'The Beloved,' with Catherine Deneuve, will close the Cannes Film Festival

 

The Cannes Film Festival has announced that "Les Bien-Aimes" ("The Beloved"), a French-language romantic comedy set across Europe in different parts of the 20th century, will be the closing-night movie.

Catherine Deneuve stars in the movie, which is directed by Cannes veteran Christophe Honore (he came in 2007 with "Love Songs") and features a rare acting appearance by Milos Forman. The Czech auteur was most recently, and perhaps most famously, seen by American audiences a decade ago in the religious comedy "Keeping the Faith," in which he played a clergyman.

"Beloved" is set in Paris, Prague and London, making for a neat bookend with the Paris-set opening film, Woody Allen's "Midnight in Paris."

The closing-night film is not typically one of the high-profile slots at Cannes -- last year's premiere, for instance, was Charlotte Gainsbourgh's relatively little-known "The Tree" -- with most eyes trained that weekend on the festival's prestigious Palme d'Or and other prizes.

Still, the "Beloved" news means there will be a Cannes return for Deneuve, a veteran of the festival who has brought numerous movies to the Croisette; she also served as a vice president of the jury in 1994 and received a special jury prize for her body of work in 2008.

Festival organizers on Thursday also announced that they will pay tribute to Egyptian cinema with a one-day screening of 10 short films centered on the country's recent revolution. The festival, which runs May 11- 22, plans on honoring a specific country each year, beginning with the feting of Egypt.

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-- Steven Zeitchik
Twitter.com/ZeitchikLAT

Photo: Catherine Deneuve in Beverly Hills on March 9. Credit:  Liz O. Baylen / Los Angeles Times

Cannes 2011: Lineup shows Malick, Almodovar and 'The Beaver,' but no Payne or Cronenberg

The Cannes Film Festival on Thursday morning unveiled the lineup for this year's edition, announcing several highly anticipated titles and confirming that a pair of buzz movies won't be there.

"The Tree of Life," Terrence Malick's long-awaited coming-of-age opus starring Brad Pitt and Sean Penn, will play in a festival competition slot, capping a year of waiting after the film was not completed in time for last year's festival.

Spanish auteur Pedro Almodovar will bring his third film in six years to Cannes when he unveils "The Skin I Live In," a revenge story about a plastic surgeon. Like "Tree of Life," "Skin" comes into the festival with U.S. distribution.

But several other anticipated movies won't be making the trip to the Croisette: the George Clooney-starring "The Descendants," Alexander Payne's first directorial effort since his Oscar-winning "Sideways" in 2004, won't be at the festival. Nor will the Carl Jung-Sigmund Freud drama "A Dangerous Method" from Canadian auteur David Cronenberg.

"The Beaver," the Jodie Foster-directed drama starring Mel Gibson as a mentally unstable man, will play an out-of-competition slot after previously world-premiering at SXSW. The film had been scheduled to open in limited release in the U.S. on May 6, which is before the festival begins; it remains to be seen whether that date holds. Also occupying out-of-competition slots are the animated sequel "Kung-Fu Panda 2" and the live-action sequel "Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides."

Cannes typically offers one or more slots to high-profile Hollywood films; in recent years "Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps" and "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull" each premiered at the festival.  This year's festival will offer an unusually consolidated schedule for some of its higher-profile English-language films -- "Pirates," "Tree" and Woody Allen's "Midnight in Paris" all open within two weeks of their Cannes debuts.

Rounding out the lineup, Lars von Trier, who created one of the noisiest controversies in years with the premiere of his explicit "Antichrist" two years ago, comes back with "Melancholia," a sci-fi-infused drama starring Kirsten Dunst and Kiefer Sutherland. Lynn Ramsay brings her family drama "We Need To Talk About Kevin," based on the bestselling book, to the festival in a competition slot.

And the Dardenne brothers, the Belgian filmmaking duo who have already won the Palme d'Or twice, will return to the festival for the first time in three years with their drama "The Kid With the Bike." (For the full listing of titles, please visit the official Cannes website, which will be updated throughout the day.)

A large contingent of female directors will represent at the festival: In addition to Foster and Ramsay, Julia Leigh ("Sleeping Beauty"), Jennifer Yuh ("Panda") and Nadine Labaki ("Where Do We Go Now?") all have films at Cannes.

Festival chief Thierry Fremaux announced the selections at a news conference in Paris. The Cannes Film Festival will hold its 64th annual gathering beginning on May 12. Several (likely smaller) films could still be added to the lineup.

