Favourites and outsiders gear up for Cannes

14/02/2019 - An overview of the main contenders vying for a place at the 72nd Cannes Film Festival (14 to 25 May 2019)

Abdellatif Kechiche, Céline Sciamma, Pedro Almodóvar, Marco Bellocchio, Jessica Hausner, Roy Andersson, Ulrich Seidl, Agnes Kocsis and Corneliu Porumboiu

What does this year's Cannes selector Thierry Frémaux have in store for us, given that he went against the grain last year in favour of mixing things up a bit? With the 69^th Berlinale due to hand out awards on Saturday, 16 February, the 72^nd Cannes Film Festival (14 to 25 May 2019) has begun to attract the interest of major global film industry players and fans, and the lists of possible and probable contenders are cropping up left, right and centre as part of the usual, but no-less-exciting, crystal ball atmosphere that tends to precede the event (with a special mention to prospectors Nicholas Bell and Eric Lavallée from Ioncinema). Of course, this broad summary should be taken with a pinch of salt, but it does contain a very large number of hotly anticipated films.

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On the front line are several films by directors who have already won at least one (or two) Palmes d'Or: Young Ahmed [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne
film profile] by the Belgians Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne, Sorry We Missed You [+see also:
film review
trailer
Q&A: Ken Loach
film profile] by the Englishman Ken Loach, the French film The Truth [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Hirokazu Kore-eda
film profile] by Japan's Hirokazu Kore-eda, Once Upon A Time in Hollywood by the American director Quentin Tarantino, and two feature films that have been kept decidedly under wraps, Mektoub My Love: Intermezzo [+see also:
film review
film profile] by the French director Abdellatif Kechiche and A Hidden Life [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] by the American director Terrence Malick.

Also on our radar are a number of other films by filmmakers that have already been in competition on the Croisette, such as Pain & Glory [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Antonio Banderas
Q&A: Pedro Almodóvar
film profile] by the Spanish director Pedro Almodovar, Oh Mercy! [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Arnaud Desplechin
film profile] by the French director Arnaud Desplechin and Joan of Arc [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Bruno Dumont
film profile] by his compatriot Bruno Dumont, The Traitor [+see also:
film review
trailer
Q&A: Marco Bellocchio
film profile] by the Italian director Marco Bellocchio, About Endlessness [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Roy Andersson
film profile] by the Swedish director Roy Andersson, Manor House [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Cristi Puiu
film profile] by the Romanian director Roumain Cristi Puiu, Wicked Games by the Austrian director Ulrich Seidl, Parasite by the Korean director Bong Joon-ho, the American trio The Dead Don’t Die [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] by Jim Jarmusch, Ad Astra by James Gray (if special effects are completed in time) and Uncut Gems by Josh and Benny Safdie, Matthias et Maxime by the Canadian director Xavier Dolan and Guest of Honour by his compatriot Atom Egoyan, It Must Be Heaven [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Elia Suleiman
film profile] by the Palestinian director Elia Suleiman, To the Ends of the Earth by the Japanese director Kiyoshi Kurosawa, three Chinese films, including Saturday Fiction by Lou Ye and One Second by the Chinese director Zhang Yimou (if they pass the country's strict censorship laws), as well as Bacurau [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Kleber Mendonça Filho, Juli…
film profile] by the Brazilian duo Kleber Mendonça Filho and Juliano Dornelles (which rumours suggests is a little too genre-oriented to be in the running for the Palme d’Or), as well as True History of the Kelly Gang [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] by the Australian director Justin Kurzel. It should also be noted that there is uncertainty about the timing of Zombi Child [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Bertrand Bonello
film profile] by the Frenchman Bertrand Bonello, which could be a candidate for selection according to some, while others don’t think the film shoot will be entirely finished by the spring.

Serious contenders for a first foray in competition include Portrait of a Lady on Fire [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Céline Sciamma
film profile] by the French director Céline Sciamma, Ema by the Chilean director Pablo Larrain, The Whistlers [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Corneliu Porumboiu
film profile] by the Romanian director Corneliu Porumboiu, Little Joe [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Jessica Hausner
film profile] by the Austrian director Jessica Hausner, Wet Season by the Singaporean director Anthony Chen, The Wild Goose Lake by the Chinese director Diao Yi’nan (also allegedly a little too genre-oriented for competition, but so was his Golden Bear winner Black Coal at Berlin in 2014, so we'll see!), All Inclusive by the Polish director Malgorzata Szumowska, The Beanpole [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] by the Russia's wunderkind director Kantemir Balagov, and three films by American directors: First Cow by Kelly Reichardt, Wendy by Benh Zeitlin and Frankie [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Ira Sachs
film profile] by Ira Sachs.

