As is customary, the Cannes Film Festival is usually imbued with an accompanying chorus of commotion, but this year’s 77th installment promises an exceptionally tumultuous and intriguing symphony amid a milieu of war, protests, potential labour strikes, and a rapidly cascading #MeToo movement that France had initially resisted. With the serpentine red carpet unrolling from the grand edifice of the Palais des Festivals on Tuesday, this backdrop is set to amplify tensions and imbue this year’s festival with an unprecedented drama quotient.
Placard-wielding festival workers poised for a strike, the palpable reverberations of the Israel-Hamas conflict echoing in France, home to the continent’s largest Jewish and Arab communities, and the omnipresent shadow of Russia’s war in Ukraine are all ingredients in the 77th Cannes’ potent brew. Layer this with the typical Cannes-associated uncertainties including the future of cinema and the growing influence of artificial intelligence, and the stage appears set for a dramatic saga.
Cannes has long fostered an “expect the unexpected” atmosphere, and in keeping with these turbulent times, this year’s film lineup is brimming with intrigue, curiosity, and question marks. Just days before his latest cinematic offering “The Seed of the Sacred Fig” was due to compete, the Iranian director Mohammad Rasoulof was dealt an eight-year prison sentence by the Islamic Revolutionary Court. Despite this setback, his film remains on the schedule, a testament to the festival’s commitment to the art of filmmaking.
Undoubtedly, one of the most eagerly anticipated entries is Francis Ford Coppola’s self-funded opus “Megalopolis.” Coppola himself is familiar with Cannes’ propensity for high-stakes drama, having won his second Palme d’Or over four decades ago for his unfinished cut of “Apocalypse Now.”
With the forthcoming U.S. presidential elections on the horizon, Cannes will premiere Ali Abbasi’s “The Apprentice,” featuring Sebastian Stan as a young Donald Trump. This political spotlight will be complemented by an array of new films from eminent figures in cinema, including Kevin Costner, Paolo Sorrentino, Sean Baker, Yorgos Lanthimos, and Andrea Arnold, promising a potential powder keg at Cannes. The volatile blend will be ignited further still by the apocalyptic epic “Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga.” This dystopian spectacle heralds the return of director George Miller, a Cannes veteran, to a festival he once described as “optimal cinema.”
Tuesday’s official opener is “The Second Act,” a French comedy by Quentin Dupieux featuring Léa Seydoux, Louis Garrel, and Vincent Lindon. High-profile honorees, Meryl Streep and George Lucas, are on hand to receive honorary Palme d’Or awards at the opening and closing ceremonies, respectively.
However, the spotlight’s searing beams might linger on French director and actor Judith Godrèche even more than Streep or Lucas. Godrèche stirred the French cinema world with sexual assault allegations against filmmakers Benoît Jacquot and Jacques Doillon, charges they have since denied.
Godrèche’s accusations mark another chapter in the #MeToo movement’s impact on the world’s largest film gathering. Cannes, often criticized for its lack of invitation to female filmmakers, now throws its full weight behind Godrèche, all while girding against further #MeToo revelations that might arise.
The festival will welcome luminaries from cinema’s storied legacy, including Paul Schrader, who, nearly half a century ago, attended the festival for Martin Scorsese’s “Taxi Driver.” This year, Schrader returns to Cannes, bearing his film “Oh, Canada” in competition for the Palme d’Or.
As is tradition, the Palme d’Or will be awarded by a jury, this year helmed by Greta Gerwig. Among the rising stars sure to make their mark this year is French director Julien Colonna, whose debut film “The Kingdom” promises a fresh perspective in contrast to regular mob-film offerings. His film, borne from his personal anxieties about becoming a father, invokes memories of his own adolescence.
The 77th Cannes Film Festival, thus, promises to be a tapestry woven with threads of intrigue, anticipation, drama, honour, resilience, and rebellion.