As has become de rigeur in recent years, a wide range of celebrities will come to the French Riviera during the festival. Pitt is likely to turn up for the premiere of "Tree of Life," partner Angelina Jolie could come to promote "Panda," indie darlings Ryan Gosling and Carey Mulligan are expected to attend on behalf of competition film "Drive," and "Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides" could result in Cannes appearances for Johnny Depp and Penelope Cruz. Sean Penn, who has two films there (the other is Paolo Sorrentino's "This Must Be the Place"), remains a wild card, as he often is at Cannes.

This year's lineup is slightly heavier on American fare than other recent years: Allen's "Paris" opens the festival, and Malick will of course play in competition. Gus Van Sant, who is the last American to win a Palme for a scripted film ("Elephant" in 2003) will bring a new movie, the relationship drama "Restless," to the festival's Un Certain Regard section, as will American Sean Durkin, who takes his Sundance sensation "Martha Marcy May Marlene" to the Croisette. Meanwhile, American actor and filmmaker Robert De Niro will head up the main competition jury.

A Cannes slot can often set a film on the path to critical and awards acclaim. Last year, Oscar winner "Inside Job" and Oscar nominees "Biutiful" and "Another Year" both world-premiered on the Croisette. The festival's most prestigious prize, the Palme d'Or, was given to the impressionistic Thai film "Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives."

-- Steven Zeitchik
Twitter.com/ZeitchikLAT

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Photo: Sean Penn in "The Tree of Life." Credit: Fox Searchlight

Gus van Sant's 'Restless' will open Cannes' Un Certain Regard section

The Cannes Film Festival has announced that Gus Van Sant's "Restless" will kick off its Un Certain Regard section when the international film festival begins on May 12.

The Mia Wasikowska-Henry Hopper relationship drama was widely believed to be heading to Cannes, but it was unclear what slot it would occupy, and in what section. Un Certain Regard is the second-most prestigious competition category, after the main selection. It frequently features a high-profile English-language film, last year showcasing Derek Cianfrance's "Blue Valentine" and two years ago playing Lee Daniels' "Precious." Both films went on to earn Oscar acting nominations.

Van Sant is a Cannes favorite, having won the Palme d'Or in 2003 for "Elephant," inspired by the Columbine school shooting. "Restless," which examines the story of a teenager (Wasikowska) who develops a serious illness and the relationship she strikes up with a quirky fellow teenager (Hopper), was originally slated to play the Sundance Film Festival and come out last January. It will be released by Sony Pictures Classics in the fall.

The announcement means that the films opening the two high-profile Cannes sections will, in a rarity, both come from American filmmakers. Woody Allen's "Midnight in Paris" kicks off the main section on the same night. The full Cannes lineup will be announced Thursday morning in Paris.

-- Steven Zeitchik

twitter.com/ZeitchikLAT

 

Bernardo Bertolucci to receive special Cannes prize

 
The Cannes Film Festival has inaugurated a new prize and will hand it this year to Bernardo Bertolucci.

The award, called an honorary Palme d'Or after the festival's signature jury prize, will be given out at the opening ceremony every year. In the past, the festival, much like the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, has stepped in and handed its honorary prize only when it deemed fit (usually to filmmakers who've never won an actual Palme.) Woody Allen and Clint Eastwood have previously been recipients.

Bertolucci is, of course, the Italian auteur behind films such as "Last Tango in Paris" and "The Last Emperor," the latter of which netted him two Oscars. He has also made a number of acclaimed films in his native Italian, including the 1970 fascism exploration "The Conformist."

"The filmmaker (poet Attilio Bertolucci's son) has marked Italian cinema with intimate masterpieces as well as monumental frescoes," the festival noted in a statement, adding that "his political and social involvement, driven by a profound lyricism and an elegant and accurate direction, gives his films a unique place in the history of world cinema."

The news follows the announcement of South Korean auteur Bong Joon-ho ("The Host," "Mother") as the head of the jury for the Camera d'Or. That prize is awarded to the filmmaker who made the best first feature that plays in competition.

-- Steven Zeitchik
Twitter.com/ZeitchikLAT

Photo: Bernardo Bertolucci in 2204. Credit: Severine Brigeot / Fox Searchlight

Emir Kusturica to head Cannes' Un Certain Regard jury

Emir Kusturica is coming back to Cannes.

The provocative Serbian auteur, who has won multiple prizes at the festival, will preside over the jury for the Un Certain Regard section of the festival competition. He joins Robert De Niro, who will serve as jury president for the main competition.

Kusturica is the filmmaker behind, among others, "Black Cat, White Cat," "When Father Was Away on Business" and the Yugoslovian historical drama "Underground," with the last two each winning the Palme d' Or. He last brought a film to the festival in 2008, when he premiered "Maradona," his documentary of the Argentine soccer great.

Un Certain Regard is generally considered the second-most important section at Cannes, after the main competition. In the past few years, U.S. awards contenders such as "Precious" and "Blue Valentine" have screened in Un Certain Regard.

