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One of world cinema’s most celebrated directors returned to Cannes with his first science fiction film, and the crowd responded like he’d never been away.
Hirokazu Kore-eda‘s “Sheep in the Box” premiered in competition at the Cannes Film Festival on Saturday to a 3.5-minute standing ovation. The response continued until the director himself took the microphone, at which point the applause finally settled. According to Variety, one of the most enthusiastic audience members was James Franco, who was on his feet from the moment the credits rolled.
The film is Kore-eda’s first venture into science fiction. Set in near-future Japan, it follows a grieving couple, played by Haruka Ayase and Daigo Yamamoto, who agree to take in an infant humanoid robot modeled on their seven-year-old son, who died in an accident. The robot is played by Kuwaki Rimu.
The film is a significant departure from the intimate domestic dramas that made Kore-eda one of the most decorated filmmakers at Cannes. Shoplifters won the Palme d’Or in 2018. Like Father, Like Son took the Jury Prize in 2013. Monster won Best Screenplay and the Queer Palm in 2023. Nobody Knows earned a best actor award for Yagira Yuya in 2004. Seven of his films have been selected across Competition and Un Certain Regard, making him one of the most consistent presences in the festival’s modern era.
“Sheep in the Box” is in competition for this year’s Palme d’Or. Neon has acquired distribution rights for the United States, United Kingdom, and Australia. Toho will release the film in Japan on May 29.
The humanoid-robot premise puts the film in conversation with current anxieties about AI and grief, a territory Kore-eda has signaled interest in before, though never this directly. Whether the Cannes jury shares the audience’s enthusiasm will become clear when prizes are announced later in the festival.
