film opens with Minato, played by Kurokawa Soya, an 11-year-old fifth grader who watches a burning building from afar.
Kore-eda returns to this sequence three times, each from a different perspective. Is young Minato the monster? Or is it Mr. Hori (Nahayama Eita), the schoolteacher, or Minato’s mother, Saori (Ando Sakura)?
The plot twists and turns in each retelling, as it’s revealed Minato has feelings for his classmate and friend Yori (Hiiragi Hinata) and he doesn’t quite know how to handle them.
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