Joining host Leila Latif are Hannah Strong and David Jenkins.
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Yesterday, this year’s Cannes Film Festival ended, and the jury, headed by Juliette Binoche, was ready to hand out the Cannes Awards 2025. The Palme d’Or was given to It Was Just an Accident by Jafar Panahi. It was an unexpected choice, and the title could refer to something that happened in the jury, causing it to win the Palme. I watched the film during the Awards ceremony yesterday, and when someone shouted, “Palme D’Or” after the screening, I thought he was referring to his emotions rather than the actual outcome. It is not a bad film, but a rather pedestrian one with a predictable ending. Panahi won the Citizenship Award earlier during the day, which made more sense.
Jafar Panahi at the Citizenship Award ceremony.
The Cannes Awards 2025 biggest mistake
If the Palme d’Or fell into the wrong hands, that was nothing compared to the mind-boggling decision to give Joachim Trier’s Sentimental Value the Grand Prix. I described why in my review of the film and will not repeat myself here. It is the weirdest decision this side of Anatomy of a Fall. The festival’s three best films were not forgotten but landed minor awards. Sirát by Oliver Laxe and Sound of Falling by Mascha Schilinski shared the Jury Prize or rather got one each. Both would have been more worthy winners of the two top awards.
Mascha Schilinski at the Winners’ Press Conference at Cannes 2025.
The same goes for The Secret Agent by Kleber Mendonça Filho. However, that it missed out on the two top awards is acceptable since it won both the Best Director award as well as Best Actor for Wagner Moura. If anything, that film is characterised by its superb direction and Moura’s performance. The latter was not present at the award ceremony since he was shooting a film in London. However, the director called him during the following press conference.
The Best actress award went to Nadia Melliti in La petite dernière by Hafsia Herzi. I chose not to watch it. The prize for Best Screenplay went to the Dardenne Brothers, and it was the ninth award for their films, including acting awards. They were part of the 1999 edition when they and Bruno Dumont won almost everything, prompting one of Cannes’ most significant rule changes ever. Finally, a Special Award was given to Bi Gan’s Resurrection—a film that sadly failed to live up to its promise or premise.
Un Certain Regard
The main prize in the Un Certain Regard section was given to The Mysterious Gaze of the Flamingo by Diego Céspedes. I didn’t manage to watch it. The unfounded rumours floating around on the Croisette that I avoided the film because the title sounded dangerously Angelopoulosian is utterly false. The Jury Prize went to Un Poeta by Simón Mesa Soto. Harry Lighton won the Best Screenplay for Pillion, while the Best Director award went to twin brothers Arab and Tarzan Nasser for Once Upon a Time in Gaza. A film that boasted foley work by Estonian foley artist Anna-Maria Jams (interviewed here).
The Camera d’or for Best First Feature went to Hassan Hadi for The President’s Cake, screened in the Quinzaine des Cinéastes section. A Special Mention was given to Akinola Davies Jr for My Father’s Shadow.
Regarding the competition, it was clearly more substantial than the last two years, with three really good films. On the other hand, there were many bad or mediocre films. The worst one I saw was, without a doubt, Eddington. The film was Ari Aster’s Cannes debut but was universally maligned. The biggest disappointment of the fest was Lynne Ramsay’s Die My Love. Jennifer Lawrence is a powerhouse, but apart from that, the film was weak and didn’t even look good. Being a major fan of the director, I hope the film was rushed to Cannes and is not entirely finished. Some reviews hinted at that.
Stay tuned for reviews of the winners and other films as well.
2025 will be my fifth consecutive visit to the Cannes Film Festival. What could be a better opportunity to review the previous four editions and list the 10 best Cannes films from the last four years? On second thought, there might be many such moments, but I will go ahead anyway.
10. Tiger Stripes 2023
Tiger Stripes
Whenever I see Still Moving involved in a project, I get interested. Amanda Nell Eu’s first feature, Tiger Stripes, didn’t disappoint and was one of the highlights of the otherwise lacklustre 2023 edition. I explained why in my review, and the director told me which Japanese classic film inspired her during our talk. Let’s keep moving to…
9. Feathers 2021
Feathers
Truth be told, we are not moving that much. Feathers by Omar el Zehairy was presented in Semaine de la Critique, just like Tiger Stripes, and once again, Still Moving was involved in the production. It was Charles Tesson’s last year as head of the section, and before the screening, he said that they had saved the best for the last screening and gave an introduction full of feather-related puns. Nom de plume was not one of them, though. The story of a family father turned into a chicken during a magical act at a children’s party is told with an assurance of style referencing several masters.
