Our November Leftist Movie Night is the Japanese modern classic SHOPLIFTERS, directed by Hirokazu Koree-da. The film made headlines after winning the Palme d’Or at the 2018 Cannes Film Festival, drawing the ire of then-Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who notably declined to congratulate the filmmakers on their victory.

The plot follows members of the invisible Japanese underclass: a dysfunctional band of outsiders living in the margins of Tokyo. After one of their shoplifting sessions, Osamu (Lily Franky) and his son Shota (Kairi Jo) come across a little girl in the freezing cold. At first reluctant to shelter the girl, Osamu's wife Nobuyo (Sakura Ando) agrees to take care of her after learning of the hardships she faces. Although the family is poor, barely making enough money to survive through petty crime, they seem to live happily together until an unforeseen incident reveals hidden secrets, testing the bonds that unite them.

Criticized by allies of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) in Japan for "condoning crime", SHOPLIFTERS is a humanist critique of capitalism that explores what it means to be a family in a cruel world. Come see one of the most moving pictures of last ten years.