Ranking the Decade's Palme D'Or Winners

The Cannes film festival can have its own problems – but when you compare it to the Oscars, at the very least, they usually pick better winners. Yes, this decade all 10 Palme D’or winners were directed by men (although, in one case, the director shared it with his two female co-stars) – but they can come from all over the world – and at the very least, they’re interesting films that win. Not always great, but interesting. So here’s the ranking of the decade’s Palme D’or winners.

 

 

10. I, Daniel Blake (Ken Loach, 2016) – There are few things more predictable than the new Ken Loach film being in the Cannes competition lineup – he had four just this decade – unless it’s that for the most part, the film will be forgotten relatively soon after its release. I, Daniel Blake is perhaps the best film of this decade (Sorry We Missed You, which played last year, has opened here yet) – but it’s still a rather predictable Loach effort, about the effects on the poor in England of uncaring government bureaucracy. The one thing about the movie that is great is newcomer Hayley Squires performance. The rest is fine – quite good even – but hardly great. And in a year that was so strong, it’s disappointing the George Miller led jury felt the need to give Loach a second Palme (after 2008’s The Wind That Shakes the Barley).

Great Films in Competition: American Honey (Andrea Arnold) was for me, a major step forward for the great filmmaker, coming to what was about to be Trump’s America and seeing it clearly from an outsider’s perspective. Elle (Paul Verhoeven) was the Dutch maverick’s attempt to piss everyone off – he succeeded brilliantly, with a controversial, incendiary film, and a great performance by Isabelle Huppert. Graduation (Cristian Mungiu) was the Romanian version of the college admission scandal before there was one – and a darkly comic masterclass of one. The Handmaiden (Park Chan-wook) is the most beautiful and ambitious film of Korean master Park Chan-wook’s career – and perhaps his best film. Paterson (Jim Jarmusch) is my favorite Jim Jarmusch film, a beautiful, subtle, perceptive film about poetry and normal life. Personal Shopper (Olivier Assayas) was Assayas building an entire film around text messages, and Kristen Stewart, and pulling it off brilliantly. Toni Erdman (Maren Ade) was the biggest, boldest, tragicomedy of the decade – a three-hour comedy about fathers and daughters, and globalization and so much more.

And the Winner Should Have Been: I don’t want to choose – it is a shame that Cannes mainstay Jarmusch has never won the Palme D’or (at least for features – he won one for one of the shorts in Coffee & Cigarettes in the shorts section) – and Paterson is my favorite of his films, and probably, my favorite of this festival. And yet, I think Toni Erdmann would have been the better choice – a massively ambitious film, one that goes for broke, features two amazing central performances, and is every bit as much of a masterpiece than anything that could have won. The fact that they both walked away with nothing for the jury should be embarrassing for all involved.

 

9. Dheepan (Jacques Audiard, 2015) – This seems like an example of the jury – headed by the Coen brothers – giving the Palme to a director who was considered “due” at the time, so they gave it to Audiard’s revenge film, with so real world importance layered onto it considering immigration in France. It isn’t Audiard’s best film – but I feel it has somehow gotten underrated over the years – probably because it didn’t really need to win the Palme, but it is an excellent, exciting film – expertly crafted by Audiard – with some great performances as well. He hasn’t done much since – just one American film, The Sisters Brothers, which was fine, but didn’t really hit either. This is a very good film – not Palme worthy – but very good.

Other Great Films in Competition: This really was a strong competition lineup this year. The Assassin (Hsiao-Hsein Hou) is a martial arts film as only he can make it – and one of the most stunningly beautiful films you will ever see. Carol (Todd Haynes) is one of Haynes best, most beautiful films – and one of the great romantic films of the decade. The Lobster (Yorgos Lanthimos) is a masterclass is deadpan comedy and storytelling (honestly, I’m amazed the Coens didn’t go crazy for this one) – and one of the best acted films you will ever see, so completely in control of the film. Mountains May Depart (Jia Zhangke) is not quite the best of Jia Zhangke’s films this decade – but it is a stunning, beautiful multigenerational film about life in modern China – and into the future. Sicario (Denis Villeneuve) is just about as great of a mainstream, Hollywood genre film can be – exciting, amazingly well acted, and scripted, and amazing direction by Villeneuve. Son of Saul (Laszalo Nemes) is an emotional powerhouse – and perhaps the only recent film with a truly unique take on the Holocaust – focused solely on one character, blurring the reality behind him – brilliantly directed by Nemes, in his first film.

And the Winner Should Have Been: For me personally, I would take either Carol or The Lobster as the winner here – as both are among the very best films of the decade. We know they like to reward loyalty though – and it was only Haynes’ second film in competition, and Lanthimos’ first (probably why Son of Saul didn’t break through either). So on that level, why not give the top prize to The Assassin as Hsiao-Hsien as been a fixture of Cannes for decades.

 

8. Blue is the Warmest Color (Abdellatif Kechiche and Adele Exarchopoulos and Lea Seydoux, 2013) – Blue is the Warmest Color has suffered a major downgrade in its critical reputation since it’s win – when director Kechiche’s abusive, exploitative behavior has come to light, and his subsequent films have not been well received. What I will say is that I understand the criticisms – and it’s certainly a male gaze film – and yet it is raw and emotional and beautiful in its own way – and the Steven Spielberg led jury was correct in awarding both Exarchopoulos and Seydoux in the win as well. Perhaps I don’t like it as much as I did then – but it’s a very good film.

Other Great Films in Competition: This really wasn’t the best year for Cannes – but the great films in competition really was great. Inside Llewyn Davis (Joel & Ethan Coen) was my choice for best film of the decade, and it may just be the Coens best film ever, and deserved all the love it could get. Like Father, Like Son (Hirokazu Koreeda) isn’t the best film by Japanese master Hirokazu Koreeda, but it’s close, and a very emotional film to boot. Nebraska (Alexander Payne) is probably Payne’s best film next to Election – a wonderful father/son story, shot in beautiful black and white. Only Loves Left Alive (Jim Jarmusch) is one of Jarmusch’s best films – an old man’s film, about the passing of time – but one that doesn’t do well at festivals, because it needs time to grow. A Touch of Sin (Jia Zhangke) is my favorite Jia Zhangeke film – a number of stories about random violence in China – done in different styles by China’s best director.

And the Winner Should Have Been: Obviously, I think Inside Llewyn Davis should have won this one – it was the best of the decade – and the Coens have been around long enough that having two Palmes would not seem like too much (since their only other Palme was way back in 1991 with Barton Fink). I also wish that Jia Zhangke and Jim Jarmusch should have a Palme as well – and would have been fine with either of them winning.

