The life of workaholic architect Ryota (Masaharu Fukuyama)—one of comfort and quietly ordered affluence with his wife Midori (Ono Machiko) and son Keita (Keita Ninomiya)—is overturned when hospital administrators reveal the unthinkable: Keita is not his biological son. Due to a mistake made by a negligent nurse, his “true” son has been raised in the disheveled but warm-hearted home of working-class shopkeeper Yudai (Lily Franky) and his wife (Yôko Maki). The different approaches of both couples to their excruciating dilemma and the gradual emotional awakening of the all-too-rational Ryota are at the core of this sensitive drama of family feeling, which allows Kore-eda to revisit his ongoing preoccupation with family dynamics and parent-child relationships. An NYFF51 selection.

Hirokazu Kore-eda’s Shoplifters opens on November 23. Get tickets here.