Cannes Diary #7: Park and Cronenberg are back with incredible movies

by Elisa Giudici

The masters are back with masterful movies! Seeing Park Chan-wook’s Decision to Leave followed by David Cronenberg’s Crimes of future with only a 20 minutes break between them seemed almost a waste. These two are among the most (rightfully) hyped movies of the entire year and of this Cannes edition. I really wanted some time after the first especially to think fully on what I had just seen, savoring the first impression instead of deep diving into an equally immersive but radically different film experience. Especially considering that one of the two is a perfect movie, a rare five out of five stars, 10 out of 10, or whatever other token of appreciation you can imagine.

Those two films and a new French movie after the jump...

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Cannes Diary #6: Something weird this way comes

by Elisa Giudici

This (unconscious?) cosplay of Jesse Buckley doing Paul Verhoeven’s The 4th Man during the Q&A session for Men made my day!  After the jump some surreal comedy, a horror oddity, a terrifying thriller that might contend for awards, and a directorial debut... 

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Cannes at Home: Day 5 – A Tale of Two Victors

by Cláudio Alves

The fourth day of Main Competition screenings saw the premiere of two films by former Palme d'Or winners. First up, Swedish auteur Ruben Östlund returned to the Croisette after taking the festival's top honor with The Square. Triangle of Sadness is the director's first film since then, perchance indicating a newfound obsession with geometrical titling. Reactions have skewed positive, though there are dissenting voices. Then, it was time for Cristian Mungiu to present R.M.N, this year's first major Palme contender as far as critical reception is concerned (Elisa's review). It should be noted that this is the fourth time Mungiu has presented a film in the Main Competition – all three previous projects won prizes, setting a good precedent for the Romanian master. 

Logically, when discussing these laurelled artists, the mind drifts to their victorious flicks. Today's Cannes at Home selections are The Square and 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days…

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Cannes Gowns, Round 6: Alicia, Marion, Isabelle, and Tilda

Previous Cannes 2022 Fashion Polls: 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 

Alicia Vikander arrived at Cannes to promote her new series Irma Vep (finally ending the drought of her once ubiquitous husband Michael Fassbender in the public eye - he wore a simple tux), Marion Cotillard was on hand for the premiere of her new film Brothers and Sisters (which was poorly reviewed, alas) and daringly wore what looked like shorts to her premiere. Isabelle Huppert was in town for that buzzy donkey flick EO (review) and though she wore a simple black gown for the premiere she then showed up in this eye catching sure-to-be-divisive full body look thereafter. Fashion icon Tilda Swinton never leaves Cannes after only one lewk so she was out again after her 3000 Years premiere wearing a much different more adrogynous look.

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Cannes at Home: Day 4 – Christmas on the Nile

by Cláudio Alves

French filmmaker Arnaud Desplechin seems to be on a downward trajectory. His new film, Brother and Sister, has been slaughtered by critics at Cannes, the worst-reviewed Main Competition title so far. For those legions who hoped this would be the year when Marion Cotillard finally won the festival's Best Actress prize, better luck next time! Tarik Saleh's Boy from Heaven was more warmly received despite some cries of conventionality. Through procedural tropes and thriller stylings, the Swedish director explores themes of corruption in Islam, a recurring motif throughout his filmography. These Cannes contenders are both directors' second 2022 pictures – Desplechin's Deception is a new MUBI release, while Saleh's The Contractor has been available for a while. Unfortunately, neither title got much in the way of critical praise.

To keep the Cannes at Home series a celebratory exercise, today's selection looks back at lauded works from these auteurs – A Christmas Tale and The Nile Hilton Incident… 

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