The Cannes Film Festival will run from May 12 to 23, with a program this year that is noticeably less packed with Hollywood blockbusters and more focused on international arthouse cinema. Legendary director Park Chan-wook, the first Korean to be awarded the title in the festival's long history, will be president of the jury. Meanwhile, two honorary Palme d'Ors for lifetime achievement will be awarded to two titans of the industry: Barbra Streisand and Peter Jackson.
From surreal musicals to daring thrillers, here's a quick look at the films you can't miss at the 79th Cannes Film Festival.
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“The Man I Love”
The only American film in the Cannes competition is the new work by Ira Sachs (“The Day of Peter Gujar”). It is another unique, deeply emotional character study: a musical portrait of an actor living in late 1980s New York (Oscar winner Rami Malek) who gets the role of a lifetime and is forced to come to terms with his own mortality. The film also stars Rebecca Hall, Tom Sturridge, Ebon Moss-Bachrack (“The Bear”) and Luther Ford (“The Crown”).
“Home”
From the karaoke scene in “The End of the World Project” to winning Best Actress at the Berlin Film Festival for her 17th-century drama “Rosa,” Sandra Güller has had an incredible year, and her triumphs continue. She's set to appear in a poignant new black-and-white film from director Pawel Pawlikowski. The “Anatomy of a Fall” star plays Erika, the daughter of Nobel Prize laureate and prominent anti-Nazi Thomas Mann (Hanns Zischler). At the height of the Cold War, he returns to Germany for the first time since fleeing to the United States. As they travel the country, they come to terms with their painful past and uncertain future.
“Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma”
Director Jane Schönbrunn presents a new, dizzying comedy starring Gillian Anderson, Anna Einbinder, and Eva Victor. The plot centers on a queer director hired to revive a fading slasher franchise. She's obsessed with bringing the original film's “final girl” back to the role. As the two women's lives intertwine, they find themselves drawn into a bloody psychosexual obsession. The director describes the film as a “portrait of a woman on fire” in the vein of a Friday the 13th sequel and as a “classic slumber party movie.” Sounds convincing.
“Black Ball”
Also appearing on the Cannes red carpet will be Penelope Cruz, who, according to festival director Thierry Fremaux, has an unforgettable cameo in this bold story about the lives of three gay men. The directors are Javier Calvo and Javier Ambrossi. Along with the charismatic lead actor, the Spanish singer under the pseudonym Guitarricadelafuente, the film also stars Julio Torres and Glenn Close.
“Favorite”
Joining Cruz on the Cote d'Azur will be her Oscar-winning husband Javier Bardem. He plays a famous and controversial director who reunites with his actress daughter (Victoria Luengo) in Rodrigo Sorogoyen's tense family drama. After a long estrangement, he offers her a role in his new film, ostensibly to help revive her career. But while filming in the desert, their reunion opens up old wounds that have never healed.
“Bitter Christmas”
After his English-language debut The Room Next Door, which won the Golden Lion, Pedro Almodóvar returns to Spain with a new melodrama. This is the story of a successful advertising director (Barbara Lennie) who immerses herself in work to cope with the death of her mother. During a December weekend, she leaves Madrid for Lanzarote and, trying to overcome a creative crisis, begins to transform the personal tragedies of her friends into sophisticated prose. As always – impeccable design, rich colors, exquisite cinematography and a generous dose of autofiction.
“Parallel Stories”
After The Divorce of Nader and Simin and The Hero, Iranian director Asghar Farhadi is no longer able to film in his country due to war. So in his new film, he turns to Paris and four French stars — Isabelle Huppert, Virginie Efira, Vincent Cassel and Catherine Deneuve — who are dealing with the aftermath of the November 2015 terrorist attacks that claimed more than 100 lives, making them the deadliest in the country's history.
“Full Phil”
Director Quentin Dupier describes his film as “Emily in Paris from Hell” — and that's enough. The absurdist comedy follows a wealthy American industrialist (Woody Harrelson) as he tries to reconnect with his estranged daughter (Kristen Stewart) while traveling to Paris. French cuisine, an old horror movie, and an annoying hotel clerk only complicate matters. Also starring Emma MacKay and Charlotte Le Bon, we're in for a real hit.