 

7. The Square (Ruben Ostlund, 2017) – Ostlund’s epic art world satire is the kind of film that lashes out in all different directions for nearly three hours, with a brilliant performance by Claes Bang to hold it all together. Does it all work – probably not – but I love it anyway, as its so weird, so one-of-a-kind – and so much fun – which isn’t always something you associate with a Palme D’or winner. Still waiting for him to follow it up with something though. The Pedro Almodovar led jury had many choices, so I’m not sure why they went here, but it’s a decent choice.

Other Great Films in Competition: Really a strong year this year. The Beguiled (Sofia Coppola) was an entirely different take on the same story Don Siegel/Clint Eastwood told decades before. Good Time (Benny & Joshua Safdie) is the most energetic, propulsive thriller of the decade, with a great Robert Pattinson performance at its core. The Killing of a Sacred Deer (Yorgos Lanthimos) isn’t quite as good as The Lobster – but is a disturbing allegory that only Lanthimos could make. Loveless (Andrey Zvyagintsev) is perhaps not quite as good as Leviathan – but is an emotional powerhouse about the inhumanity of modern Russia. The Meyerowtiz Stories (Noah Baumbach) is one of Baumbach’s best – a funny, emotional, family story with some great performances. Okja (Bong Joon-ho) is Bong lashing out in many different directions, most of them brilliantly. You Were Never Really Here (Lynne Ramsay) is a revenge thriller in the Taxi Driver mold, but completely stripped of all the excess plot stuff that isn’t needed – to produce something completely unique.

And the Winner Should Have Been: While this was a strong year this year, I am struck that I’m not sure any of the talented directors listed above made their best film this year. The best, for me, was Good Time – but that doesn’t strike me as a Palme winner for directors that young. My choice would have been one that the jury clearly loved – as they gave it two prize – You Were Never Really Here – which would have been a statement to be sure.

 

6. Uncle Boonme Who Can Reclass His Past Lives (Apichatpong Weerasethakul, 2010) – Clearly the weakest year for the Official Competition of the decade – that was probably needed for the Tim Burton led jury to go with something this weird to win the top prize. Burton probably had a soft spot for the weirdness, for the low-budget special effects as the type of think he did great years ago, but has abandoned for years now. All that said, I think it’s wonderful that a filmmaker as idiosyncratic as Apichatpong Weerasetheakul winning the most prestigious prize in film.

Other Great Films in Competition: As I said, a pretty weak year, although there is a trio of great films in play. Another Year (Mike Leigh) is one of my absolute favorite Mike Leigh films – a film about a couple, and then friend group, over the span of a few years – with a heartbreaking performance by Lesley Manville. Certified Copy (Abbas Kiarostami) may just be my favorite Abbas Kiarostami film – a one-of-a-kind throwback to art house cinema of yesteryear, with two great performances at its core. Poetry (Lee Chang-dong) isn’t the film that Secret Sunshine or Burning is – but is still a masterwork by Korean master Lee Chang-dong, a sensitive study of an elderly woman, slowly sinking into Alzheimer’s, and taking a poetry class to hold on – and ignore the horrible thing her grandson did.

And the Winner Should Have Been: Personally, I think Certified Copy was the best film here, and I think Lee Chang-dong should be a Palme winner – but considering Kiarostami is a Palme winner (as is Leigh) – I think they probably made the right choice going with Uncle Boonme Who Can Recall His Past Lives – if for no other reason, then because people will continue to marvel at its weirdness.

 

5. Shoplifters (Hirokazu Koreeda, 2018) – This is probably Hirokazu Koreeda’s best film to date – and it’s a great career – a beautiful portrait of an adopted family of thieves, who have their lives upturned when their ways are discovered. Hirokazu has always been great at delivering portraits of family, and the underclass in Japan, and he does so brilliantly here – in an understated way, that clearly the Cate Blanchett led jury responded to. It’s hard to argue that Koreeda deserves a Palme – he’s been a fixture at Cannes for 20 years, and hadn’t won yet, so it was his time.

Other Great Films in Competition: It was a very strong year at Cannes though. BlackKklansman (Spike Lee) was the incendiary directors best film in years – a look back at America’s racist past, and a fuck you to its racist present, all wrapped in an entertaining package. Burning (Lee Chang-dong) was the film that made North American people finally realize what a master filmmaker Korean auteur Lee Chang-dong is, a masterclass thriller, with an ambiguous ending. Cold War (Pawel Pawlikowski) is a great looking, black and white love story, that builds its devastating portrait in under 90 minutes. Under the Silver Lake (David Robert Mitchell) is a difficult, neo noir set in L.A., which goes in many different directions, brilliantly, in its portrait of an asshole privileged “detective”. The Wild Pear Tree (Nuri Bilge Ceylon) is not Ceylon’s best film – but it’s still a wonderful one, a portrait of a young writer who thinks he’s a genius, and is brought low when it becomes clear he isn’t one (yet, anyway).

And the Winner Should Have Been: It’s hard to argue against Koreeda, a very deserving filmmaker, but for my money the clear winner should have been Burning – which was ignored by the jury, but was the best, most profound film in the running this year – and one of the very best of the decade.

 

4. Winter Sleep (Nuri Bilge Ceylan, 2014) – Turkish master Nuri Bilge Ceylon had been a fixture at Cannes for years before he finally won the Palme for his epic, three-hour-fourteen minute film about a man who believes he is beloved, and slowly realizes that he is asshole. For me, it’s not quite the masterpiece that Once Upon a Time in Anatolia was, but it’s close – an intimate epic where the main character sees himself as a magnanimous rich man, who over the course of the movie discovers what everyone else thinks of him. Ceylan was bound to win one of these eventually – and the Jane Campion led jury finally gave him one. It is a great film – and a fine choice for the win.

Other Great Films in Competition: It was a fairly good year for Cannes in 2014. Among the other fine films were: Clouds of Sils Maria (Olivier Assayas) my personal favorite of his films, a portrait of an actress and her assistant in the remote house going over their lines, whose identities begin to merge. Foxcatcher (Bennett Miller) is a slow motion horror film, where you see tragedy coming, and are powerless to stop it – with three great performances by Steve Carrel Mark Ruffalo and especially Channing Tatum at its core. Leviathan (Andrey Zvyagintsev) is a terrific film about the inhumane bureaucracy in Putin’s Russia – a brave film, and the best one by Zvyagintsev to date. Mr. Turner (Mike Leigh) is perhaps Leigh’s most beautiful film – a film that looks like its subject’s art work, with a wonderful performance by Timothy Spall. Two Days, One Night (Jean-Pierre & Luc Dardenne) is one of the Dardenne brothers best films – a portrait of a woman who has to convince her co-workers to let her keep her job, and doesn’t have much time to do so, with a brilliant performance by Marion Cottilard.

