Variety reports a tentative roster of films expected to be shown in Cannes, as the festival prepares to open on May 13. Official announcement of this year’s films will be made April 23, but these titles are likely:
- Quentin Tarantino’s Inglourious Basterds, the Nazi-hunter saga with Brad Pitt
- Ang Lee’s Taking Woodstock, about 1969 music fest, with Emile Hirsch
- Francis Ford Coppola’s Tetro, an Argentine family drama with Vincent Gallo
- Werner Herzog’s Bad Lieutenant remake with Nicolas Cage
- Sam Raimi’s Drag Me to Hell, horror-thriller with Alison Lohman
- Pete Docter’s Up, the 3D Pixar adventure with Ed Asner
- Jane Campion’s Bright Star, a John Keats bio with Ben Wishaw
- Lars von Trier’s Antichrist, horror in the woods with Willem Dafoe & Charlotte Gainsbourg
- Ken Loach’s Looking for Eric, about a troubled teen soccer fan
- Johnny To’s Vengeance, a hitman-turned-chef in Hong Kong to avenge his daughter’s murder, with Johnny Hallyday
- Andrea Arnold’s Fish Tank, teen troubles with Michael Fassbender
- Michael Haneke’s The White Ribbon, about incipient fascism at a rural school in 1913
(Tetro and The White Ribbon are both shot in black and white) - Pedro Almodovar’s Broken Embraces, a noirish melodrama with Penelope Cruz
- Marco Bellocchio’s Vincere, about Mussolini’s secret lover
- Bong Joon-ho’s Mother, a thriller about a ghastly murder
- Park Chan-wook’s Thirst, about a small-town priest who turns into a vampire
- Lou Ye’s Spring Fever, about a young threesome overcome with erotic longings
- Lu Chuan’s City of Life and Death, epic about the 1937 massacre of Nanking by the Japanese army
- Hirokazu Kore-eda’s Air Doll, about the love affair between a videostore clerk and an inflatable sex doll
- Tsai Ming-liang’s Face, about a Taiwanese director in Paris to make a film about Salome, with Mathieu Amalric, Jeanne Moreau, Fanny Ardant, Nathalie Baye, Laetitia Casta and Jean-Pierre Leaud
Rumored but unconfirmed:
- Terry Gilliam’s The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus, a fantasy with Heath Ledger, Johnny Depp, Colin Farrell and Jude Law
37 Responses for "Official Cannes selections emerge"
wow this is the greatest cannes line-up maybe ever
edit WOOPS I thought these were the actual selections
What an eclectic list! Everything sounds so good.
I hope one of the horror/mystery/thriller-movies makes it to the Oscars.
It would be something to see Up and Antichrist in BP lineup.
Tim, I hope they stick with this list.
These are just the most likely titles presumed to be in the official line-up, tim. Many have already been confirmed though, so there’s good reason to ‘wow’ in anticipation.
yes, you know i want to see air doll…
Asian cinema (notably Korea and Japan) is so deliciously quirky, subtly funny and deeply haunting. Why the Oscars keep snubbing them year in and year out, I don’t know.
Yeah, air doll sounds interesting; material only a Japanese director of such magnitude can handle. American filmmakers don’t have the gifts of handling such themes.
I thought the Japanese had moved way beyond inflatable girlfriends, glimmer.
“American filmmakers don’t have the gifts of handling such themes.”
Did you not see Lars and the Real Girl, Afrika?
I did see Lars and the real girl and it was a mediocre attempt worthy of some degree of applause.
In the hands of a capable Japanese film maker, it would have been a much better movie. Lars and the real girl, despite critical acclaim in America, is flawed. The tone was hardly believable. We are fully aware of the joke. Gosling didn’t help make the scenario believable either. Maybe it was his acting or the porn moustache. Bottom line, it didn’t work. The movie didn’t pass as realistic…which is my point.
UP and Inglorious Basterds, I got high hopes
“Gosling didn’t help make the scenario believable… Bottom line, it didn’t work.”
That explains Ryan Gosling’s armload of nominations for Best Actor, and his win at the satellite awards. Also writer Nancy Oliver’s nominations for Oscar, the Writer’s Guild and being awarded Best Screenplay by the National Board of Review and the prestigious Humanitas Prize.
