Festival Circuit 2023

[yoloswegmaster]

Todd Haynes' 'May December' also had its premiere today and it's receiving very positive reviews and is described as being a very funny and campy melodrama.

[John Cope]

What I saw stated that it was glacial and academic which isn't surprising coming from Haynes and is indeed what I would probably prefer (though Xan Brooks' comment that it's "too knowing" gives me pause).

[Finch]

Going by what I'm reading of the films screened so far, Killers of the Flower Moon is still my most anticipated title of those. The Zone of Interest sounds like something I'd possibly see theatrically but not something I'd buy on Blu-Ray or 4k. My life is getting shorter and the world is a troublesome place as it is, so I'm frankly seeking more comfort from the movies than a reminder of how awful we as a species can be to each other. More genre for me, less arthouse (unless it's something more gentle like Ozu, Kaurismaki or Petite Maman) going forward. Far From Heaven is the only Haynes film that clicked with me this far; I guess I'm not just on his wavelength. Wenders and Loach bore me to tears, and I haven't liked any Wes Anderson since Grand Budapest Hotel. Really hoping David Lynch has at least one or two more films in him in the years ahead.

[therewillbeblus]

Going by what I'm reading of the films screened so far, Killers of the Flower Moon is still my most anticipated title of those. The Zone of Interest sounds like something I'd possibly see theatrically but not something I'd buy on Blu-Ray or 4k. My life is getting shorter and the world is a troublesome place as it is, so I'm frankly seeking more comfort from the movies than a reminder of how awful we as a species can be to each other.

But isn’t Killers of the Flower Moon a 3.5 hour reminder of how awful we are as a species to each other, told through the comfort of genre and narrative and spectacle?

[John Cope]

I'm anticipating the Erice most of all and that screens tomorrow.

[yoloswegmaster]

Kaurismäki and Hausner screen tomorrow as well. Looking forward to seeing reactions to the former.

It also looks like Sandra Huller is having an excellent time at the festival, as the second film that she stars in (the Triet film) premiered today and both her performance and the film itself are getting very positive reviews. Maybe she will finally win the Best Actress award after being egregiously snubbed back in 2016 for Toni Erdmann.

[Omensetter]

Honestly, I've heard both John Cope and yoloswegmaster reactions regarding the Haynes, which I suppose is apropos for a Todd Haynes film: a formally controlled "high-camp" film. It sounds like a blast, anyway, and if Kaurismäki doesn't take home the Palme, then I hope Haynes can finally get some recognition from some awards body. Ceylan—or any other director already with a Palme—is too boring for the top prize, and I'm certainly for Ceylan and not taking him for granted. I anticipate the Glazer heavily like many, and I deeply respect the praises of those many who've already lauded it, but nonetheless there's something that gives me pause about his film, something I cannot helpfully not fully articulate since I avoid spoilers. Maybe it rules; I'll find out in the fall.

As yoloswegmaster mentioned, the Justine Triet film is now receiving the hosannas, which is exciting not just because it means more good (or at least interesting) films, but because it was wholly unexpected (at least on this end) for a Justine Triet film to be receiving the Cannes hosannas. Great for her. Her last film was entertaining middlebrow Competition filler (with a very amusing Hüller) that I only associated with another Cannes-approved entertaining middlebrow filler in Ozon's Double Lover as a double-bill featuring bad French therapists. With a veteran like Haynes apparently delivering, Triet seems far too green for the Palme, but obviously that shouldn't and won't be a consideration for the jury. I'd award Hüller from Triet's film and not look back; Cannes juries have been too generous with the prizes recently, with 2017 being the only year that featured seven although that may be better than giving Barton Fink or The Piano Teacher all the prizes, depending on one's perspectives, and I suppose no one really remembers or cares about Chris Menges's A World Apart horse-trading.