And the Winner Should Have Been: I could probably be convinced that Clouds of Sils Maria, Leviathan or Two Days, One Night were all better than Winter Sleep – but it’s so close, and I’m such a fan of Ceylan, that I think Winter Sleep is probably the right choice.

 

3. Parasite (Bong Joon-ho, 2019) – Bong Joon-ho’s masterpiece became the first film since 1955’s Marty to win both the Best Picture Oscar, and the Palme D’or, and its very worthy winner of both. Bong had been to Cannes several times over the year, and didn’t ever get the big win – but his masterpiece of class warfare was undeniable for the Alejandro Gonzalez Innaritu led jury to ignore. It became the film of the year, and they were ahead of the curve.

Other Great Films in Competition: It was a pretty good year – and there are still a few left to hit theaters over here. Atlantics (Mati Diop) was a haunting film about colonialism and sexism, with a strange ghost story. A Hidden Life (Terrence Malick) was Malik’s best film since his Palme winning A Hidden Life – a beautiful film about standing up for you believe, consequences be damned. Once Upon a Time in Hollywood (Quentin Tarantino) is Tarantino’s masterwork – a tribute to old school Hollywood, and a film that gives justice to victims of horrific violence in what was Tarantino’s most moving film. Pain & Glory (Pedro Almodovar) was Almodovar’s thinly veiled self-portrait, and his best film in years. Portrait of a Lady on Fire (Celine Sciamma) is an incredibly romantic, sexy, love story about love, lust, desire and art.

And the Winner Should Have Been: While I can think it’s a shame that Pedro Almodovar has never won the Palme, or would have loved to see Celine Sciamma win for her incredible film, or even think that Tarantino’s film was my favorite in competition – I find it impossible to really think something other than Parasite should have won.

 

2. Amour (Michael Haneke, 2012) – For a long time, Michael Haneke was one of those filmmakers who was always in the conversation for the Palme – but could never win. And then, in the span of four years, he won twice – first for The White Ribbon, and then for Amour – both are masterworks, but Amour is one of his very best films (second next only to Cache for me). Haneke’s film about growing old, and the ravages it inflicts on the body, is merciless and cruel – and hugely emotionally, acted to perfection and directed with Haneke’s typical cold brilliance. This was really the end of Haneke as a great filmmaker (so far anyway) as he’s only made one film since, and its not one of his best (although it’s not as bad as its reputation suggests it is). You know they don’t like to give two Palmes so close together to the same director, but the Tim Roth led jury could not resist.

Other Great Films in Competition: This was a fairly solid year for Cannes as well. Beyond the Hills (Cristian Mungiu) is a haunting film, which like is Palme winning 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days, is about two women in a difficult situation., Cosmopolis (David Cronenberg) is Cronenberg’s last great film – and I love it no matter what some people say. Holy Motors (Leos Carax) is Carax’s best film, a film that lashes out in many different directions, all brilliantly. Moonrise Kingdom (Wes Anderson) is very close to top tier Anderson – a wonderful adolescent fantasy that quietly moves you. Mud (Jeff Nichols) was the real start of the McConaughsance, and is one of Jeff Nichols best films – a kind of Southern Gothic fairy tale. Post Tenebras Lux (Carlos Reygadas) is the very strange film from Carlos Reygadas, who for better or for worse, makes films only he can make.

And the Winner Should Have Been: I loved many of those other films, and yet Amour still stands heads and shoulders above the rest of the them, and was the right choice.

 

1. The Tree of Life (Terrence Malick, 2011) – It has been rumored that the head of the Cannes Festival told Robert DeNiro, the head of the jury, that it would be embarrassing for them if Malik’s The Tree of Life didn’t win (he meant the jury, not Cannes itself). Whether or true or not, it is correct – it would have been embarrassing to see something as ambitious, from a filmmaker as celebrated as Malick, had something else won. It may never be a popular audience film, but who cares – it is a masterful film by Malick, a combination of the epic and the intimate as only he could do it – the pinnacle of his masterful career – and one of the great winners of the Palme ever.

Other Great Films in Competition: This really was a very strong year for Cannes. Drive (Nicolas Winding Refn) is the film he was born to make – a violent fairy tale, done to perfection. Hara-Kiri: Death of a Samurai (Takashi Miike) may be the last time I truly loved a Miike film – a great remake of a masterpiece. Le Havre (Aki Kaurismaki) is an emotional film, and one that seems to have seen the immigration crisis coming earlier than most, and treated it with humanity. The Kid with a Bike (Jean-Pierre & Luc Dardenne) is one of those oh-hum, another masterpiece by the Dardennes, that at the time we all took for granted. Melancholia (Lars von Trier) is half a masterpiece – as the first half is as good as anything I saw this decade, but whose second half doesn’t quite live up to it. Once Upon a Time in Anatolia (Nuri Bilge Ceylon) is Ceylon’s best film – a brilliant procedural about no matter how close you look, you can never quite see the truth. We Need to Talk About Kevin (Lynne Ramsay) is a film that only gradually has become seen as the great film it is – a masterclass of visual storytelling by Ramsay, showing everything, why remaining mysterious.

And the Winner Should Have Been: Hey, I loved several of these films, but it really is no contest – The Tree of Life – was the winner and should have been.

Thoughts on the Cannes Lineup

So today, we got the official lineup for the Cannes Film Festival – 19 films in the Official lineup. They could add others – they have done it before, and 19-21 films is usually the lineup – before the festival, but for now here is what is going to compete. So below, are my thoughts on what is a lineup full of old talent and new faces. And at the bottom are my 100% reliable predictions on who will win (last year I did nail by Director and Screenplay predictions – or at least half of the latter since two films split it).