The Cannes Film Festival kicks off May 11.

-- Steven Zeitchik

twitter.com/ZeitchikLAT

Photo: Emir Kusturica in his movie "Farewell." Credit: Neoclassical Films

Michel Gondry to head Cannes short film jury

First De Niro, now Gondry.

The Cannes Film Festival has named Michel Gondry to head the shorts jury at this year's gathering. The director will also head the jury for Cinefondation, the Cannes-run organization that hands out a trio of prizes to emerging filmmakers.

Gondry joins Robert De Niro, who will head the features jury, in the south of France.

Gondry is one of the few French-born directors who has also crossed over to Hollywood. The "Green Hornet" director has been to the festival several times before, premiering his surrealist feature "Human Nature" on the Croisette in 2001 and most recently bringing his documentary "The Thorn in the Heart" there in 2009.

The rest of the shorts jury is expected to be announced in the coming weeks. The Cannes Film Festival kicks off May 10.

-- Steven Zeitchik

Photo: Michel Gondry. Credit: Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times

Cannes Film Festival will fete Jafar Panahi

Jafar Panahi won't be bringing a film to Cannes this year, but the Iranian filmmaker's presence will be felt when he is given a lifetime achievement award as part of the Directors' Fortnight sidebar at the global movie confab.

Cannes organizers said Wednesday they would give Panahi the Carrosse d'Or, or Golden Coach. The director in December was sentenced to six years in prison and a 20-year ban on writing and directing features on charges stemming from his film-in-progress chronicling the 2009 re-election of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

The pioneer of the Iranian New Wave has been a staple at Cannes, with his 1995 coming-of-age story "The White Balloon" winning the Camera d'Or there and his working-class drama "Crimson Gold" taking the Prix Un Certain Regard in 2003.

Panahi, whose visa application to attend the Berlin Film Festival was rejected by Iran last year, is not expected to attend Cannes, although it will be interesting to see who else turns up in solidarity. Martin Scorsese, Harvey Weinstein and Paul Haggis are among the filmmaking luminaries who recently signed a petition in support of the director.

Panahi also will be featured at the upcoming Berlin Film Festival, which in the wake of his sentence has programmed a retrospective of his films.

-- Steven Zeitchik

twitter.com/ZeitchikLAT

Photo: Jafar Panahi. Credit: Atta Kenare / AFP/Getty Images

 

Cannes 2011: New Woody Allen film to kick off festival

Woody Allen's 41st feature, "Midnight in Paris," starring Owen Wilson, Rachel McAdams, Marion Cotillard, Kathy Bates, Adrien Brody and Carla Bruni-Sarkozy (wife of the French president), will open the Cannes Film Festival on May 11, organizers announced Wednesday.

But if you're not in Cannes that night, you still might be able to catch the romantic comedy -- it's to be released in some 400 theaters across France on the same day.
 
" 'Midnight in Paris' is a wonderful love letter to Paris", festival director Thierry Frémaux said in a statement. "It’s a film in which Woody Allen takes a deeper look at the issues raised in his last films: our relationship with history, art, pleasure and life. His 41st feature reveals once again his inspiration."

Allen's "You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger" played at Cannes in 2010.

The rest of the lineup is to be announced in April, and the festival runs through May 22.

--Julie Makinen

Photo: Woody Allen. Credit: Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times

Wednesday Roundup: Oscar-nominated animated shorts; Berlinale lineup; Peckham receives WGA's Selvin Award; American Cinematheque

Have you seen all the Oscar nominees for best animated short film? Twitch has kindly provided your chance to view four of the five; the video posted above is the thoroughly unhinged "Logorama" from French director Francois Alaux. You'll find links to Fabrice O. Joubert's 3-D short "French Roast," Nicky Phelan's hilarious "Granny O'Grimm's Sleeping Beauty" and Javier Recio Garcia's "The Lady and the Reaper" (produced by Antonio Banderas' Kandor Moon) via the Twitch link; unfortunately, Nick Park's "A Matter of Loaf and Death," which continues the adventures of his Oscar-winning Wallace and Gromit, has been taken down (it'll be available for download via AT&T U-verse in June), but you can see a 48-second trailer here.

The latest honoree at the 2010 Writers Guild of America (WGA) awards is "Invictus" screenwriter Anthony Peckham. The South Africa scribe, who also recently co-penned "Sherlock Holmes," will receive the Paul Selvin Award, which pays tribute to the script that honors the pursuit of civil and constitutional rights (Selvin was the WGA's counsel for a quarter-century); previous winners include Dustin Lance Black (for "Milk"), David E. Kelley, Michael Mann, Cynthia Whitcomb and Gary Ross. Peckham will be honored along with Barry Levinson and Larry David at the ceremony, which takes place on Feb. 20.

