In the opening scene of Hirokazu Kore-eda’s new film “Sheep in the Box,” a drone delivers a brochure to a grieving couple advertising a humanoid modeled after their dead son. The service is offered by a company that promises bereaved families the chance to reconnect with lost loved ones. What happens next forms the emotional core of Kore-eda’s most fable-like and philosophically searching film to date.
Competing for the Palme d’Or at the 79th Cannes Film Festival — the director’s eighth time in the main competition — “Sheep in the Box” opens in Japan on May 29. The film also marks Kore-eda’s return to his own original Japanese-language screenplay for the first time since “Shoplifters” won the Palme d’Or in 2018.?
Haruka Ayase and mononymous comedian-turned-actor Daigo play Otone and Kensuke, respectively, a married couple grappling with the death of their 7-year-old son, Kakeru, two years earlier. The film is set in the near future, where AI has made it possible to “grow” a humanoid child (played with remarkable restraint by first-time actor Rimu Kuwaki) that echoes the personality and memories of the deceased.
With your current subscription plan you can comment on stories. However, before writing your first comment, please create a display name in the Profile section of your subscriber account page.