 

In Competition
Pain and Glory -  Pedro Almodovar – Spanish auteur Almodovar is back in competition again (it’s the sixth time), and even if in general his career hasn’t been as great in recent years as in the past, there is always a chance at a comeback. This one stars Almodovar favorites Antonio Banderas and Penelope Cruz, and is the story of a film director – so perhaps it’s navel gazing, or perhaps it will be the next 8 ½, who knows? If it is a comeback, Almodovar could easily be in play for awards – he has won Best Director and Best Screenplay at the festival, but nothing more.
The Traitor -  Marco Bellocchio – Italian auteur Bellocchio is back in competition for the 7^th time – the first all the way back in 1980. He turns 80 later this year, and has quite a fine track record dating back to his brilliant debut Fists in the Pocket back in 1965. This is a mob story set in 1980s Sicily starring Pierfrancesco Favino. Again, since Bellocchio has been in Cannes so many times, but never won anything, if this is a comeback film for him, he could be a player for awards.

The Wild Goose Lake -  Diao Yinan – The Chinese director behind the fairly good crime drama Black Coal, Thin Ice makes his first trip to the Official competition at Cannes, with what is purportedly another crime drama – although details are thin. Ash is Purest White breakout Fan Liao is apparently the lead. My guess is that unless this is shockingly brilliant, it’s not a prize contender – but does the fact that he’s a newcomer to the lineup mean this could be that good?
Parasite -  Bong Joon-ho – Bigtime Korean Auteur Bong Joon-ho (The Host, Mother, Snowpierecer) returns to the official lineup for the second time in a row following Okja in 2017. Bong is one of the great genre filmmaker – hell, one of the great filmmaker’s period – working right now, so this makes this one of my most anticipated films of the festival, even if I’m still not sure what it’s about – other than it’s about an unemployed family, and parks.
Young Ahmed -  Jean-Pierre Dardenne & Luc Dardenne – The Dardennes are among the only filmmakers to win multiple Palmes (for Rosetta and L’Enfant), and they’ve been here seven times before this. This time, they may be courting controversy a little – with the story of a Muslim teenager who hatches a plot to kill his teacher after embracing extremism. The Dardennes are perhaps looking to comeback a little from the “disappointing” The Unknown Girl (which is still very good – just not great) – so we shall see. 
Oh Mercy! -  Arnaud Desplechin –  Another returning oft-auteur – this is French director Arnaud Desplechin’s sixth time in competition. This is a more of a genre film than we are used to seeing from him – it is a movie about a cop investigating the murder of an old woman. Among the cast is the great Lea Seydoux. As someone who loved Kings & Queens and A Christmas Tale – but has either been underwhelmed (Jimmy P.) or not been given a real chance to see (My Golden Days, Ismael’s Ghosts) his work since, I want to see this one.
Atlantique -  Mati Diop – Actress/writer/director Mati Diop has been building an interesting career for a while, and her feature debut is coming in straight into competition. Perhaps it’s because she is French, and they always like a number of French films, perhaps it’s because they wanted to expand the number of female directed films in competition (they have 4 this year – okay, but not great) – or perhaps it’s because she made a great film (given the interesting work she has done, I really hope for that). I know nothing of this one other than that, but I’m looking forward to see what she’s done
Matthias and Maxime -  Xavier Dolan – The bloom is off the rose for Canadian wunderkind Xavier Dolan – whose last two films were not well received (even if It’s Only the End of the World still ending up winning the Grand Jury Prize at Cannes a few years back) – his latest, The Death and Life of John F. Donovan – hasn’t even opened yet, but the reviews out of TIFF last fall were brutal. Still, he is a multiple Cannes Prize winner in his young career, so we’ll see if this is a return to form for Dolan – who is starring again, but also the great Anne Dorval, so there’s that
Little Joe -  Jessica Hausner – Three of Jessica Hausner’s other films all made the Un Certain Regard Lineup, and finally hits the big time with Little Joe – which is a sci-fi film, that kind of sounds like a Body Snatchers type story. She also has a large cast, the biggest name being Ben Whishaw – but also includes Emily Beecham, Leanne Best and Lindsay Duncan among other. This sounds interesting.
The Dead Don’t Die -  Jim Jarmusch – American indie legend Jarmusch is back in competition for the eighth time since the 1980s, with his zombie comedy with undeniably the biggest cast of the festival. As someone who thinks Jarmusch is doing perhaps the best work of his career of late (Only Lovers Left Alive and Paterson are two of my absolute favorites of his) – this certainly looks like a change of pace, and hugely entertaining. It also seems odd for Cannes, but who cares.
Sorry We Missed You -  Ken Loach – Another two-time Palme winner (The Wind That Shakes the Barely, I, Daniel Blake), Loach is back in competition for the 13^th (!) time (I don’t know if that’s a record, but it has to be at least close). Of course, it’s written by Paul Laverty, and is a social justice film about a struggling British working class family. That may sound dismissive – and it is (a little) – but Loach, now over 80, keeps churning out at least good films, so sure.
Les Miserables -  Ladj Ly – Another first time French filmmaker in the lineup – Ladj Ly turns his 2017 prize winner short film of the same name into a feature – about policing in the Paris suburbs. As with Diop, there’s no way of knowing why Ly’s film was selected – whether because it’s French, or perhaps because it’s great – but this certainly a wildcard.
A Hidden Life -  Terrence Malick – Malick is back in competition for the first time since he won the Palme for The Tree of Life in 2011 (and third time overall) – and apparently A Hidden Life is a return to some kind of narrative filmmaking – something he has increasingly moved away from in his last four films. This film is a WWII film about a conscientious objector who won’t fight for the Nazis. He’ll be played by August Diehl – and the supporting cast includes Matthias Schoenarts, Michael Nyqvist, Jurgen Prochnow, the late Bruno Ganz and Franz Rogowski. As interest as I am in many of the films in competition, this is the one I want to see the most.
Bacurau -  Kleber Mendonça Filho & Juliano Dornelles – Brazillian director Kleber Mendonça Filho – of the wonderful Neighboring Sounds and Aquarius, teams up with Juliano Dornelles – for this film – which is apparently a Mystery/Sci-Fi/Western film starring the wonderful Sonia Braga and the wonderfully weird Udo Kier. It may not be my most anticipated, but it’s one of the ones I’m most curious about.
The Whistlers -  Corneliu Porumboiu – Romanian director Porumboiu makes his (surprising) Main Competition debut with The Whistlers – which is apparently a comedy, which is surprising given that its stars Vlad Ivanov, who is usually so evil. His best film is still probably Police, Adjective – so he’s always worth a look.
Frankie -  Ira Sachs – Ira Sachs always makes interesting films – Little Men, Love is Strange, Keep the Lights On, Forty Shades of Blue among them. Here, he has a great cast – Marisa Tomei, Brandon Gleason, Isabelle Huppert, Greg Kinnear, Jeremie Renier- a multigenerational drama set in Portugal. I am very interested in this one.
Portrait of a Lady on Fire -  Céline Sciamma – French filmmaker Sciamma finally gets upgraded to the main competition following films like Water Lilies, Tomboy and Girlhood. This is an historical drama about a female painter on an isolated island painting a wedding portrait of a younger woman, Starring Valeria Golino and Adele Haenel. I am interested in this one.
It Must Be Heaven -  Elia Suleiman – Palestinian filmmaker Suleiman is back in competition for the third time, this time as he travels to different cities to draw parallels to his home country. I never know what to make of Suleiman, so it could be interesting.
Sibyl -  Justine Triet – Another young French filmmaker entering the lineup – with this film about a psychotherapist who tries to become a writer. It stars Adele Exarchopolous (who I have wanted to see more often), Sandra Huller, Virginie Efira and Gaspard Ulliel. It’s hard to know what to expect – but I like that cast.
 