8. Pacifiction 2022
Pacifiction
I would lie if I said I am a major Albert Serra fan.However, Pacifiction gripped me from the start and never left its hold on me. That might sound strange, considering the film’s aesthetic, which has an indolent tone perfectly in tune with its characters. Even a Serra sceptic should watch this one.
7. The Story of My Wife 2021
The Story of My Wife
The success with On Body and Soul (Golden Bear and shortlisted for some American Award) made it easier for Ildikó Enyedi to finally realise her adaptation of her favourite novel, The Story of My Wife. However, the reception at Cannes in 2021 was far from enthusiastic, at least not by the Anglo-Saxon critics. The director made substantial changes to the novel’s form. Something we discussed when I interviewed her. I reviewed the film from Cannes 2021 as well.
6. Only The River Flows 2023
Only the River Flows
Shujun Wei didn’t visit Cannes for the first time with Only the River Flows. Still, it was the strongest film that he ever presented there. Where will you find my justifications for that statement? Could it be in my review? Did we discuss the film when I interviewed the director? The answer will Flow you.
5. Petrov’s Flu 2021
Petrov’s Flu
Kirill Serebrennikov has presented his films in the Cannes competition several times, even when he was under house arrest. His style has never been more arresting than in Petrov’s Flu, which often reaches dizzying heights, especially during the first two-thirds. Vladislav Opeylants’ staggering cinematography renders this fever dream unforgettable. He is also on board for this year’s Cannes offering from Serebrennikov, The Disappearance of Josef Mengele.
4. The Woodcutter Story 2022
The Woodcutter Story.
Mikko Myllylahti’s The Woodcutter Story was the most pleasant surprise of the 2022 festival. Once again, we are dealing with a work from Semaine de la Critique. Yeah, yeah, you say. Less talk and more linking to the review and the interview. Strangely enough, the film was presented on the same day as…
3. EO 2022
EO.
If Myllylahti’s film was a surprise, the same can not be said about Jerzy Skolimowski’s latest film. One of the greatest Polish directors ever may have surpassed himself with this film centred around a donkey. This film is also famous because it generated one of the weirdest Letterboxd reviews ever, where the person in question was quite positive about the film but still said that he couldn’t connect with the donkey. The review of EO is here.
2. Annette 2021
Annette
The first post-COVID festival occurred in July 2021 instead of during the customary May slot. Even more unusual was that a competition film was the opening night’s entry. Since opening films at Cannes rank somewhere between mediocre and awful, my expectations on Annette were low. From the opening number, “So May We Start” (which was probably the reason why the move was chosen to start the fest), I was hooked. I reviewed the film twice, first from a Sparks-centric perspective and then from the viewpoint of director Leos Carax.
1. Enys Men
Enys Men.
Mark Jenkin’s Enys Men was the best film of 2022. The interview I made with him in Cannes remains one of my favourites. It may not be a shock that I reviewed Enys Men, too.
Today, sixteen titles became the additions to the Cannes selection 2025, two of which will be in the Competition. The eagerly awaited Lynne Ramsay film Die, My Love was finally confirmed after some time of speculation. All four of the director’s films have been presented at Cannes. The latest was the masterful You Were Never Really Here in 2017, which won the Best Screenplay award and the Best Actor award to Joaquin Phoenix. The new work stars Jennifer Lawrence and Robert Pattinson. The other addition to the competition is Saeed Roustay’s Mother & Child. The director’s latest film in Cannes was the overrated Leila’s Brothers in 2022.
Jennifer Lawrence in Die, My Love by Lynne Ramsay.
Other additions to the Cannes Selection
There are four additions in Un Certain Regard. The most interesting is I Only Rest in the Storm by Pedro Pinho. It is co-produced by the reliable Still Moving, which brought us the brilliant Tiger Stripes two years ago. The three other additions are Love Me Tenderby Anna Cazenave Cambet, Kristen Stewart’s The Chronology of Water, and Un poeta by Mesa Soto. The Cannes Premiere section, which started in 2021 and has since then mostly functioned as a thinly veiled ruse to stop other festivals from screening films, added three more works. Hylmur Palmason’s The Love That Remains, Magalhaes by Lav Diaz, and Renai saiban by Kōji Fukada.
Ethan Cohen’s Honey Don’t and Le roi soleil by Vincent Maël Cardona complete the Midnight Screenings strand. Lastly, four first features were added as Special Screenings for some reason. They are called Mama, Arco, Qui brille au combat, and Amélie et la métaphysique des tubes.
Alpha by Julia Ducournau.