“Lars and the real girl, despite critical acclaim in America, is flawed. The tone was hardly believable.”
Admittedly, it’s no Obsession, and Ryan Gosling is no Beyonce.
You know, Afrika, you’d sound less like a little prick if you’d temper your grand proclamations with qualifiers like “for me, it didn’t work” or “personally, I thought it was mediocre.”
Is it because you claim English as a second language that you always come across to everybody so abrasively?
Really great movies. This can easily be one of the best selections of the festival. Just good reasons to travell to France: Tarantino, Almodovar, J. Campion, Ang Lee, Coppola… it cant get better. But my favorite? Lars von Trier. It will rock Cannes.
You have no idea how happy I’ll be if Doctor Parnassus makes the Official Selection.
I had no idea Bong Joon-ho’s movie was ready to go.
This lineup is over the top amazing.
Oh, let’s all be fuckin’ pretentious and hate on American filmmakers.
Likewise Spring Fever, harry. IMDb doesn’t even have it listed on Ye Lou’s page yet. I did find this description, which makes it sound enticingly like Y tu mamá también:
Some real heavyweights going at it this year. Particularly looking forward to Jane Campion, Michael Haneke and Aldomovar’s efforts.
Oh this looks amazing, I loves Park’s work so I cannot wait to hear more about “Thrist” and “UP” still looks awesome. This Cannes should be a very good one.
Nobody’s seen these films, am I right? So why are they all being proclaimed as masterpieces already. They’ve certainly all got pedigree, but even if this is the complete selection, there will be plenty of screw-ups and missed opportunities.
And Ryan, did you seriously just make the argument that Ryan Gosling and the film were immune from criticism because they got lots of critics nominations.
Not immune to criticism, Euan. Where did I say that?
Nope, Afrika presented her opinion, and I provided a reminder that many of us have another point of view.
I don’t like seeing movie I love being dismissed as mediocre, so the first and easiest line of defense is to cite the honors it earned.
Furonda,
You do realize that half of the past decade’s best director winners at Cannes are Americans, right?
Afrika…did you really think the tone of lars was supposed to be perceived as ultra realistic ?? or that was the tone they were aiming for ???
and as far as ‘the joke’ factor if this film was more jokey it would have likely had a lot bigger box office. people may have wanted a film like this just to some pure joke/laugh factor something they could laugh at. but it had alot of heart and showed a type of character you usually don’t see on big screen. (but i realize that doesn’t count as realism/because no one cares that a chracter like this could exist.especially if he isn’t being set up exclusively as the butt of jokes…)
afrika, if you’re sooo wowed by realism and stuff being believable just wait until oscar bait season and you’ll be in heaven ok.
lars seemed to have sidesided everyone expectations of what they thought it like would be based on the premise/what’s it about thing…
and i think that helps to makes the film a massive success.even if you don’t like it.
i think they’re too many films that are ultra realistic/believable and traditional every damn year but how many have a tone similar to lars ?? lars was the more unique movie experience even if you thought it sucked…
and i loved gosling in this role.and yes, i think it took a lot of courage to play the character as he did.
if you didn’t like lars/that’s fine/ and despite it’s fantastical elements it seemed realistic enough to me.
but hey i’ve never been much for realism…
“Bad Lieutenant” has been filming?
Wow, Michael is going to be premiering two films at Cannes! Inglorious Basterds and Fish Tank.
I wish I could go there!
I’ll second — or third — the motion on Lars and the Real Girl being a quality film. I thought it was wonderfully written, beautifully acted. I don’t believe it was intended to be, like, cinema verité.
However, the Japanese sometimes have a particular way of viewing matters sexual that could make Air Doll an interesting experience.
Wow. so we’ve got films by Almodovar, Tarantino, Lee, Raimi, Coppola, Herzog, Chan-wook, Joon-Ho and Von Trier. And Doctor’s Up.
F*ck Me, I wish I could be there to see even 1/2 of these movies.
And am I a little wrong or does there seem to be a decent horror representation here with Raimi, Joon-ho, Chan-wook and Von Trier here? I wish I could see all 4 of these movies.
