Cannes at Home: Day 7 – Death to Reality!

by Cláudio Alves

Park Chan-wook and David Cronenberg have arrived. Livening up the 75th Cannes Film Festival, the two auteurs debuted new works, prompting many to sing their hosannas in reverent tones. The Film Experience's own Elisa Giudici has declared Decision to Leave the film of the festival, a sentiment shared by many critics who've celebrated the picture's surprising romanticism and Tang Wei's performance. Cronenberg's Crimes of the Future was less ecstatically received, but the reactions are still positive. The verdict is that the film is less shocking than advertised but more elegiac in tone. Nevertheless, as the director predicted, multiple spectators walked out before the end credits rolled.

While anticipating these filmmakers' new offerings, let's remember their past works – Thirst's sicko love story and eXistenZ's visions of a violent future…

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Cannes at Home: Day 6 – Trolls, Actresses, and the Whole Shebang

by Cláudio Alves 

Well, folks, it seems we have another strong contender for the Palme d'Or. If Cristian Mungiu's R.M.N had people whispering about awards possibilities, Ali Abbasi's Holy Spider upped the conversation considerably. It isn't the first time the Iranian-Danish filmmaker presented work at Cannes, though Border was relegated to the Un Certain Regard competition – which it won. That same day, Valeria Bruni Tedeschi showed her latest directorial effort, Forever Young. The actress-turned-director already competed for the Palme back in 2013 with A Castle in Italy. Nevertheless, like Abbasi, her first film to be screened at Cannes was slotted for the Un Certain Regard section. In 2007, Tedeschi won a Special Jury Prize for Actresses.

As one ponders these directors' latest accomplishments, let's look back at their first prize-winning Cannes experiences…

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Cannes at Home: Day 5 – A Tale of Two Victors

by Cláudio Alves

The fourth day of Main Competition screenings saw the premiere of two films by former Palme d'Or winners. First up, Swedish auteur Ruben Östlund returned to the Croisette after taking the festival's top honor with The Square. Triangle of Sadness is the director's first film since then, perchance indicating a newfound obsession with geometrical titling. Reactions have skewed positive, though there are dissenting voices. Then, it was time for Cristian Mungiu to present R.M.N, this year's first major Palme contender as far as critical reception is concerned (Elisa's review). It should be noted that this is the fourth time Mungiu has presented a film in the Main Competition – all three previous projects won prizes, setting a good precedent for the Romanian master. 

Logically, when discussing these laurelled artists, the mind drifts to their victorious flicks. Today's Cannes at Home selections are The Square and 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days…

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Cannes at Home: Day 4 – Christmas on the Nile

by Cláudio Alves

French filmmaker Arnaud Desplechin seems to be on a downward trajectory. His new film, Brother and Sister, has been slaughtered by critics at Cannes, the worst-reviewed Main Competition title so far. For those legions who hoped this would be the year when Marion Cotillard finally won the festival's Best Actress prize, better luck next time! Tarik Saleh's Boy from Heaven was more warmly received despite some cries of conventionality. Through procedural tropes and thriller stylings, the Swedish director explores themes of corruption in Islam, a recurring motif throughout his filmography. These Cannes contenders are both directors' second 2022 pictures – Desplechin's Deception is a new MUBI release, while Saleh's The Contractor has been available for a while. Unfortunately, neither title got much in the way of critical praise.

To keep the Cannes at Home series a celebratory exercise, today's selection looks back at lauded works from these auteurs – A Christmas Tale and The Nile Hilton Incident… 

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Cannes at Home: Day 3 – Innocence Lost

by Cláudio Alves

New films by James Gray and Jerzy Skolimowski have hit the Croisette, leading to many a Belfast mention and plenty of donkey talk. Armageddon Time, a memoirist exercise that purports to evoke Gray's childhood, has been met with mixed reactions, including here at The Film Experience. However, the consensus leans towards warmth, and, as a longtime James Gray devotee, I couldn't be more excited. After all, nearly every film the man directed faced some negative critiques, yet I love most of them regardless. Unfortunately, the same can't be said about Jerzy Skolimowski. His filmography has been a dependable source of disappointments. By reading some reviews (including Elisa's), his new project, EO, sounds like the cynical bastard child of War Horse and Au Hasard Balthasar. That being said, I doubt the Bressonian comparison will do EO any favors.

For Cannes at Home, today's topics are the film that should have won James Gray the Palme d'Or and Jerzy Skolimowski's Deep End…

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