The programming of Cannes Film Festival recently announced is filled with highly anticipated films from some of the greatest directors on the planet, but it’s not without its controversy.
But although the artistic director of the Festival, Thierry FremauxWhile it may be more tolerant of controversial artists than an American audience would like, it still has its limitations. In a new interview with the French newspaper i get themFrémaux was asked why no new films by Roman Polanski and Woody Allen have been selected for the festival.
Both directors continued to find success working in Europe despite opportunities drying up in the United States due to personal scandals.
Polansky He was barred from entering the United States due to his 1977 arrest for raping a 13-year-old girl, while Allen largely became a Hollywood pariah due to renewed interest in allegations that he abused his stepdaughter Dylan Farrow in 1992.
Frémaux explained that while Polanski’s next film, The palacewas not screened for programmers had the opportunity to see the new black comedy of Woody Allen set in France, Cup of fortune. But he said the controversy surrounding Allen would cast a shadow over the festival if the film was selected, so he never seriously considered adding it to the lineup.
“We have not seen the Polanski film. Woody Allen is a bit special, I saw him without seeing him” Frémaux said in the interview translated by indiewire, suggesting that he may have seen the film outside the typical pre-festival presentation pattern. “The film was not a candidate. We also know that if your film is shown in Cannes, the controversy will take over your film and other films.
Allen filmed Cup of fortune in Paris with actors such as Melvil Poupaud and Valérie Lemercier, as well as cinematographer Vittorio Storaro. Allen’s last film shown at Cannes was the 2016 opening night film. Coffee company.
Johnny Depp, opening
The festival has attracted attention for its scheduling decision Jeanne-du-Barry, the new film by Maïwenn, with Johnny Depp as the French monarch Louis XV, as an opening night selection. Depp’s first major role since his high-profile libel trial of Amber Heard was always bound to be controversial, but the film became even more controversial after a French journalist sued the director for assault.
Cannes director Thierry Frémaux defended his decision to schedule the film throughout the week, explaining that he saw the selection as fair game, because neither Depp nor Maïwenn have been legally convicted of any crime.
“I don’t see Maïwenn’s film as a controversial choice at all,” Frémaux said in an interview. “Because if Johnny Depp had been banned from working it would have been different, but it’s not like that,” he concluded.
Source: Clarin
