The only presumption that makes sense about why the 11 am press screening for Daniel Noah‘s Max Rose was cancelled is that the sales guys were afraid that the critics would savage it and that they might be forced to take less money as a result. The Rose team wanted the public screening (which is happening at the Salle du Soixantieme this evening at 7:30 pm) to be the only venue, but the festival pushed for a press screening. Or so I gather. At least I got to attend the Jerry Lewis press conference, which happened at 2:30 pm.

Lewis is 87, and he’s still plenty sharp. I laughed out loud several times. He’s cruel and dismissive, okay, but he’s fucking funny.

Choice Lewis-isms: (1) When a journalist asked Lewis to comment about hsi ex-partner Dean Martin, Lewis said “he died, you know” (and it got a huge laugh); (2) When an Italian journalist asked a longish, complex question in a loud and somewhat heated voice, Lewis interrupted and said “why are you shouting?” When the guy toned it down Lewis said “would you speak up please?”; (3) Asked to name his favorite female comedians, Lewis said Cary Grant and Burt Reynolds. (Wells aside: As Lewis has alluded to Grant’s allegedly feminine nature, I could imagine Grant being a dominant sexual partner with some guy but I could never imagine him being submissive — his charm and personality were just too commanding.)