Kaurismäki-Erice-Hausner-Wes Anderson are next in line for their debut. Erice is the most fascinating, of course (what to expect?). I'll find it hard to not adore Kaurismäki's if he places even a little of himself in the film (I've seen the trailer). Hausner's film seems potentially sub-Lanthimos—or, if this is 2017, a Hanekette, but I love these chilly, "high-concept" films. It'll get a reaction, at least. I suspect Wes Anderson's will be treated as a Wes Anderson film based on Fremaux's presser description, but I'm apparently of the minority who thought his last film was his best one, and I'm beyond excited if he continues to go full Greenaway (whilst retaining his own sensibility).

If it seems like I'm Palme-speculating a bit too early, then it's because the Competition doesn't look too formidable or exciting after the Wes Anderson screens, which may be by design. It's basically a Friends-of-Fremaux boomer drift thereafter, with Moretti, Wenders, and Loach all lining-up for their red-carpet walk. I'd include Marco Bellochio in that on the basis of his last Competition film, but I know that's unfair. The change of scenery could be good for Wenders, but it's still 2023, and you'd still have to reach very far back for the last interesting Wenders fiction film (for me, I liked the location shooting of Butte, Montana, in Don't Come Knocking, but I fully get it if the fiction feature one lands on is Faraway, So Close! or Until the End of the World). I don't know who was pining for the two-and-half hour Tran Anh Hung cooking film with Binoche-Magimel, but its inclusion in Competition only confirms to me that this is something that exists. I wish it the best and a Triet-level surprise. Otherwise, I'd pin the last days of Competition being awakened by either Catherine Breillat or Alice Rohracher, or hopefully something from the sidebars, which have seemed silent this year, unfortunately.

[soundchaser]

Selfishly, I hope Kaurismäki wins the Palme purely because it'll mean better potential for distribution in my neck of the woods.

EDIT: Looks like it's opened to pretty strong reviews. Here's Peter Bradshaw's 4-star, and "my favorite movie of the 2023 Cannes film festival" from Pete Hammond. Sounds right up my alley!

[Matt]

Twenty years ago, as a big admirer of both the food-preparation scenes in The Vertical Ray of the Sun and Benoit Magimel’s face, I might have been the one pining for the new Tran Anh Hung. But now it sounds like something I’ll add to my Hulu watchlist and never watch.

[yoloswegmaster]

The Hausner screened yesterday and it received very mixed reviews, while the Erice received positive notices. As soundchaser mentioned, the Kaurismäki received very positive notices and seems to be the most crowdpleasing film to have screened so far. Today we have the Anderson and Bellocchio screening, alongside the Kitano, which I am very excited about.

On the distribution front, Neon has picked up the Triet, while Netflix (in a surprise move) has picked up the Haynes film. I wouldn't be surprised if Janus picked up the Kaurismäki as they were also the distributor for his last 2 films, and I wouldn't mind since the local arthouse theaters near me tend to show Janus licensed films regularily.

[Cipater]

Sounds like Thierry Fremaux truly fucked Erice, as detailed in an open letter. He was offered competition slots in Venice and Locarno, but turned them down because Fremaux had confirmed comp in Cannes. Quinzaine similarly offered to let his film open their section, but Fremaux waited so long to get back to Erice that they couldn't hold his spot. And in the end, Fremaux let his spot go to somebody else, which he didn't find out until at the press conference. Erice felt so betrayed by the whole ordeal that he didn't come to Cannes in person.

[tenia]

Frémaux really isn't having a fun 2023 edition. At this pace, the palmares will be shorter than the controversies he's in.

[MV88]

Asteroid City seems to be getting mostly positive reviews with a few notable detractors, which I suppose has become par for the course with Wes Anderson. The other films of his to which it seems to be drawing the most comparisons are The Life Aquatic and The Darjeeling Limited (for what it’s worth, Owen Gleiberman used these comparisons to place it in a category of films that even Wes Anderson diehards don’t like, which I don’t think is true at all), so I don’t know if that fares well for it being a surprise crossover hit like The Grand Budapest Hotel, but it’s sure to please his more ardent admirers. I think Wes Anderson has fully settled into being a director whose every new film you can know whether or not you’ll like it based on how much you like his previous work, and I don’t necessarily mean that as a bad thing.

