Cannes Ketchup – Day 1: The Festival Opens with Pan’s Labyrinth and Opening Night Festivities
Check back daily for ongoing updates as we break down the biggest news, acquisitions, early reactions, and other notable events at the 79th Cannes Film Festival.
Rotten Tomatoes is in the South of France to give a daily breakdown of the biggest news, acquisitions, early reactions, and other happenings of the 79th Cannes Film Festival. Check back here for ongoing updates, including the premieres of James Gray’s Paper Tiger, Ira Sachs’ The Man I Love, and Yeon Sang-ho’s The Colony.
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Tuesday, May 12: The 79th edition of the Cannes Film Festival kicked off yesterday, and it was a star-studded celebrity affair. As usual, there was the opening ceremony, which honored all the films set to screen at the festival over the next two weeks and commemorated some incredible moments in cinema. Elijah Wood was on hand, for example, to honor Peter Jackson, who is this year’s Honorary Palme d’Or recipient for his incredible cinematic career, including his work on all the J.R.R. Tolkien adaptations. Other Festival honorees include Claire Denis and Guillermo del Toro, who also returned to the festival to commemorate the 20th anniversary of his seminal Academy Award-winning film Pan’s Labyrinth. Prior to the opening night ceremony, the opening press conference kicked off with tons of fanfare but did not spark the same controversy as the Berlinale Film Festival’s opening presser earlier this year.
Earlier this year, the Berlin Film Festival was beleaguered by pointed questions about political neutrality when jury president Wim Wenders and a few jury members seemed to distance art from the current political climate, with Wenders saying, “We have to stay out of politics.” Park Chan-wook, director of Oldboy and last year’s incredible film No Other Choice, firmly set himself against such sentiment, stating, “Art and politics are not concepts that are in conflict with each other.” His sentiment was echoed by his fellow jurors, actress Demi Moore and longtime Ken Loach screenwriter Paul Laverty.
In addition to Moore and Laverty, this year’s jury also features Stellan Skarsgård, Ruth Negga, who first came to Cannes in 2016 for Jeff Nichols’ Academy Award-nominated Loving, and Hamnet director Chloé Zhao. Skarsgård joked that his inclusion on the festival jury was somewhat overdue, replying “Finally” when asked for his reaction to the invite. Demi Moore added that although her first time at the Cannes Film Festival was as a plus-one, the joy of cinema she felt when she brought The Substance here two years ago really inspired her to return and be immersed in the moment again. Jury President Park Chan-wook has created some of the most seminal masterpieces of the past 30 years, so we are anxious to see what his jury members will think of this year’s selection.
The highlight of the day was likely Guillermo del Toro’s presentation of the newly restored 20th anniversary edition of Pan’s Labyrinth, which received a 22-minute standing ovation. Tomorrow looks to be an even more raucous day as I Saw the TV Glow filmmaker Jane Schoenbrun comes to Cannes with her highly anticipated follow-up feature, Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma, which stars Gillian Anderson and Hannah Einbinder. Cannes will also welcome the OG The Fast and the Furious cast for their commemorative 25th-anniversary screening, with Michelle Rodriguez, Vin Diesel, and Jordana Brewster returning, along with Paul Walker’s daughter, Meadow.
Wednesday, May 13: The Cannes Festivals keep rolling on, and the film with the most buzz by far was Jane Schoenbrun’s Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma, starring Hannah Eienbinder and Gillian Anderson. Debuting at 100% on the Tomatometer, the film earned raves from critics, with Variety’s Jessica Kiang calling Schoenbrun’s “delirious third film their most accomplished, most persuasive, and most playful movie yet.”
And despite the lack of blockbusters, the Croisette was not bereft of star power as the was bookened by an emotional moment courtesy of The Fast and the Furious and Vin Diesel. Commemorating the 25th anniversary of the film, the group of Michelle Rodriguez, Vin Diesel, Jordana Brewster, and producer Neil Moritz, along with Paul Walker’s daughter Meadow, held a preliminary photo call, with Diesel hamming it up to perfection for the assembled press.
The day ended with a star-studded film presentation and an emotional speech by Diesel about the late cast member Paul Walker. Emotionally and jubilantly, he declared, “Fast Family Forever,” and dedicated the night to Walker after a hug with his daughter Meadow.
