The Cannes Film Festival suffered its second major theft yesterday, with a $2.6 million necklace being stolen at Hôtel du Cap-Eden-Roc.
But the big story out of Cannes was Blue is the Warmest Color, by Abdellatif Kechiche. The film is a lesbian love story that offers a slow, gentle and intimate study of a relationship between two young women. The 3-hour movie is loosely based on a French graphic novel by Julie Maroh. Many critics have moved Blue is the Warmest Colour to the top tier of contenders for the Palme d’Or, along with Inside Llewyn Davis.
Another major event was the return of beloved comedian Jerry Lewis, starring in his first film in 18 years. The movie is Max Rose. Could we dare to hope for a second veteran movie star having a triumphant return to the big screen after so many years, like Robert Redford in All is Lost? Sadly, it has not happened. The film, by Daniel Noah, depicts a grieving musician (Lewis in the title role) who has lost his beloved wife, only to discover she has kept a secret from him for more than 50 years. The film is generic and contrived, with mediocre acting and bad dialogue.
James Gray’s The Immigrant is getting poor reviews from critics. The talents of Marion Cotillard, Joaquin Phoenix and Jeremy Renner are sadly wasted in this dull, gloomy and baffling drama set in New York in the 1920s.
The Selfish Giant has won the Europa Cinemas Label as Best European film in the Directors’ Fortnight section. The film, by Clio Barnard, asks us to rethink how redemption is achieved in a world without Christ.
In other news, the amfAR Cinema Against AIDS Gala and Auction was held at the Hotel du Cap-Eden-Roc in Cap d’Antibes, with dozens of celebrities in attendance, including Nicole Kidman, Christoph Waltz, Jessica Chastain, Jeremy Renner, Rosario Dawson, Heidi Klum, Goldie Hawn, Janet Jackson, Adrien Brody and Sharon Stone (who served as the auctioneer). This year’s event raised more than $32 million to fight AIDS. One of the items sold was a journey into space with a seat next to Leonardo DiCaprio. The nearly $2 million bidder will travel on Richard Branson’s Virgin Galactic fleet of ships, with Leo as a travel buddy.
Finally, so much for Steven Soderbergh’s ‘retirement’. The director is looking to create a series for Cinemax. The show, called The Knick, will star Clive Owen and be set in New York in 1900. The series centers around the groundbreaking staff at Knickerbocker Hospital. Soderbergh will direct all 10 of the episodes.