[Omensetter]

On the contrary, it seems like a lot is working out for Frémaux this go-round. The Competition, at least, just finished a torrid stretch, and with people now sufficiently fatigued and perhaps trickling out of France as Moretti and Loach start to screen, their lasting memories will be of these ostensibly staggering films they just saw in quick succession. He scored the Scorsese, which really looks like it'll be the biggest film of the year, taking into account both critical and commercial considerations. His publicity gambits with Jeanne du Barry and The Idol worked out. Come year's end, he'll have a lot to point to much like he did with Top Gun: Maverick, Triangle of Sadness, and Elvis—although it looks like this year, he might have a much more robust Competition line-up, at least.

That said, he truly has a problem with not screening Spanish-language films, and it's tiring. I remember in 2014 when he was so smug about selecting Damián Szifron's Wild Tales, and Almodóvar was already too big for Frémaux before he arrived in 2001 (Almodóvar, of course, produced that Szifron, and he is friends with Frémaux). There's always programming concerns: Rodrigo Moreno's The Delinquents seems like the only true breakout of a seemingly quiet UCR, but it's also three-hours long and from a relative unknown. It's where it needs to be. Lisandro Alonso had the profile for Competition, and he should have been there. He even has stars. The potential last film of Víctor Erice, though? That's a gimme, and I don't doubt Frémaux deliberately sitting on it. Erice deserved better—he deserved Competition, of course, but I suppose at least people adore his film. I'm curious where his producers angle in here, and I don't think it's confirmed he had Competition offers from Locarno and Venice (although I don't why they wouldn't offer). It's a needless mess, and ultimately one that'll be confined to places like here.

It made sense in 2021, but getting rid of the identity-less Cannes Premiere sidebar would be a start. It transparently exists to withhold films from other festivals, but filmmakers (Erice excluded) still seem fine programming there. I suppose it makes sense to appease the French industry, but aside from that . . .

[The Fanciful Norwegian]

Sounds like Thierry Fremaux truly fucked Erice, as detailed in an open letter. He was offered competition slots in Venice and Locarno, but turned them down because Fremaux had confirmed comp in Cannes. Quinzaine similarly offered to let his film open their section, but Fremaux waited so long to get back to Erice that they couldn't hold his spot. And in the end, Fremaux let his spot go to somebody else, which he didn't find out until at the press conference. Erice felt so betrayed by the whole ordeal that he didn't come to Cannes in person.

Locarno or Venice should make an exception to their usual premiere requirements and program it in competition, with Erice in attendance.

[yoloswegmaster]

Erice isn't the only one who has problems with the way their film was presented, as it looks like Lisandro Alonso was also upset with Fremaux over not being in the competition.

Not the only controversy Fremaux has been in, as there is video of him in an altercation with a police officer.

[soundchaser]

Wenders's Perfect Days has gotten surprisingly positive reviews, with Guy Lodge calling it "his best narrative film in decades."

[Balthazar]

In the apparent absence of yoshimori, whose summaries I've always enjoyed, here are some thoughts on this year's Cannes, albeit without the same acerbity and indeed knowledge.

Abraham's Valley. To confirm, this was the extended cut in the correct AR. My first viewing; it was the humour that really hit home. They don't make them like this any more. Did they ever?

The Zone of Interest. Forgive the generality but I struggle to find much value in WW2/Holocaust depictions nowadays, given general cultural saturation. Perhaps that's simply to do with the tendencies of those who now depict it. Then there's the question of Holocaust representation. Glazer (and Levi and the sound designer) show something different is possible. The dread holds the attention extremely effectively.

Pictures of Ghosts. Kleber Mendonça Filho docu-fiction that's enlightening on the genesis of Neighbouring Sounds and Aquarius, and on the cinemas of Recife. The ending is a minor delight.

Inside the Yellow Cocoon Shell. Discovery of the festival. 3 hours of methodical long takes, memorable images, and uncertain faith. Wears its influences on its sleeve but as a debut it's astonishing.

About Dry Grasses. A superior Ceylan, qualified as that may sound to some. And there is a moment where he does something completely unexpected.

Anatomy of a Fall. A well-crafted courtroom drama, Trier getting the most from the material. Huller does particularly great work here.