European productions aren't lacking in diverse talent ready for a trip on the Croisette with Eden [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] by the Hungarian director Agnes Kocsis, A Sun That Never Sets by the Spanish director Olivier Laxe and Mother by his compatriot Rodrigo Sorogoyen, the Icelandic films Echo by Runar Runarsson and The County [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Grímur Hákonarson
film profile] by Grímur Hákonarson, Servants [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Ivan Ostrochovský
film profile] by the Slovakian Ivan Ostrochovský, Pelican Blood [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Katrin Gebbe
film profile] by the German director Katrin Gebbe, Suicide Tourist [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Jonas Alexander Arnby
film profile] by the Danish director Jonas Alexander Arnby, 438 Days by the Swedish director Jesper Ganslandt, Martin Eden [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Pietro Marcello
film profile] by the Italian director Pietro Marcello, Technoboss [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: João Nicolau
film profile] by the Portuguese director João Nicolau, Heidi [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Cătălin Mitulescu
film profile] by the Romanian director Catalin Mitulescu, Adoration [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Fabrice du Welz
film profile] by the Belgian director Fabrice du Welz and Working Girls [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Anne Paulicevich and Frédér…
film profile] by his compatriot Frédéric Fonteyne. Also worthy of a mention is the enigmatic Undine [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Christian Petzold
film profile] by the German director Christian Petzold, which sprang from nowhere into this year’s predictions and whose production process is entirely unknown.

Also of note is While at War [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Alejandro Amenábar
film profile] by the Spanish director Alejandro Amenabar, Seberg [+see also:
trailer
film profile] by the Australian director Benedict Andrews, The Lighthouse by the American director Robert Eggers, thedocumentary The Cordillera of Dreams [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] by the Chilean director Patricio Guzmán, Casablanca Beats [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] by the Moroccan director Nabil Ayouch, Yalda, a Night for Forgiveness [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Massoud Bakhshi
film profile] by the Iranian director Massoud Bakhshi, Our Lady of the Nile [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] by the Afghani director Atiq Rahimi, A Girl Missing [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] by the Japanese director Koji Fukada, Luz by the Chinese director Flora Lau, as well as Blue Train by her compatriot Dalei Zhang, Waves by the American director Trey Edward Shults, The Orphanage [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Shahrbanoo Sadat
film profile] by the Afghani director Shahrbanoo Sadat, Litigante [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] by the Colombian director Franco Lolli and Persian Lessons [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Leonie Benesch
film profile] by the Russian-American director Vadim Perelman.

On the French side of things, in addition to the titles that have already been mentioned, are various contenders in good stead, such as An Easy Girl [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Rebecca Zlotowski
film profile] by Rebecca Zlotowski, Proxima [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Alice Winocour
film profile] by Alice Winocour, Sibyl [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Justine Triet
film profile] by Justine Triet, Happy Birthday [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] by Cédric Kahn, Thalasso [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] by Guillaume Nicloux and Gloria Mundi [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Robert Guédiguian
film profile] by Robert Guédiguian.

When it comes to the oft-disputed debut French film crowd, contenders include the likes of Atlantique [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Mati Diop
film profile] by Mati Diop, Cuties [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Maïmouna Doucouré
film profile] by Maïmouna Doucouré, Jumbo [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Zoé Wittock
film profile] by Zoé Wittock, Back Home [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] by Jessica Palud, The Dazzled [+see also:
trailer
film profile] by Sarah Suco, Les Héros ne meurent jamais by Aude Rapin, Mes jours de gloire [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Antoine de Bary
film profile] by Antoine de Bary, Les Misérables [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Ladj Ly
film profile] by Ladj Ly and The Breitner Commando [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] by Abdel Raouf Dafri.

Also worth noting are the animated films The Bear's Famous Invasion of Sicily [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Lorenzo Mattotti
film profile] by the Italian director Lorenzo Mattotti and The Swallows of Kabul [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Zabou Breitman, Eléa Gobbe-…
film profile] by the French directors Zabou Breitman and Eléa Gobbé-Mévellec, while the midnight sessions may suit Midsommar bythe American director Ari Aster and Muscle [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Gerard Johnson
film profile] by the English director Gerard Johnson.

Finally, among the first international features jostling for a spot at Cannes are Particles [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Blaise Harrison
film profile] by Blaise Harrison, Arab Blues [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Manele Labidi
film profile] by the Tunisian director Manèle Labidi, Sole [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Carlo Sironi
film profile] by the Italian director Carlos Sironi, Paradise Drifters [+see also:
trailer
interview: Bilal Wahib
film profile] by the Dutch director Mees Peijnenburg, The Wind Blew On by the Icelandic director Katrin Olfasdottir, Perfect 10 [+see also:
trailer
film profile] by the Scottish director Eva Riley and Song Without a Name [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] by the Peruvian director Melina León.

Obviously, the thorny issue of the presence of Netflix films at Cannes still remains, even if would be fantastic to see The Irishman by Martin Scorsese on the Croisette, although it is unlikely anyway due to post-production delays, but who knows...

These very exciting questions about the Cannes 2019 line-up will be answered during section announcements, which (subject to official confirmation) are likely to take place on 18 April for the Official Competition, 19 or 22 April for the Critics' Week and 23 April for the Directors' Fortnight.

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(Translated from French)