Lars and the Real Girl was fantastic!
Oh, and this line up is amazing too.
Ample evidence of the intelligence and craft of Lars and The Real Girl can be found in Ryan’s AD audio interview with Nancy Oliver. Well worth discovering for those interested in the film. The site’s search engine should throw it up.
Thanks sartre, Pierre, Daniel, glimmer and everybody else who’s come to defend Lars and Bianca.
glimmer deserves special credit for being the first ADer to tell us about Lars and the Real Girl in 2007. glimmer held firm in his support of the movie when everyone else thought it was too quirky and offbeat for Oscar. Because of its release platforming, it was months before many of us even got a chance to see Lars to confirm for ourselves what glimmer was trying to tell us.
For Lars fans, it’s a far more subtle and nuanced script than the Diablo Cody wisecrack parade that won Best Screenplay.
I didn’t mention my interview with Nancy Oliver because I didn’t want to cloud the issue with my own personal bias. That’s another reason why I chose to mention the awards it won instead of personalizing the argument. The interview was done for the DVD release, weeks after the Oscars were over, so it’s not like the chance to speak to an Oscar nominee influenced my opinion. My admiration predated the interview by months.
In fact it was our praise here and support of Lars throughout the awards season that caught the eye of a publicist who approached me with the interview opportunity. I don’t have the clout to seek these things out. They have to drop in my lap.
The interview is hard to find, so here’s a link to the original posting, and another direct link to the podcast file.
“Lars” was quite cool superior to the a french movie, “Monique”, who came before, in 2002, and has a similar plot.
And Ryan Gosling is an actor beyond amazing. Ten years from now he will be his generation’s Sean Penn, the greatest actor, and the greatest in activity in USA cinema.
I agree with Joao and his assessment of Gosling and his future, although, Joesph Gordon-Levitt does have the ability to challenge Gosling.
Great to see Jane Campion in this line up (and hopefully she’ll remain on the official bill). I truly admire everything she’s done and the legacy of her career. (And that she’s one of the minority representing women directors doesn’t hurt).
I second all of the love for Ryan Gosling.
I’m not a die hard fan of “Lars and the Real Girl”, but this was a surprising comedy film and I still believe that Ryan Gosling DESERVED another Oscar Nomination for his performance instead George Clooney or even Johnny Depp (And I like Sweeney Todd, but Bonham Carter is better) and the screenplay is a little bit underrated instead “Juno” (That film ages worse. I don’t understand how Ellen Page got the Oscar Nomination or got all the media attention). Also I third all of the love of Ryan Gosling.
Great Cannes lineup. I’m interesting:
*Bright Star – Jane Campion and Ben Wisham
*Tetro – Especially for Maribel Verdu (Another Spaniard actress nominated?)
*Taking Woodstock – Ang Lee hardly dissapoints me.
*City of Light and Death – Maybe China Submission
*Inglorious Basterds
But i’m more curious about “Vincere”. If the film is likely and Giovanna Mezzogiorno’s performance is critically acclaimed (Even a possibility for award), maybe she would be a next Penelope Cruz-Marion Cotillard in this 2009 Best Lead Actress Race…
@Xavi: Agreed about Gosling. I would have much rather seen him get nominated in 2007 instead of Depp.
I’m not one of the lucky ones who will ever get to the Cannes Film Festival (
), but this is quite a line-up.
Damn, I wish I could afford to fly to France. I’d love to be seeing Taking Woodstock and Inglorious Basterds in May…
I don’t understand the great love for Lars and The Real Girl but I
am not argumentally equipped enough to get into a debate with such die-hard fans. I also don’t think Gosling is as great as a talent as people are making him out to be but I do think he is a better actor than most of his age group and that he has potential. He makes daring and interesting choices when he could have easily sold out. I think he should have gotten nominated over Depp and Clooney but I also think he shouldn’t have gotten the Best Actor nomination for Half-Nelson which I found very overrated. Have you seen his other movies? People have elevated him to such a high status because of Half-Nelson and Lars, both films that received too much acclaim. I also think Lars was a superior effort than Juno .