And now, my patented predictions of who is going to win, sight unseen. I am always spot on with these predictions, so take it to the bank, that these will be your winners from the Alejandro Gonzaelez Innaritu headed jury.

Palme d'Or: Bacurau -  Kleber Mendonça Filho & Juliano Dornelles – It would be too easy to pick one of the giants to win the top prize this year, so I’ll go with this film, which sounds really interested, from a filmmaker I love, with an interesting cast. Mark it down, this is your winner.

Grand Prize of the Jury: A Hidden Life – Terrence Malick – It’s always hard to pick prior Palme winners to win something other than the Palme again – it can feel like a step down – and yet I also think that Malick going epic again, and in competition, will warrant something – so here it is.

Jury Prize: Little Joe – Jessica Hausner – Call this one a feeling more than anything else, this one often goes to someone who perhaps hasn’t been in the lineup before, making a film they quite like.

Best Director: Joon-ho Bong for Parasite – Again, I just think he’s due for some recognition at the festival, and so here it is.

Best Actor: Pierfrancesco Favino for The Traitor – Favino has been around for a long time now, in both Italian and international films – so why not?

Best Actress: Valeria Golino, Portrait of a Lady on Fire – I wouldn’t be shocked if this turns out to be a two-hander if the leads split this – but if not, go with Golino.

Best Screenplay: Frankie – Ira Sachs & Mauricio Zacharias – Sachs films are almost always well-written, and with this cast, it could make it sound even better.

 

My Reaction the Cannes Festival Lineup

If it’s April, that means we’re close to May – and May means Cannes. While most of the film that show there, won’t be available to us in the general audience for months – sometimes a year or more – they do help set the conversation for the year in auteur driven film (I am still waiting to see some of last year’s competition films – especially Lynne Ramsay’s You Were Never Really Here – which I will FINALLY see later this month if all goes according to plan). They announced 17 titles for the official competition – lower than normal, but they do sometimes add titles late (last year’s Palme D’or winner The Square for example was a late entrant). This may have to do with some complications with films they want, and the whole Netflix squabble that turned hot this week, when Netflix refused to bend to Cannes demands to sell their films to a French distributor for theatrical release, and pulled out altogether. For the record, I think both sides here are being idiots – sorry, the French law that requires a 36 month window between when a film is played theatrically, and when it can hit streaming services is idiotic, and Cannes shouldn’t have give into the pressure of French exhibitors to try and enforce it. Still, Netflix could have done more to accommodate – and it is VERY true that Netflix has shown a disregard for some of their own movies – the big ones get a small push, the smaller ones get lost almost immediately (you should check out 6 Balloons and First Match for instance – but you have probably heard of neither). Both are making big proclamations of being on the side of cinema, but both are acting like children.

 

Anyway, onto the official lineup. I give my thoughts on the 17 films in competition, and then give you my predictions on what is going to win the big prizes sight unseen (I think I missed doing this last year, but mainly I do okay picking what films will win prizes, but horrible at picking which ones they’ll win). The Jury President this year is Cate Blanchatt – which will be interesting. She’s an inspired choice, but I really don’t know what she and her jury will pick.

 

• Ash Is Purest White (Jia Zhang-Ke) - I am a big fan of Chinese filmmaker Jia Zhang-ke (A Touch of Sin, Mountains May Depart) in part, because you never really know what he’s going to do next, except look at modern China, and anger his government. Despite being a Cannes competition regular (this is his fifth time in the official lineup) – he doesn’t normally win prizes (A Touch of Sin won screenplay, and that’s about it). This one is apparently a “violent love” story spanning 2001-2017 – and of course will star the great Tao Zhao. I’m excited.
   
• At War (Stéphane Brizé) – The director of The Measure of a Man – which won Vincent Lindon the Best Actor prize at Cannes in 2015, returns the Cannes lineup – this time with a story about a group of factory workers, who agreed to take a pay cut to keep their factory open – and then it closed anyway, forcing them to fight back. Lindon is back again, in a film that at least sounds consistent with their last collaboration.
   
• BlacKkKlansman (Spike Lee) – Spike Lee returns to the Competition lineup for the third time – the first since 1991’s Jungle Fever. BlacKkKlansman is clearly the directors most buzzed about movie in year – it is about an African American police officer who infiltrates the KKK. The film will surely be controversial, and here’s hoping a return to form for Lee.
   
• Burning (Lee Chang-dong) – I will always remember the TIFF screening of Lee’s 2007 masterpiece Secret Sunshine, where I walked in knowing nothing, and ended up loving it. That film won its star – Do-yeon Jeon – the Best Actress prize at Cannes that year – and he returned to Cannes in 2010 with Poetry – a film that won him Best Screenplay. But it’s been 8 long years since won of my favorite Korean directors made a film – which makes Burning my most anticipated film in this lineup – even if the plot synopsis – about cat sitting, and a trip to Africa, doesn’t give me much to go one. Still, I cannot be happier than Lee is back.
   
• Capernaum (Nadine Labaki) – One of only three films in competition directed by a woman (seriously Cannes, do better) – Capernaum is Lebanese director Labaki’s first feature since 2011’s Where Do We Go Now? There is nothing else about the film to know now – but it does represent a promotion of sorts for Labaki – whose first two films played in different sections of Cannes, but now she’s in the big time.
   
• Cold War (Pawel Pawlikowski) – It’s been five years since Polish director Pawlikowski won the Best Foreign Language film Oscar for his stunning, black-and-white film Ida. He’s back with this story set in the 1950s – a love story set in Poland, Berlin, Yugoslavia and Paris during the 1950s. Expect this one to get a lot of buzz because of how loved Ida was.
   
