With the Palme d’or for “Anatomy of a fall”, Justine Triet became the third director to win the prestigious prize, after Jane Campion in 1993 and Julia Ducournau in 2021.
Fade to black for the 76th edition of the Cannes Film Festival. French director Justine Triet received the Palme d’Or for her film Anatomy of a fall from the hands of American actress Jane Fonda, Saturday, May 27, during the closing ceremony. The jury composed of eight personalities from the seventh art (Maryam Touzani, Rungano Nyoni, Julia Ducournau, Paul Dano, Denis Ménochet, Brie Larson, Atiq Rahimi and Damian Szifron) and chaired by the Swedish director Ruben Östlund also rewarded the Franco-Vietnamese director Tran Anh Hung with the Best Director Award for his film The Passion of Dodin Bouffant. As the fortnight ends with the out-of-competition screening of the latest film from Pixar studios, Elementary, by Peter Sohnfranceinfo summarizes what you need to remember from this closing ceremony.
>> Relive the closing ceremony of the 76th Cannes Film Festival
“Anatomy of a fall”, tenth Palme d’or for France
It’s the Frenchwoman Justine Triet for Anatomy of a fall who won the Palme d’Or. This “great film trial”, according to the franceinfo review, tells the story of Sandra, played by the German Sandra Hüller, accused of the murder of her husband. The 44-year-old filmmaker becomes the third woman to lift the prestigious trophy after Jane Campion (The piano lesson1993) and Julia Ducournau (Titanium2021). Anatomy of a fall is also the tenth sacred French film on the Croisette since 1946.
The director, who had first thought of this project as a series, made her feature film “the most intimate”, according to her. Moved and surprised, the one who thought she was getting nothing at Cannes ended her acceptance speech with a political diatribe. “This year has been marked by a historic, extremely powerful and unanimous challenge to the pension reform. This challenge has been shockingly denied and suppressed.”she said, denouncing “an increasingly uninhibited dominating power”. She also made a point of defending the French cultural exception, “without whom [elle] won’t be[t] not here”which is at risk due to “the commodification of culture that the neo-liberal government defends”.
“The Zone of Interest” winner of the Grand Prize
The Grand Prize went to British filmmaker Jonathan Glazer for his film The Zone of Interest Who follows the story of Rudolf Höss, a commander of the Auschwitz-Birkenau camp and his family, living very close to this place of extermination. The award was presented by the producers Roger Corman and Quentin Tarantino, long applause. The Zone of Interest was the most radical film in the competition: by leaving the death camp offscreen, it denounces the ability of human beings to continue to live nonchalantly while rubbing shoulders with horror.
New award for Aki Kaurismäki with the Jury Prize for “Les Feuilles mortes”
The Jury Prize was awarded to Finnish director Aki Kaurismäki, for his film Dead leaves. Absent from the ceremony, the filmmaker had already received the Grand Prix for The man without a past in 2002. His film tells the love story between Ansa (Alma Pöysti), cashier, and Holappa (Jussi Vatanen), metallurgist, who meet one night in Helsinki, both looking for love. She gives him her phone number, but he loses it, without knowing anything about her, but in love.
Directing Prize for the Franco-Vietnamese director Tran Anh Hung
He is the Franco-Vietnamese director Tran Anh Hung who received the Best Director Award for The Passion of Dodin Bouffant. The feature film, which adapts the novel by Marcel Rouff The Life and Passion of Dodin-Bouffant (Editions du Serpent à plumes), delves into 19th century French gastronomy with the French duo Benoît Magimel and Juliette Binoche. Filmmaker had already tackled the kitchen in The smell of green papaya who had won the Camera d’or at Cannes and the Youth Prize at Un certain regard in 1993.
“Monster”, Screenplay Award and Queer Palm
From the hands of American actor John C. Reilly, who produced a short silent number to illustrate what a “film without script”Sakomoto Yugi received the award for Best Screenplay for Monster, by the Japanese Hirokazu Kore-Eda. The feature film had already received the Queer Palm, an alternative prize which rewards films addressing LGBT and feminist themes. Evoking in turn the family, the weight of institutions and the ambiguous relationship of friendship between two young students, the filmmaker has put into images what he himself felt vis-à-vis his children. “As a father, I observe that there is a moment when the child exceeds what we had imagined for him. It escapes us and it is not necessarily negative. This is what allows him to leave the nest and become an adult.” he explained to franceinfo.
Koji Yakusho, Pmale performance award
The Best Actor Award was won by Koji Yakusho, actor in Wim Wenders’ film, Perfect Days. “I particularly want to thank Wim Wenders and his co-writer (…). You have created a magnificent character”, he said, moved, on stage. In this film from the director of Paris, Texas (Palme d’Or in 1984) he embodies Hirayama, a silent and solitary public toilet employee in Tokyo, who will gradually open up to others.
Merve Dizdar, Pfemale performance award
Turkish actress Merve Dizdar received the Best Actress Award for her role in dry herbsby Nuri Bilge-Ceylan. “I would like to dedicate this award to all the women who are struggling to overcome the difficulties of existing in this world and to keep hope alive”said the actress who plays a woman who falls in love with a teacher in a remote province of Turkey. She is the first Turkish actress to be crowned.
Golden Camera Award
Anaïs Demoustier relaxed the atmosphere by “doing a Spike Lee” and by stammering when announcing the winner of the Caméra d’or – and not the Palme d’or as she first declared – which rewards the first feature films screened during the fortnight. The price returned to The Golden Butterfly Treeby Vietnamese director Pham Thien An, 34, who made a strong impression during its screening.
Palme d’or for short films
The Palme d’or for short films was awarded to 27 by Flora Ana Buda. The Hungarian director had a word for the Clermont-Ferrand short film festival, whose subsidy was reduced next year, after the vote of the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region, chaired by the Republican Laurent Wauquiez. A special mention was also awarded to Far by Gunnur Martinsdottir Schlüter
The full list
Palme d’Or : Anatomy of a fallby Justine Triet
Grand Prize: The Zone of Interestby Jonathan Glazer
Jury Prize: Dead leavesby Aki Kaurismaki
Staging price: Tran Anh Hung (The Passion of Dodin Bouffant)
Script price: Sakomoto Yugi (Monster)
Best Actor Award: Koji Yakusho (Perfect Days)
Best Actress Award: Merve Dizdar (Dried herbs)
Golden camera: The Golden Butterfly Treefrom Pham Thien An
Palme d’or for short films: 27, by Flora Ana Buda special mention for Far by Gunnur Martinsdottir Schlüter