“Some leave, some retrieve,” is the tagline from the most recent teaser for “Broker,” the latest directorial effort from Hirokazu Kore-eda. As part of the Official Selection for the 75th Cannes Film Festival, “Broker” follows Sanghyeon (Song Kang-ho) and Dongsu (Gang Dong-won). The former is always in debt while the latter works at a baby box facility (where one is safely able to leave a newborn child). One rain-drenched night, the two men steal a baby from the facility with the intention of selling him. However, little do they know they were being watched by detectives who quietly track their every step (Bae Doona from “Cloud Atlas” being one of them).
American audiences will surely recognize some of the names behind this project. Kore-eda is perhaps best known to audiences in the West for writing and directing “Shoplifters” in 2018. The film, an intimate look at a family who turns to stealing due to their being mired in poverty, not only won Kore-eda a Palme d’Or but was nominated for Best Foreign Language Film at the Oscars. Meanwhile, Song Kang-ho was the star of Bong Joon-ho’s critically acclaimed “Parasite.” Though a renowned Korean actor for decades, Kang-ho became instantly recognizable the world over when “Parasite” took the world by storm in 2019, eventually winning four Academy Awards.
“Broker” officially premieres on June 8, 2022 in South Korea, less than two weeks after the closing of the Cannes Film Festival, but there is still no U.S. release date because the film doesn’t have a U.S. distributor. Surely, that will soon change. And, with the massive talent behind the film, who knows, Kore-eda could be adding another Palme d’Or award to his long list of accolades.