• Dogman (Matteo Garrone) – Italian filmmaker Garrone, returns to the lineup for the fourth time – after winning the Grand Jury Prize for both Gomorra (2008) and Reality (2012), he didn’t win anything for the disappointing Tale of Tales (2015). I don’t see any plot synopsis out there for this one, so who the hell knows what it’s about – but I do hope it’s a return to form for him.
   
• Girls of the Sun (Eva Husson) – Husson follows up her breakthrough film – Bang Gang (A Love Story) with this film, that I don’t see a synopsis for – but does star the very talented Golshifteh Farahani from Iran. I liked Bang Gang – didn’t love it, but certainly wanted to see what Husson did next, so I’m looking forward to this one.
   
• The Image Book (Jean-Luc Godard) – How many times is Godard going to retire? Did he say Goodbye to Language was going to be his last film (not to mention Film Socialism). Still, if the 87 year old legend wants to keep making films, more power to him. Expect a mixture of rapturous reviews, and complete indifference.
   
• Lazzaro Felice (Alice Rohrwacher) – Italian filmmaker Rohrwacher returns to the competition – her last film, The wonders, won the Grand Jury Prize in 2014. Her films haven’t made a ton of noise in North America yet – but she is the type of filmmaker where you can see it happening sooner or later.
   
• Leto AKA Summer (Kirill Serebrennikov) – Russian filmmaker follows up the critically acclaimed The Student (I never did see it, but heard good things) with this biopic of Russian singer-songwriter Viktor Tsoi. I’m interested in this because I have heard good things about his films – but also because he’s never been at Cannes before, so jumping straight into competition suggests they really liked this one. Also, he’s under house arrest.
   
• Netemo Sametemo AKA Asako I & II (Ryusuke Hamaguchi) – The acclaimed Japanese director of Happy Hour (which ran over five hours) makes his first trip to Cannes with Asako I & II, about a woman who falls in love with a man who disappears, and then falls in love with a man who looks exactly like him, but is complete different two years later. I don’t know if it’s as long as Happy Hour (a film I wanted to see, but as far as I know, it still isn’t available for me to see it) – but the fact that it has two parts in the title, doesn’t make it sound like a short film.
   
• Shoplifters (Kore-Eda Hirokazu) – The acclaimed, prolific Japanese filmmaker is back in the official competition for the fifth time. This one sounds right in his wheelhouse – a family of petty crooks takes in a child they find living on the street. His films are usually small and quiet – but often build to something quietly moving.
   
• Sorry Angel (Christophe Honoré) – French director Honore returns to the official lineup for the second time – the first being for Love Songs back in 2007. Other than that, I don’t know much about this film – or this filmmaker.
   
• Three Faces (Jafar Panahi) – Iranian filmmaker Panahi hasn’t let his arrest and banishment from filmmaking actually stop him from making any films (this is his fourth film since being banned). As with those films, this one seems to be under wraps until it’s unveiled – but it’s always an event in these circles when he does make one.
   
• Under the Silver Lake (David Robert Mitchell) – All of us who love It Follows have been looking forward to David Robert Mitchell’s follow-up for some time. This one, a mystery starring Andrew Garfield, Riley Keough and Topher Grace is getting a lot of buzz – and may well be the most anticipated film in competition on this side of the Atlantic. If it weren’t for Burning, it would be mine for sure.
   
• Yomeddine (A.B. Shawky) – This is Egyptian filmmaker Shawky’s debut feature – a film about a leper and his apprentice who leave the leper colony, and travel across Egypt looking for their families. The Official Lineup isn’t usually a place for first timer filmmakers – this implies that this may well be something special.

 

Predictions

Palme D’Or: Burning – Lee Chang-dong

Grand Prize of the Jury: Yomeddine – A.B. Shawky

Jury Prize: Three Faces – Jafar Panahi

Best Director: Pawel Pawlikowski, Cold War

Best Actor: Andrew Garfield, Under the Silver Lake

Best Actress: Golshifteh Farahani, Girls of the Sun

Best Screenplay: Lazzaro Felice – Alice Rohrwacher

 

As with my guesses every year, this is pure guesswork. Perhaps my choice of Burning is little more than wishful thinking, and my choice of Yomeddine for essentially second place is pure guesswork (I have to think there is a reason they are including a first time director in the competition). From there, really more guesswork – Garfield is well liked, and the trailer already has people buzzing about him, Farahani is well-known on the international circuit, so why not? Pawlikowski is well liked, and a great director – you have to think they may want to give something to Panahi. As for the screenplay win, it’s just a hunch. Remember what I said at the top – I’m usually not horrible at picking what films will win prizes at Cannes – but I am usually awful at picking what prizes those films will win.

Update (April 20)

I knew I was doing this preview too early – and sure enough, the official competition added three films in the week after the first announcement.

• Knife + Heart (Yann Gonzalez) – Gonzalez’s follow-up to his debut film – You and the Night – is a thriller about a gay porn producer who is trying to win back her lover, and somehow a serial killer fits in. I didn’t see Gonzalez’s first film, and don’t know what to expect here – but it sounds interesting.
   
• The Little One (Sergei Dvortsevoy) – Tulpan director Dvortsevoy – who won the Un Certain Regard prize for that film, makes his long awaited (10 years) follow-up to that film. It follows a Kyrgyz girl searching for a girl she left in a Moscow hospital. People loved Tulpan, so you have to wonder if this one could be a sleeper for an award.
   
• The Wild Pear Tree (Nuri Bilge Ceylon) – Undeniably the biggest announcement is Turkish director Ceylon’s follow-up to Winter Sleep (which won the Palme to 2014). Ceylon has long been a favorite of the festival (this will be his sixth film in a row to premiere in Competition – and in addition to the Palme, he’s won two Grand Jury Prizes and the Best Director Prize). He also represents the only director in the competition to previously take top prize. This film is about a writer returning to her small hometown, and being overwhelmed by her father’s debts. Former Palme winners – especially recent ones – can go either way – either winning again (like the Dardennes or Haneke) or being overlooked by the jury – as if after winning the Palme, if they don’t want to give it to you again, it’s an insult. With this addition, things certainly got more interesting.