Open Your Eyes. Has its longeurs, not all of them successful, but it culminates well and in a way very much in keeping with Erice's traditions.

May/December. A camp joy at times, but the darkness soon becomes apparent. Haynes' best 'Haynes' film since the 90s. The Netflix purchase makes depressing sense - it'll slot in straight next to the kind of stuff it's playing off.

Eureka. Alonso stretches himself further. One big fake-out (paying tribute to Jauja along the way) and then we gradually go down the rabbit hole. It very much worked for me.

In Our Day. A giant cat, alcohol-free beer (!) and a pointed intertitle, among other significant Hong merits.

The Pot au Feu. Received some good notices but even top-level food porn is middlebrow. That said, Magimel and Binoche could do the washing up and I'd glance at it.

The Book of Solutions. The biggest surprise. It's very much a trifle but the first half in particular has lots of belly laughs. Made up for Dupieux's absence.

The Feeling That The Time for Doing Something Has Passed. Superior US indie elevated by premise and editing.

Only The River Flows. Script needs work but otherwise an occasionally impressive police procedural.

Los Colonos. A 'civilising mission' spoiled by some poor English actors.

Fallen Leaves. Perfectly decent. Never gotten round to Kaurismaki's classics but clearly I should, because the post-2000 efforts all make me feel like I'm missing something.

The Buriti Flower and Mambar Pierrette: both fine features that build on the directors' prior promise.

A Song Sung Blue. Not terrible, but lightweight.

Breillat and Rohrwacher to follow tomorrow.

And it seems Koreeda will win something on Saturday - or so his friend was telling a waiter when they were sat near me at dinner the other evening.

[yoloswegmaster]

And it seems Koreeda will win something on Saturday - or so his friend was telling a waiter when they were sat near me at dinner the other evening.

This could actually be true since Koreeda is still at the festival and has made appearances at screenings for other films. Another rumour going around (though said to be taken with a big grain of salt) is that Black Files could be winning something as well.

[Omensetter]

I imagine Kore-eda's just enjoying himself and all the company of friends that he knows there. Dude got the first Competition screening, he has no pressure-filled premiere to attend that's his own, and he'd have no trouble getting tickets; I have no desire to attend Cannes and see some of the most-anticipated films of the year in busy, sleep-deprived conditions, but I'd definitely trade positions with him. He could win a prize, though. I suspect these prizes will be a lot more random than what the internet's guessing, as always, but hopefully the jury can stave off Black Flies and Moretti.

It's good to hear further confirmation regarding that Vietnamese film in Fortnight, balthazar. I've heard nothing but great things from it, and I imagine fairly soon I will stop referring to it as that Vietnamese film in Fortnight. The sidebars have been largely bereft of standouts, it seems, even from those who are looking, so something apparently Bi Gan-inspired sends me. It could still be true, I suppose, but I was afraid the new director of Fortnight was deliberately shunning Name directors based on some interview from earlier in the festival. Although I also imagine putting one of the greatest films of all-time and then screening its new restoration put the entire Quinzaine on notice!

I'm surprised to see all the positive notices for the Tran Anh Hung and Wim Wenders, two directors who hadn't really entered the new millennium in terms of their fiction features. I'm not terribly convinced Hung's film is up there with the top echelon, but the reviews are the reviews, and I'll realistically see it now. Having seen the Wenders trailer, it looks lovely! I'm happy to eat crow on my snide comments regarding the last films of the festival. It's a trailer, so I suppose Wenders's scenario looks a bit more overwrought than I hoped (I was hoping for something more low-key like Jarmusch's Paterson, I guess), but the critics seem to largely be going for it.

