Kehr on Cannes contenders

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"The head's-on favorite to win the Cannes Filjm Festival's Palme d'Or, at least to judge from the critics' poll published by Le Film Francais, appears to be the Coen Brothers' No Country for Old Men. It's the one film that's attracting support from both the highbrow critics (Positif, Les Inrocks, Le Monde) and the more popular press (Studio, L'Express, Le Point, Premiere)." -- from Dave Kehr's analysis on www.davekehr.com.

Support for Julian Schnabel's The Diving Bell and the Butterfly is definitely being heard up and down the Croisette, but there are those, also, who feel as I did. Butterfly delivers a stirring theme and has been directed with invention and assurance, but at the same time it makes you feel just as trapped as former Elle editor Jean-Dominique Bauby (Mathieu Amalric), who can't move or express anything except with the blinking of his left eye. I was saying two things to myself as I watched it: (1) "This is a very sensitive and beautiful film" and (b) "Let me out!"

Amalric will probably win the Best Actor award, though.

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Posted by Jeffrey Wells on May 24, 2007 at 8:03 AM

comment #1

JD says ...

Johnny Depp was once listed as playing the Amalric role. Who knows, that might have been interesting. It's just one more thing we can probably blame on the Pirates juggernaut.

Posted by JD at May 24, 2007 9:20 AM

comment #2

facls says ...

It's very rare for an "odds-on" favorite to actually win at Cannes, especially a movie from a previous winner (The Coens, in this case).

Posted by facls at May 24, 2007 1:36 PM

comment #3

Noah says ...

Amalric is such a wonderful actor. He gives one of the most amazing performances I've ever seen in Kings and Queen. He was also terrific in his small role in Munich.

Posted by Noah at May 24, 2007 1:47 PM

comment #4

Spacelamb says ...

facls is right, Cannes loves to pull the rug out from under your feet. Major upsets are par for the course. We're lucky The Brown Bunny didn't win.

Posted by Spacelamb at May 24, 2007 11:13 PM

comment #5

Jayne Gacey says ...

Has a Palme D'Or ever won Best Picture at the Academy Awards? I'm asking non-rhetorically, though I'd tend to say no. Maybe Marty?

Posted by Jayne Gacey at May 24, 2007 11:34 PM

comment #6

PastePotPete says ...

Unless I missed one, the last (and only) film to win the Palme D'or and Best Picture at the Academy Awards was Herb Stempel's all time favorite movie, Marty. 1955.

Though the Pianist came close, and The Long Weekend seems to have been part of some mass of Palme D'or winners after WW2.

Posted by PastePotPete at May 25, 2007 12:30 AM

comment #7