 

Thoughts on the Cannes Film Festival Line-Up

The Cannes Film Festival remains the most prestigious Film Festival in the World, and the Palme D’Or arguably cinema’s most prestigious award. Every year, their 20 film Official Competition Lineup gives us several of the year’s best films, and many others that will keep film buffs talking for a while. We’re still waiting on some of last year’s acclaimed entries – including Palme winner Dheepan by Jacques Audiard in North America (I believe that’s set for a May release) but yesterday came the announcement of the Official Lineup, so as I do every year, I offer some thoughts on the selections, and some absurd predictions on prize winners.

Films in Competition

1. Toni Erdman - Maren Ade – If you’re one of the lucky people who watched Ade’s last film, - the brilliant Everyone Else – then her long awaited for follow-up, this immediately becomes one of the most anticipated films at Cannes (it may just top the list for me). It sounds, um, weird – it’s about a father who comes to visit his daughter, believes she has lost her sense of humor, so he tells a lot of jokes. Everyone Else was brilliant – so I’m down for anything Ade does.
    
2. Julieta - Pedro Almodovar – I haven’t been a big fan of Almodovar’s recent work – I’m So Excited was horrible, and The Skin I Live In was average at best (even Broken Embraces, which I liked, is nowhere near his best). On the surface I’m cautiously optimistic about Julieta – a film that takes place in two time periods documenting one woman’s life (starring Emma Suarez and Adriana Ugarte). This is in Almodovar’s wheelhouse, so it could be his return to form, or a confirmation that his best days are behind him.
    
3. Personal Shopper - Olivier Assayas – Olivier Assayas is one of the most interesting directors in the world right now, and re-teaming with Kristen Stewart – who was so great in his Clouds of Sils Maria – has be curious, as does the fact that this is apparently a ghost story in the fashion world in Paris. I am certainly curious.
    
4. American Honey - Andrea Arnold – Andrea Arnold is a wonderful director – winning an Oscar for her great short, Wasp, winning a Cannes Jury Prizes for her feature debut, Red Road and the wonderful Fish Tank. Her last film, 2011’s Wuthering Heights, was a fascinating take on a classic novel. American Honey finally returns her to the director’s chair – in a story of hard parting among teenagers in the Midwest. At this point, Arnold has become a director I will follow anywhere – and this is certainly among my most anticipated films of the year.
    
5. The Unknown Girl - Jean-Pierre Dardenne and Luc Dardenne – The Dardenne Brothers are Cannes Royalty – they’ve won two Palmes (for Rosetta and L’Enfant), a Grand Jury Prize (The Kid with a Bike), a screenplay Prize (The Silence of Lorna) among others. They churn out a high quality film every time, and every time it goes to Cannes, and every time it’s in the discussion for awards. This one has two Dardenne regulars – Olivier Gourmet and Jeremie Renier – in a story of doctor trying to find the identity of an anonymous woman who died. Whether or not this wins prizes, it will almost definitely be one of the most talked about films of the year in film circles.
    
6. It's Only the End of the World - Xavier Dolan – Canadian wunderkind Dolan returns with his sixth film – about a writer, played by Gaspard Ulliel, who returns to his estranged family to inform them he’s dying. The supporting cast – includes Lea Seydoux, Marion Cottillard and Vincent Cassell. As with all of Dolan’s stuff, expect many to love it, and many to hate it. This is his second film in competition – the last one, Mommy, won a Jury Prize.
    
7. Slack Bay - Bruno Dumont – French director Bruno Dumont likes to screw with his audiences – his films are almost always very violent, disturbing, sexual and provocative – sometimes in good ways, sometimes not. Slack Bay – which deals with a bourgeois family deformed by inbreeding in 1910 will almost certainly be controversial. If it wasn’t, it would be a Dumont film. He has found some favor in Cannes before – L’humanite won the Grand Jury Prizes (and Best Actor and Actress), and Flanders, so who knows?
    
8. Paterson - Jim Jarmusch – Jim Jarmusch’s newest film stars the ubiquitous Adam Driver has a bus driver in Paterson, New Jersey, who is also a poet. This sounds like classic, small scale Jarmusch – and will almost certainly be a good film. He has been at Cannes many times over the years – and won the Grand Jury Prize for Broken Flowers in 2005.
    
9. Staying Vertical - Alain Guiraudie – Guiraudie is making his follow-up to the wonderful, Hitchcock-ian thriller Stranger By the Lake, and that alone makes this one I am very curious about - and since that’s about the only thing I know about it that will have to do.
    
10. Aquarius - Kleber Mendonca Filho – Mendonca Filho’s debut film, Neighboring Sounds, about an insular neighborhood afflicted by violence in Brazil, was masterful – a film that slipped through the cracks in North America, but should not have. His next film stars Sonia Braga, and apparently she can travel through time. That’s all I need to know to make this one highly anticipated to me.
     
11. From the Land of the Moon - Nicole Garcia – French actress turned filmmaker Garcia has a fine caste – Marion Cottilard and Louis Garrel top lining – in this WWII era film, about a “passionate woman” trapped in a loveless marriage who falls for another man. That sounds clichéd to be sure, but that doesn’t mean it cannot be great. Since I don’t know Garcia’s work as a director however, it isn’t among my most anticipated.
     
12. I, Daniel Blake - Ken Loach – The least surprising inclusion in the lineup is the new film from director Ken Loach and writer Paul Laverty – if their new film is ready in time, it’s playing in competition at Cannes, even if there’s little doubt that his best films are behind him (it’s been downhill since the 2006 Palme winning The Wind That Shakes the Barley). Who knows, maybe this will be a return to form – and Loach has a wonderful career, so who the hell knows?
     
13. Ma'Rosa - Brillante Mendoza – Philippine filmmaker Brillante Mendoza is a fixture on the festival circuit, and almost always controversial. His films never really get released in North America – the major reason I haven’t seen his films is because they are not easy to find. This is his fourth time at Cannes – he won a Best Director Prize for Kinatay. I know nothing else about this film, so who knows what it will be.
     
14. Bacalaureat (Graduation) - Cristian Mungiu – Palme winning director for Mungiu (4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days) returns with this movie starring Vlad Ivanov (who played the abortionist in that film, and has carved out a niche of creeps since then) that is apparently about parenting. His last film, the wonderful Beyond the Hills, won the Best Actress and Best Screenplay prize at Cannes – which makes this a formable film for Prizes – but more importantly, his talent makes this one of the most anticipated films in competition.
     
