Cannes. Tonight the awards will be handed out at the Cannes Film Festival. Favorites include star-studded films – and a story about political protests in Iran.
The latest application for the competition once again caused great excitement at the Cannes Film Festival: “The Seed of the Sacred Fig” is now considered one of the favorites for the awards ceremony, which takes place today.
The film by Iranian director Mohammed Rassulof, who fled his home country a few days ago, talks about the effects of political protests in Iran on a family. It is not only an extremely politically relevant film, but also a suspense film with complex characters.
This time, 22 works compete for the film festival’s main prize, the Palme d’Or. One of the critics’ favorites is “All We Imagine as Light”, by Indian director Payal Kapadia. The film follows several women as they try to navigate their everyday lives in Mumbai and bond along the way.
Selena Gomez in “Emilia Perez”
Otherwise, this year’s favorite films at Cannes wowed audiences with drastic imagery and stylish optics. There was a lot of talk about the musical “Emilia Pérez” by Jacques Audiard. The film, in which pop star Selena Gomez plays a role, seems like a strange idea in theory: “Emilia Pérez” is set in a gangster environment and tells the story of a Mexican mafia boss who has his gender changed to female in order to gain power. start a new life. There is singing and dancing.
Audiard – who won the Palme d’Or at Cannes in 2015 for his film “Demons and Miracles” – combines elements of musicals, social drama and noir thrillers. This unexpected mix was particularly well received by the public.
An experiment with brutal consequences
“The Substance” by Coralie Fargeat also has surprises. The body horror film starring Demi Moore and Margaret Qualley speaks intelligently about the pain that can result from an obsession with beauty. The focus is on once-famous TV icon Elizabeth Sparkle (Demi Moore), who uses a mysterious substance to create a younger version of herself (Margaret Qualley). The experience has brutal and bloody consequences.
“Emilia Pérez” and “The Substance” were the most talked about films at Cannes. But critics had another favorite: Sean Baker’s “Anora.” The tragicomedy with elements of gangster films begins like a “Cinderella” story. It tells the story of striptease dancer Ani, who meets the son of an oligarch named Vanya.
Great acting and unexpected twists
In his youthful carelessness, the young man marries Ani after only a few days – much to the chagrin of his parents, who do everything in their power to reverse it. The fast-paced film was praised for its intelligence, great actors and unexpected twists.
Last year, Justine Triet’s legal drama “Anatomy of a Case”, with Sandra Hülser in the lead role, received the Palme d’Or. Various other awards are also given out at Cannes, for example for the best actors. This year, a jury chaired by “Barbie” director Greta Gerwig will decide the winners.
© dpa-infocom, dpa:240525-99-157668/2 (dpa)