One of the world's most beloved directors Hirokazu Kore-Eda (known for such masterpieces as After Life, Still Walking and the Palme d'Or-winning Shoplifters) returns to the emotionally fertile terrain of boyhood - and to his native Japan - with this quietly devastating story of homophobia, family dysfunction, and the secrets children keep, told through shifting perspectives and scored by the late Ryuichi Sakamoto.

When Minato (Soya Kurokawa) starts displaying worrying behaviour at school and at home, his mother Saori (Sakura Ando) blames his teacher Hori (Eita Nagayama). But when Minato's troubled relationship with another boy comes to light, a more complex truth starts to emerge.

“Monster is one of the finest films of the year, and its structure — like its circle of characters — carries secrets that can only be unraveled through patience and empathy." - Natalia Winkelman, The New York Times

★★★★ "A film created with a great moral intelligence and humanity" The Guardian

★★★★ "A masterful work of intricate storytelling" Time Out

★★★★ "A marvel: a minutely observed, profoundly compassionate chronicle of untidy contemporary lives." BBC Culture