Cannes Diary: The past and future of cinema from "Napoleon" to VR

Once again, I have the privilege of sharing my experiences at the Cannes Film Festival here on The Film Experience with a daily diary of impressions and reviews from the Croisette.

by Elisa Giudici

Today we delve into both the rich history and the uncertain future of cinema. Some foresee a fate entwined with AI and irrelevance, while others celebrate the enduring vitality of an art form that blazed its trail over a century ago. This year’s Cannes opening reflects on the industry's past glories and its current challenges, not shying away from the unease about what lies ahead, evoking the dizzying excitement of days gone by...

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"Anatomy of a Fall" wins big at the Césars

by Nathaniel R

the great Juliette Binoche announcing Best Actress at the César Awards on Feb 23, 2024 in Paris

This has not been an awards season full of surprises. The expected winners just keep on winning whether we're talking awards bodies in the US, UK, or France. The 49th annual César Awards took place Friday in Paris with the expected winner, Justine Triet's Anatomy of a Fall, taking home six prizes. The nomination leader, Thomas Cailley's mutant adventure The Animal Kingdom also won multiple prizes with five statues in total... all for craft awards.  As expected the stupidly maligned but brilliant Oscar submission The Taste of Things was shut out from any wins after a paltry nomination showing.

The winners of each category and a few comments after the jump... 

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Berlinale #7: France is the big winner at Berlin

By Elisa Giudici

Mati Diop and Lupita Nyong'o at the awards ceremony © Ali Ghandtschi / Berlinale 2024

There was a clear standout at the 74th annual Berlinale: French cinema. Given the competition lineup, France secured all three podium positions one way or another. Let's start with the Golden Bear, naturally. The jury, led by Oscar-winning actress Lupita Nyong'o, crowned a new documentary by French-Senegalese director Mati Diop (of Atlantics fame) as the winner. It's a double win for French cinema: not only is Diop a French citizen, but she's also a product of the Cannes Film Festival, a source of national pride.

Her winning documentary, Dahomey, is a low-budget project that might have struggled in the bright spotlight at Cannes... 

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International Oscar - French finalists and Chart updates

by Nathaniel R

Anatomy of a Fall

Oscar often shouted "Viva La France!" in the 20th century. They're still enthused in the 21st century but they're no longer broadcasting it as loudly. France hasn't won since 1992's Indochine 31 years ago. Still they've continued to collect frequent ominations. In fact, they're the most nominated country of all time by such a significant margin that it's difficult to imagine another country catching up (especially with closest rival in this regard, Italy, being less frequently nominated these days). This year France is choosing between five pictures, two of which (at least) would make formidable contenders if selected. The other three might, too, but their profiles are considerably lower at the moment. The finalists are... 

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First & Last 012

Can you guess the movie from its first and last shot?

For this one let's try just the first shot. The last, after the jump will surely give it away...

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