Each day, The Press presents films seen on the Croisette.
May-Decemberby Todd Haynes
The summit meetingand two great actresses
Six years after the disappointing WonderstruckTodd Haynes is back competing with May-Decembera film that we could register on the side of far from heaven and of carol in terms of style, and also Safe in his way of taking on these moments of discomfort, sometimes incongruous. The tone is set right from the start when, in a beautiful, lively Savannah-area home, a camera zooms in on the landlady (Julianne Moore), accompanied by a dramatic musical effect, because she thinks, opening the fridge, not having enough hot dogs for everyone. We will quickly learn that this woman made headlines 20 years ago because of an affair with a minor, who has now become her spouse (Charles Melton), and that their story is now the subject of a film. . The family is also waiting for the visit of a great actress (Natalie Portman), who has come to “study” the woman she is to play on screen. With a very particular tone, sprinkled with a very second degree humor, Todd Haynes offers an entertaining portrait, led by two remarkable actresses.
Banel e Adanafrom Ramata-Toulaye Sy
PHOTO PROVIDED BY TANDEM FILMS
Image taken from Banel and Adama. Ramata-Toulaye Sy’s film is in the running for the Palme d’Or.
A visual poetryaf nuderisk
Banel is a teenager with a bright smile, very much in love with her young husband, 19 years old, Adama. We are in a remote village in Senegal, where the desire to live an independent love relationship comes up against multiple constraints, the first being that Adama, by his blood ties, is already called upon to become the village chief, a position he does not intend to assume. As her first feature film, the only one in the official competition, director Ramata-Toulaye Sy offers an evocative film, which echoes the clash between modernity and tradition. With scenes of great visual poetry (this house buried under a mountain of sand that the couple digs up day after day with the aim of being able to live there one day), the filmmaker manages to echo the state of mind of a changing society. It should be noted that the Festival has selected several works from Africa this year, two of which are in the running for the Palme d’Or.