- Title: Star-studded Cannes Film Festival about to kick off
- Date: 10th May 2016
- Summary: CANNES, FRANCE (FILE - MAY, 2012) (REUTERS) **** WARNING CONTAINS FLASH PHOTOGRAPHY **** VARIOUS OF KRISTEN STEWART (R) AND TOM STURRIDGE (L) POSING FOR PHOTOS PHOTOGRAPHERS TAKING PICTURES FROM RIGHT TO LEFT TOM STURRIDGE, SAM RILEY, KRISTEN STEWART POSING CANNES, FRANCE (FILE - MAY, 2014) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF RYAN GOSLING AND CHRISTINA HENDRICKS ON THE RED CARPET
- Embargoed: 25th May 2016 21:15
- Keywords: Cannes Film Festival Cafe society Kristen Stewart Woody Allen Ryan Gosling
- Location: CANNES, FRANCE / UNKOWN FILM LOCATIONS
- City: CANNES, FRANCE / UNKOWN FILM LOCATIONS
- Country: France
- Topics: Film
- Reuters ID: LVA0024H83O07
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: The 69th Cannes film festival has what it takes to be a vintage edition despite security concerns as glamour looks set to prevail over fear on the French Riviera.
Hollywood royalty are set to descend on the southern French town for the opening on Wednesday (May 11), with Julia Roberts making her Cannes debut in Jodie Foster's out-of competition film 'Money Monster' alongside George Clooney, and Javier Bardem and Charlize Theron star in Sean Penn's 'The Last Face'.
"The more stars the better, the more stars the better for the festival, I am not saying it is better for the journalists, it is not better for the critics; it creates more of an annoyance if you want to say. Just getting past security, going down the street it becomes really enervating. However obviously the more stars the more press, the more press, the more sponsorship, the more sponsorship, the more money. More stars are always better," Variety critic Jay Weissberg told Reuters.
The May 11-22 cinema extravaganza opens for the third time with a Woody Allen movie 'Cafe Society'. The film features Jesse Eisenberg and Kristen Stewart, who has already been dubbed the 'Queen of Cannes' by organisers.
"It is nice that Kirsten Stewart has two films in competition here and in the last couple of years, particularly after the Olivier Assayas film the 'Clouds of Sils Maria', we all suddenly woke up and realised even those of us that knew she was a good actress before, we suddenly thought finally she has got a terrific director, a great script, how nice it is to see her being able to do what we all knew she could do to begin with. So is she queen of Cannes? Maybe this year she is and that is a nice title for her to have," said Weissberg.
Although he has never been in competition, Allen is a Cannes darling -- one of several familiar faces to grace this year's festival.
"Thierry Fremaux the director of the festival is somebody who likes to reward his friends, he's somebody who likes to have the people that he knows come back year after year after year. Woody Allen of course makes a film year after year after year. In the last three years he has made films that people have generally liked, they are pleasant films, personally I don't think they are great films at all but they are enjoyable so is it a nice opener? Yes," added Weissberg.
Several directors in the main competition this year have already been primed on the Croisette.
The Dardenne brothers, who present 'The Unknown Girl', have won the highest distinction, the Palme d'Or, twice, Ken Loach, in Cannes with 'I, Daniel Blake' has won it once.
Bruno Dumont (Slack Bay), Jim Jarmusch with 'Paterson' and a documentary on Iggy Pop (Gimme Danger), Park Chan-wook (Agassi/The Handmaiden) and Pedro Almodovar (Julieta) have all been previously rewarded with other distinctions.
For Weissberg one of the highlights of the film will be British Director Andrea Arnold's road trip movie American Honey.
"One of the films I am very much looking forward to is Andrea Arnold's film. It is her first film in the United States, it stars Shia Labeouf which is a hit or miss proposition, he is always good for copy of course but I respect her enormously as a filmmaker and I think she can do a really fascinating take on what America is," he said.
Jarmusch's films are two of five distributed by Amazon as the Service of Video on Demand (SVOD) giant makes its first appearance in Cannes.
"I think ultimately not only Cannes but every film festival is going to have to be more open to the idea that players like Amazon, Netflix are taking a large chunk of the market and we have to open ourselves up to the idea that this is what is happening, this is the future. Whether we like it or not, why do we dislike it actually? We have to begin to question that, it seems to me that everything is kind of a knee jerk, oh no, no, we don't want them. Well why? Let's talk about what they can give to us and what maybe we can give to them," said Weissberg.
Not up for distinction but still much awaited is Steven Speilberg's 'The BFG', based on the novel by Roald Dahl.
For all the gloss and glitter, security will be intense as France is still facing a high risk of attack, French Interior minister Bernard Cazeneuve said on Tuesday.
The atmosphere was relaxed ahead of the opening ceremony, however, with just a few extra security cordons around the Palais des Festivals.
Twenty one films are in competition for the Palme d'Or prize during the ten-day festival. - Copyright Holder: FILE REUTERS (CAN SELL)
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