It'd be heartening to see more acquisitions, but if I recall correctly, Janus/Sideshow didn't really announce theirs until after the prize ceremony, and for all I know, they were dead-set on making a post-Drive My Car splash for their new aggressiveness. Sorry yoloswegmaster, but MUBI surprisingly has a better chance of getting Fallen Leaves in a theatre in my city, but Kaurismäki won't be left hanging regardless. Festivals belong to MUBI now, it seems—fortunately. The Netflix pick-up of the Haynes is a little annoying in that it'll only benefit Haynes in the short-term, assuming Netflix makes a genuine effort on something more idiosyncratic. Haynes already has Joaquin Phoenix lined-up for his next film (an NC-17-rated gay period-piece set in the 1930s), and he has a retrospective in Paris after the festival. Netflix has the money (I guess?), but I imagine it's long-term health would have been better with Focus or NEON because this film is just going to hang-out on its silly platform for years like a complete unknown—unless Criterion wishes to salvage it a year from now. That's currently what's happening with Alice Rohrwacher's Lazzaro felice, whose new feature screens today and of whom I am naturally hoping for raves.

[Pavel]

Well, now that everything has screened it seems it’s time for our useless predictions regarding which films a group of 9 people are going to like. Here’s where I’m at right now (I also imagine there’s going to be at least one tie):

Palme d’Or: The Zone of Interest
Grand Prix: Fallen Leaves
Jury Prize: Club Zero
Best Actor: Koji Yakusho, Perfect Days
Best Actress: Sandra Huller, Anatomy of a Fall
Best Director: Hirokazu Koreeda, Monster
Best Screenplay: Tran Anh Hung, The Pot-au-Feu

[JabbaTheSlut]

Club Zero gonna win something. Östlund’s producer Bober’s film.

[Michael Kerpan]

Favorite (current) actor and director get wins -- nice.

But I haven't even heard of Perfect Day (until now).

Oops -- didn't realize this was just a prediction. Premature celebration.

[Omensetter]

Final ScreenDaily Grid scores:

Monster (Kore-eda) — 2.3
Homecoming (Corsini) — 2.0
Youth (Spring) (Wang) — 2.8
Black Flies (Sauvaire) — 1.3
About Dry Grasses (Ceylan) — 2.8
The Zone of Interest (Glazer) — 2.8
Four Daughters (Ben Hania) — 2.3
Banel & Adama (Sy) — 2.2
May December (Haynes) — 3.0
Anatomy of a Fall (Triet) — 3.0
Firebrand (Aïnouz) — 1.8
Fallen Leaves (Kaurismäki) — 3.2
Club Zero (Hausner) — 1.7
Asteroid City (Anderson) — 2.2
Kidnapped (Bellochio) — 2.5
The Pout Au Feu (Tran) — 2.8
A Brighter Tomorrow (Moretti) — 1.3
Perfect Days (Wenders) — 2.9
Last Summer (Breillat) — 2.3
La chimera (Rohrwacher) — 2.9
The Old Oak (Loach) — 2.3
________________
In terms of Competition, this seemed as strong a year as any just based off poll scores. Last year, only two films scraped a 2.8 on the ScreenDaily Grid; this year, a staggering nine managed it, including the Rohrwacher film from yesterday.

[Omensetter]

The ceremony is in five hours, and there's a reliable word-bank of would-be winners already circulating.

I was just going to go with my pre-festival predictions as they seem sufficiently random and informed (insofar as possible), but Koji Yakusho is too perfect for Best Actor and is starting to feel like Renate Reinsve in 2021. Plus, someone needs to be Joel Embiid to Pavel's Jokić.

Previous prediction winners (one point for guessing the correct prizewinner, a tenth of a point for guessing a film which wins a prize):
2017 — JabbatheSlut (1.3) > Omensetter (1.2)
2018 — Omensetter (2.4) > DarkImbecile (1.4)
2019 — (tie) Cremildo, DarkImbecile, Omensetter (1.3)
2021 — Pavel (3.2) > soundchaser (2.3), Omensetter (2.3), Blutarsky (2.1)
2022 — Pavel (2.1) > JabbatheSlut (1.3)
_________________
Palme d'Or: Aki Kaurismäki, Fallen Leaves
Grand Prix: Hirokazu Kore-eda, Monster
Director: Jonathan Glazer, The Zone of Interest
Screenplay: Nuri Bilge Ceylan, Ebru Ceylan, Akin Aksu, About Dry Grasses
Actor: Koji Yakusho, Perfect Days
Actress: Sandra Hüller, Anatomy of a Fall
Jury Prix: Ken Loach, The Old Oak