You can expand your diet of Oscar winners all month long at the American Cinematheque; in addition to screenings of  "The Lord of the Rings" trilogy, Quentin Tarantino's "Inglourious Basterds" and "In the Loop," the Cinematheque will present a Feb. 10 double bill of "Inherit the Wind" (1960), which earned Oscar nods for best actor (Spencer Tracy), screenplay (Nedrick Young and Harold Jacob Smith), editing (Frederic Knutson) and black-and-white cinematography (Ernest Laszlo), and "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner" (1967), which won Oscars for Katherine Hepburn and screenwriter William Rose. It takes place at the Aero, which also pays tribute to the late Jennifer Jones on Feb. 11 with a double bill of 1948's "Portrait of Jennie" and "Love Letters" (1945), for which she received a best actress nod; their Valentine Day's weekend schedule includes two-fers of "Breakfast at Tiffany's (1960; Oscars for Henry Mancini's score and "Moon River") and "Sabrina" (1954; Oscar for Edith Head's costume design) on Feb. 13, and Alfred Hitchcock's "Rebecca" (1940; Best Picture winner) and "Notorious" (1946; noms to Claude Rains and screenwriter Ben Hecht). The Egyptian's Valentine's Day programming is equally trophy-laden, with Win Wenders' "Wings of Desire" (1987; best director at the Cannes Film Festival) on Feb. 13 and the double feature of "Casablanca" (1940; best picture, best director for Michael Curtiz, and best screenplay) and Billy Wilder's "Double Indemnity" (1944; Oscar noms for picture, actress, director, screenplay, music, cinematography).

Meanwhile, the Berlin International Film Festival has released the full schedule for its 60th anniversary lineup; the complete competition lineup is available after the break.

Tuesday Roundup: Memos from Cameron, Weinstein; Tarantino at Cinematheque; Carrey, McGregor knighted

Take a memo, please: Letters of Note is a fascinating site that compiles personal correspondence from a wide range of famous folks -- among their collection (the authenticity of which cannot be verified, but they do note that "fakes will be sneered at") are letters from Mark Twain, Hunter S. Thompson, the late J.D. Salinger and even Mary, Queen of Scots. 

Since the Oscar nominations were announced Tuesday, we thought you might enjoy eyeballing memos from three new-minted Oscar nominees. First is "Avatar" director James Cameron, who sent an exceptionally polite note in 1986 to the agent of artist H.R. Giger that explains why he didn't consult him on creature design for "Aliens" (Giger won an Oscar for his work on "Alien"). Cameron's reasons are well considered, and he is positively gushing in his praise for Giger's work.

Somewhat south of polite is "Inglourious Basterds" exec producer Harvey Weinstein's 1988 missive to Oscar-winning documentarian Errol Morris about a radio interview promoting his acclaimed documentary "The Thin Blue Line." Harvey spares Errol no quarter regarding his performance ("you were boring") and threatens to replace him with an actor (!) if he doesn't start putting on a show (should you want to hear how snooze-inducing Errol's interview allegedly was, it's here). "The Thin Blue Line" did go on to win a slew of awards, earn recognition as one of the best documentaries ever made, and contribute to the release of a man on death row, so perhaps Harvey's take should be swallowed with a grain (or two) of salt.

And lastly, here's a charming and gracious fan letter from multi-Oscar nominee Quentin Tarantino to Filipino director Brilliante Mendoza, whose 2009 film "Kinatay" took best director (and beat Tarantino) at the 62nd Cannes Film Festival. It's difficult to say what is more appealing about the note -- Tarantino's schoolboy spelling and handwriting or the thoughtfulness of his praise for Mendoza's work. 

And if you'd like to compliment Quentin in person for his good manners, you can do so Monday at the American Cinematheque's Egyptian Theatre. He'll attend screenings of "Pulp Fiction" and "Inglourious Basterds" that day and the Cannes Film Festival versions of "Kill Bill, Vols. 1 and 2" on the 9th. And if you're in the mood for more Oscar nominees, the vicious U.K. political satire "In the Loop," which earned an academy nod today for adapted screenplay, will be featured nightly from Feb. 10 to 13. And Agnes Varda's "The Beaches of Agnes," which made it to the feature documentary shortlist, will screen Feb. 11 to 14. 

And since we're on a particularly sunshiney tip today, let's end on a happy note: Jim Carrey and Ewan McGregor were both made knights of France's National Order of the Arts on Monday. The actors, who co-star in the upcoming "I Love You, Phillip Morris," were in Paris to promote the picture and receive praise from the country's Culture Minister, Frederic Mitterand, who capped his speech by declaring his love for both men.

-- Paul Gaita

Photo: James Cameron. Credit: Getty Images. 

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