Look Back

Look Back - image - a film by Koreeda Hirokazu
Look Back - image - a film by Koreeda Hirokazu
Look Back - image - a film by Koreeda Hirokazu
Look Back - image - a film by Koreeda Hirokazu
OPENING NIGHT - 2026 JAPANESE FILM FESTIVAL (FROM 7 OCT)
Look Back - poster - a film by Koreeda Hirokazu
Might make your heart explode. With Look Back, Kore-eda reminds us why he’s one of modern cinema’s great humanists.
Lovingly crafted. A delicate charmer about teen friendship and art, joy and sorrow. Fragile, but alive with beauty and heart. The film’s lingering poignancy is undeniable.
Poignant. Feels like a manga coming alive on the screen in real time. A one-of-a-kind gem, stunningly human. Not to be missed.
Rich and dazzling. An invitation to create and savour those beautiful yesterdays while you still have the chance, because tomorrow will be here before you know it, if it even comes at all.
Kore-eda has hit the bullseye again. Every minute is a well-polished treat. I didn’t want it to end.
Visually dazzling and narratively charming. Upbeat and satisfying, it is the kind of film that appeals to virtually all ages and will certainly bring a smile to Kore-eda fans.
So pleasurable. As the film played for press at Venice Film Festival’s Salle Darsena, it elicited a reaction among the audience that I can only describe as collective decompression. The transcendent delicacy of Koreeda’s images - a collection of trains, street scenes, and wide-open skies are enough to warm the heart and soothe the soul. It is a delightful return to form.
Deeply satisfying. A moving tribute to friendship. The preciousness of a child’s world can create a barrier for those who don’t automatically melt at the sight of a youngster’s smile. But then, as often happens in Kore-eda’s child-focused body of work, there’s a moment when, unexpectedly, what’s on screen suddenly hits a point of transcendence and resistance falls away. The payoff is worth the wait.
Director: Koreeda Hirokazu
Cast: Deguchi Natsuki, Makita Aju, Nanase Fūri, Okada Rokka
Duration: 100mins
Country of Origin: Japan
M
Mature Themes
Might make your heart explode. With Look Back, Kore-eda reminds us why he’s one of modern cinema’s great humanists.
Lovingly crafted. A delicate charmer about teen friendship and art, joy and sorrow. Fragile, but alive with beauty and heart. The film’s lingering poignancy is undeniable.
Poignant. Feels like a manga coming alive on the screen in real time. A one-of-a-kind gem, stunningly human. Not to be missed.
Rich and dazzling. An invitation to create and savour those beautiful yesterdays while you still have the chance, because tomorrow will be here before you know it, if it even comes at all.
Kore-eda has hit the bullseye again. Every minute is a well-polished treat. I didn’t want it to end.
Visually dazzling and narratively charming. Upbeat and satisfying, it is the kind of film that appeals to virtually all ages and will certainly bring a smile to Kore-eda fans.
So pleasurable. As the film played for press at Venice Film Festival’s Salle Darsena, it elicited a reaction among the audience that I can only describe as collective decompression. The transcendent delicacy of Koreeda’s images - a collection of trains, street scenes, and wide-open skies are enough to warm the heart and soothe the soul. It is a delightful return to form.
Deeply satisfying. A moving tribute to friendship. The preciousness of a child’s world can create a barrier for those who don’t automatically melt at the sight of a youngster’s smile. But then, as often happens in Kore-eda’s child-focused body of work, there’s a moment when, unexpectedly, what’s on screen suddenly hits a point of transcendence and resistance falls away. The payoff is worth the wait.

OFFICIAL SELECTION - 2026 VENICE INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL (In Competition)
OFFICIAL SELECTION - 2026 TORONTO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL (Special Presentation)
OFFICIAL SELECTION - 2026 BFI LONDON FILM FESTIVAL (In Competition)
OPENING NIGHT SELECTION - 2026 JAPANESE FILM FESTIVAL

Palme d’Or-winning director Koreeda Hirokazu (Shoplifters, Like Father Like Son, The Truth) brings his signature humanism to LOOK BACK, a deeply moving adaptation of Tatsuki Fujimoto’s acclaimed 'one-shot' manga about the wild emotional swings of childhood friendship, and the process of finding your voice through art.

Nikaho City, northern Japan. Fourth-grader Fujino enjoys the admiration of her classmates, who delight in the four-panel comics she publishes in the school newspaper. But her confidence is shaken when Kyōmoto. – a reclusive classmate whose social anxiety keeps her from attending school - begins submitting work of extraordinary and superior skill. What starts as quiet rivalry soon evolves into a profound creative partnership, bound by a shared devotion to illustration. As they grow together - and eventually apart - their journey traces the fragile interplay of connection, ambition and regret...

First published on Shonen Jump+ in 2021, Look Back sparked immediate buzz, recording 2.5 million views on its first day. It has sold over 900,000 copies in Japan and has been published in 37 countries worldwide with more than 750,000 copies sold internationally. Koreeda’s adaptation follows Oshiyama Kiyotaka’s 2024 animated feature adaptation of the same name, a critical and box office success that earned a Japan Academy Film Prize for Best Animated Feature, and a nomination for Best Animated Feature (Independent) at the Annie Awards.

Look Back - poster - a film by Koreeda Hirokazu
OPENING NIGHT - 2026 JAPANESE FILM FESTIVAL (FROM 7 OCT)
Advance tickets now on sale! Click your preferred venue below for details.
CANBERRA (7-11 Oct, 25 & 28 Nov)
NewActon - Palace Electric
PERTH (13-18 Oct, 25 & 28 Nov)
City - Palace Raine Square
MELBOURNE (9-15 Nov, 25 & 28 Nov)
City - Kino Cinema
BRISBANE (12-15 Nov, 25 & 28 Nov)
City - Palace Barracks
SYDNEY (17-28 Nov)
City - Palace Central
Leichhardt - Palace Norton Street
Moore Park - Palace Moore Park
ADELAIDE (25 & 28 Nov)
City - Palace Nova Eastend
MORE TO COME...
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