Gosling, JGL, Cillian Murphy, James McAvoy, Emile Hirsch, and etc are all a class of actors that have great promise and potential. For awhile, it seemed there were no up and comers to be excited about for a period of ten years.
I wish Inglorious Bastards was not in the Cannes lineup. I’m a big
fan of both Pitt and Tarantino but releasing this controversial film
early ( a movie that is easy bait for ugly spin by the biased media)
is a bad move. It will just provide the press and all of the flamers
an opportunity to piss on this movie months before its wide release.
I wish the star would do an interview addressing that heinous accusation once again especially since the media did a great job of adding lies to their interviews, with the followers who fell for it,
just ignoring all of the other statements made for the past 4 yrs that
would indicate those quotations were planted by the press. But then again these same followers seem to just suddenly forget his behavior, attitude, words, and etc that reflected his personality and
nature which would indicate his innocence and also chose to ignore
the media’s past setups for misportayals using the same kind of rumor at a calculated time. I’m repeating the truth spoken by a few others because it is important. I’m sure they will cook up many more
“controversies” and pseudo-scandals about him and his mate around
the time of its release. I know they will during the release of Tree of Life. I think Pitt made a big mistake in signing up for Inglorious Bastards. Though I think he is signing up for movies he previously
would have rejected because his career options have been greatly
minimilized because of the industry bias and he wants to make films
with directors on his wish list before he retires.
I really wish I could attend the Cannes film festival. I think Cannes
will prove to be an imporant indicator and a reflection of the awards
race. Tetro and Bright Star are possible BP contenders. Up will be
a box office hit and an obvious choice for a Best Animated pic nominee. Broken Embraces and Taking Woodstock also have potential for nominations though I don’t think they will be BP contenders. I’m also excited about two of Fassbender’s films being
featured. I think he will be the next It guy. Excellent line-up.
don’t forget about Haneke’s “The White Ribbon”
Quentin Tarantino’s Inglourious Basterds, Ang Lee’s Taking Woodstock, Jane Campion’s Bright Star, Lars von Trier’s Antichrist, Ken Loach’s Looking for Eric, Johnny To’s Vengeance, Andrea Arnold’s Fish Tank, Michael Haneke’s The White Ribbon, Pedro Almodovar’s Broken Embraces, Park Chan-wook’s Thirst, Marco Bellochio’s Vincere, Lou Ye’s Spring Fever, and Tsai Ming-liang’s Face are included in this year’s Official Selection as per the line-up:
IN COMPETITION
“Bright Star,” Australia-U.K.-France, Jane Campion
“Spring Fever,” China-France, Lou Ye
“Antichrist,” Denmark-Sweden-France-Italy, Lars von Trier
“Enter the Void,” France, Gaspar Noe
“Face,” France-Taiwan-Netherlands-Belgium, Tsai Ming-liang
“Les Herbes folles,” France-Italy, Alain Resnais
“In the Beginning,” France, Xavier Giannoli
“A Prophet,” France, Jacques Audiard
“The White Ribbon,” Germany-Austria-France, Michael Haneke
“Vengeance,” Hong Kong-France-U.S., Johnnie To
“The Time That Remains,” Israel-France-Belgium-Italy, Elia Suleiman
“Vincere,” Italy-France, Marco Bellocchio
“Kinatay,” Philippines, Brillante Mendoza
“Thirst,” South Korea-U.S., Park Chan-wook
“Broken Embraces,” Spain, Pedro Almodovar
“Map of the Sounds of Tokyo,” Spain, Isabel Coixet
“Fish Tank,” U.K.-Netherlands, Andrea Arnold
“Looking for Eric,” U.K.-France-Belgium-Italy, Ken Loach
“Inglourious Basterds,” U.S., Quentin Tarantino
“Taking Woodstock,” U.S., Ang Lee
Surprises include Brillante “Dante” Mendoza’s (“Serbis,” in competition 2008) “Kinatay”, Isabel Coixet’s “Map of the Sounds…,” Jacques Audiard’s “A Prophet,” and Gaspar Noe’s “Enter the Void”.
The rest of the line-up is loaded with auteurs, making the 62nd Cannes Film Festival a competition of heavyweights.
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