15. Loving - Jeff Nichols – While Midnight Special plays in North American theaters, Jeff Nichols’ newest film, Loving, will be debuting at Cannes. A period piece based on a real case, where an inter-racial couple (Joel Edgerton and Ruth Negga) who take their case to the Supreme Court in 1967 to strike down racist, interracial marriage laws. Neither has the top billed role though – that is, of course, Nichols’ favorite Michael Shannon (although I have no idea what he’s playing). I think Nichols is one of the best directors around, so while this screams “OSCAR BAIT” –and has a November release date to back it up – I don’t much care. I cannot wait to see it.
     
16. The Handmaiden - Park Chan-Wook – Korean director Park Chan-Wook – who has won a Grand Jury Prize for Oldboy and a Jury Prize for Thirst – returns to Cannes with The Handmaiden, a period genre piece about a woman who falls in love with a thief. Park is known for his ultra-violent films, so who knows where this one will go – although stills from the film certainly look “classier” than his normal work, so who can really tell what this will turn out to be.
     
17. The Last Face - Sean Penn – Sean Penn’s first directorial effort since 2007’s Into the Wild stars Charlize Theron as an African aid worker and Javier Bardem as a doctor during a “political/social revolution” on that continent. It’s hard not to pre-judge this as yet another Hollywood film about Africa starring non-Africans, but Penn is a fine director, and the two stars are excellent, so I’ll try to remain cautiously optimistic.
     
18. Sieranevada - Cristi Puiu – The Romanian director behind The Death of Mr. Lazarescu and Aurora makes the leap from Un Certain Regard to the main competition with his latest – although what the hell it is about, I have no idea – and Puiu’s own description about it being about people who escape into fiction when overwhelmed by grief doesn’t much help matters. Still Puiu is a fascinating filmmaker and those two previously mentioned films are both great – so this will be anticipated by me.
     
19. Elle - Paul Verhoeven – Count me among those who think that Verhoeven’s return to the Netherlands result in his best film – 2006’s Black Book, which is what makes this – his first proper film since then (there was the experiment Tricked – which I should probably catch up sooner or later) one that I cannot wait to see. The fact that it stats Isabelle Huppert is a bonus. The fact that it’s been described as a variation on the rape/revenge film has me intrigued (have we seen that too much? Yes – but Verhoeven is a director who is capable of doing something new with it – he’s also capable of making trash out of it, but if it’s in Cannes, will assume it isn’t that).
     
20. The Neon Demon - Nicolas Winding Refn – As someone who loved Drive and hated Only God Forgives (and am fairly neutral on Refn’s work before them), I will remain optimistic about his latest – a female lead (Elle Fanning), neon-colored, Hollywood horror film. Refn remains a gifted stylist, and perhaps The Neon Demon will show that Only God Forgives was a fluke – or that Drive was. Either way, I’m seeing this as soon as possible.

Predictions

Palme D’Or: Sieranevada - Cristi Puiu

Grand Prize of the Jury: American Honey – Andrea Arnold

Jury Prize: Toni Erdman – Maren Ade

Best Director: Paul Verhoeven, Elle

Best Actor: Gaspard Ulliel, It’s Only the End of the World

Best Actress: Emma Suarez & Adriana Ugarte, Julieta

Best Screenplay: Loving – Jeff Nichols

Making predictions about Cannes winners – based on no information, is always a little silly – but I enjoy doing it anyway. This year has me stumped though. Normally, the safest bet for the Palme win is a director who has won something at Cannes before, but not the Palme, and is seen as overdue – the last two winners, Winter Sleep by Nuri Bilge Ceylon and Dheepan by Jacques Audiard, certainly fit that mode. Here though, that list would include filmmakers like Brillante Mendoza and Bruno Dumont – who are controversial, so you wonder if that sort of consensus could form around them, Olivier Assayas, Park Chan-wook and Nicolas Winding Refn – whose filmography, or current film (in Assayas’ case) maybe too genre to win the major prize, and Jim Jarmusch, whose film seems like it could be too small and Xavier Dolan, although I wonder if he’s too young (and divisive) to win. That leaves two time Jury Prize winner Andrea Arnold – but she doesn’t quite have the same feeling as being overdue. You do have a few Palme winners in the mix as well – but with his recent output, I’m not willing to go all in for the latest from Almodovar, Ken Loach is hardly doing his best work lately, I cannot help but think that Mungiu may be too new to win a second Palme right now (although, the Dardennes did) and the Dardennes would become the first filmmakers ever to win three – which makes them unlikely. The Jury President is Mad Max’s George Miller, so perhaps being to genre won’t hurt – and he may be more willing than some to go “Hollywood” – although the American films don’t feel like Palme winners to me. So, I’m going slightly off board with by Palme pick – going with Cristi Puiu for Sieranevada – he has won a Prize in the Un Certain Regard category, and he’s certainly a great filmmaker. For the Grand Jury Prize, I’ll go with the previously mentioned Arnold – she is a great filmmaker, and the latest will probably be great. The Jury Prize to another female filmmaker – Maren Ade, whose film sounds perhaps a touch too weird to win one of the big ones, but could easily find fans on the Jury. For Best Director, I think one old timer (Miller) will reward another – Paul Verhoeven for Elle, which will likely be too violent to get more than this. For Best Actor, I’ll guess than Dolan’s talented star Gaspard Ulliel will take it for what should be a show-off role in it’s Only the End of the World. But don’t count out Romanians Vlad Ivanov for Bacalaureat or Mimi Branescu for Sieranevada or Hollywood stars Michael Shannon (or Joel Edgerton) for Loving, Adam Driver for Paterson and Javier Bardem for The Last Face. Cannes juries often love to give a duo prize for acting in the same film, so for Best Actress, I’ll guess the two stars of the Almodovar film Julieta - Emma Suarez and Adriana Ugarte. They could easily face stiff competition from Sonia Braga in Aquarius, Isabelle Huppert in Elle, Charlize Theron in The Last Face – not to mention Marion Cotillard in either It’s Only the End of the World or From the Land of the Moon (Cotillard seems to enter Cannes every year as a favorite here – although she keeps not winning it). Finally, to add a little Hollywood to the proceedings, I’ll go with Jeff Nichols winning the screenplay award for Loving.

Am I going to be wrong in my Predictions? Almost certainly (I will say, I did pick Dheepan, Carol and The Assassin to win prizes last year, and they all did – The Assassin Best Director, which I called, and Carol for best Actress – although I guessed Blanchatt, and Mara won). I wanted to predict Aquarius – such is my love for Neighboring Sounds – but couldn’t find a spot to do so. If I knew anything more about Staying Vertical, I may well have picked that for something as well. Either way, I cannot wait to start hearing the reactions for Cannes next month.