Critics reviews

In the hands of another director, the story might have taken a shouty, manipulative turn, but Kore-eda opts for emotionally grounded nuance.

Kore-eda’s talent for delicate character work and rich, contemplative pacing is on full display in Broker.

There’s certainly enough potential mayhem, desperation and danger here... for “Broker” to have become a dark, propulsive action-drama, in another filmmaker’s hands. But Kore-eda focuses on — and mines — the grace notes, better angels and soulfulness of his characters in such lovely and relatable ways that we’re grateful for his humanistic, more empathetic priorities.

Visually, Broker marks a departure for Kore-eda, who works here with a Korean crew instead of frequent collaborators like cinematographers Yutaka Yamazaki and Mikiya Takimoto. The film also looks much better on a small screen, signaling an improved outlook on streaming platforms. Overall, the film has a deliberate pace befitting a road movie.

At times it seems as if a whole season of K-drama might be coiled into a little more than two hours. But somehow, “Broker” doesn’t feel overplotted, overly cute or excessively melodramatic. Kore-eda has an emotionally direct style, a way of fusing naturalism and fable that recalls the neorealist magic of Vittorio De Sica. His characters are silly, suffering, dignified creatures, on whom the audience’s sympathy descends like grace.

The Japanese filmmaker’s work is marked by the kind of empathy and patience that might seem antithetical to a tale involving human traffickers, gangsters, and sex workers. But it can be fascinating in and of itself to see an artist as esteemed and reliable as Kore-eda stretch a bit, and that fascination is enough to hold one’s attention throughout Broker.

Broker is a film about grifters, sure, but at its core it is a low-key but heartfelt, sincere and totally unique exploration of the wondrous, nuanced complexity of how people both survive and connect on a fundamental level.

The patience and empathy guiding this film is the reason why it couldn’t be done by anyone other than Kore-eda, and with such a talented cast at the helm, Broker proves itself to be absolutely exceptional.

Broker is sentimental and sweet, often funny, and a lighter take on Kore-eda’s ongoing project of exploring chosen families.

It takes a while for Broker to find its currency amidst shifting viewpoints and plot strands. Social-realist concerns compete with murder mystery and road-movie genre trappings, leaving little space for the emotional undercurrents of the performances to ebb and flow.

"Broker" might have played well as a thriller, but the material is a poor fit for one of Kore-eda's ostensibly kindhearted dramas.

It’s impossible not to be beguiled by the sweetness of the comedy, the skill of the performers and sheer craft of the film. But hopefully next time out Kore-eda will use it in the service of a plot which is more believable.