If this is the finalised edition (there are still rumours about Bi Gan’s Resurrection being added next week), it is a selection that is even weaker than the last two years. Something that I wouldn’t have thought possible. Of all the great names that have been mentioned, only Ramsay made it to this year’s Cannes. The programme is filled to the brim with all the boring usual suspects. The only thankful omission is Jim Jarmusch’s Father, Mother, Sister, and Brother, but that is a slight relief when the competition contains names like Wes Anderson, the Dardennes, Martone, Moll, Trier, Ducournau, and Cannes debutant Ari Aster.
It remains to be seen what kind of surprises this year’s edition has to offer. At the moment, it does not look promising at all. On the other hand, Venice might have an extraordinary edition if the films rejected by Frémaux and his crew end up there.
The 2025 Cannes Film Festival line-up is here! – Little White Lies
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Today, the president, Iris Knobloch, and the general delegate, Thierry Frémaux, held a press conference to announce the 2025 Cannes Film Festival selections. The early announcements have been fewer than usual. Still, it has already been announced that the final part of the Mission Impossible franchise, Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning, will be screened at the festival, to nobody’s surprise. The opening film will be Partir un jour, directed by debutant Amelie Bonnin.
The main competition is littered with the tired usual suspects: Wes Anderson, the Dardenne Brothers, Kleber Mendoca Filho and others. Other returning directors include Jafar Panahi, Kelly Reichart, Joachim Trier, Richard Linklater, Julia Ducournau, and Tarik Saleh. The latter bafflingly won the award for Best Script for Boy From Heaven in 2022. The new film is, once again, co-produced by Film i Väst. It is downright startling to see Dominik Moll’s name in an A-list festival competition in 2025. The most interesting selections seem to be Sirat by Oliver Laxe, who made the beautiful Fire Will Come, and A Simple Accident by Jafar Panahi.
Iris Knobloch
The fact that Kirill Serebrennikov was relegated to a minor section with The Disappearance Of Josef Mengele is puzzling. Without having seen László Nemes’ Árva, it is difficult to believe that it could be less interesting than the majority of the films selected. As the festival looks now, it doesn’t make much sense to attend the festival this year. Maybe that might change with additions. Last year, thirteen films were added 11 days after the presentation. Among them were The Seed of the Sacred Figand Flow. Of course, La Semaine de la Critique and Quinzaine des Cineastes will present their selections next week, but It is difficult to imagine that it will make much difference.
Main Competition Selections
A Simple Accident – Jafar Panahi
Alpha – Julia Ducournau
Dossier 137 – Dir. Dominik Moll
Eagles Of The Republic – Tarik Saleh
Eddington – Ari Aster
Fuori – Mario Martone
La Petite Derniere – Hafsia Herzi
Mastermind – Kelly Reichardt
Nouvelle Vague – Richard Linklater
Renoir – Chie Hayakawa
Romería – Carla Simón
Sentimental Value – Joachim Trier
Sirat – Oliver Laxe
Sound Of Falling – Mascha Schilinsk
The History Of Sound – Oliver Hermanus
The Phoenician Scheme – Wes Anderson
The Secret Agent – Kleber Mendoca Filho
The Young Mother’s Home – The Dardenne Brothers
Two Prosecutors – Sergei Loznitsa
Teaser for Sirat.
Un Certain Regard Selections
Aisha Can’t Fly Away -Morad Mostafa
Caravan – Zuzana Kirchnerová
Eleanor The Great – Scarlett Johansson
Heads Or Tails? – Alessio Rigo de Righi, Matteo Zoppis
Homebound – Neeraj Ghaywan
The Last One For The Road – Francesco Sossai
L’inconnu de la Grande Arche – Stéphane Demoustier
Meteors – Hubert Charuel
The Mysterious Gaze Of The Flamingo – Diego Céspedes
My Father’s Shadow – Akinola Davies Jr
The Mysterious Gaze of the Flamingo – Diego Céspedes
Once Upon A Time In Gaza – Tarzan Nasser and Arab Nasser
A Pale View Of The Hills – Kei Ishikawa
Pillion – Harry Lighton
Promised Sky – Erige Sehiri
The Plague, Charlie Polinger
Urchin – Harris Dickinson
2025 Cannes Film Festival Selections Other sections
Out Of Competition
The Coming Of The Future, Cedric Klapisch
Highest 2 Lowest by Spike Lee
Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning, Christopher McQuarrie
The Richest Woman in the World – Thierry Klifa
Partir un jour, Amélie Bonnin – opening film
Vie Privée – Rebecca Zlotowski
August Diehl in The Disappearance Of Josef Mengele
Cannes Première
Amrum – Fatih Akin
Connemara – Alex Lutz
Splitsville – Michael Angelo Covino
The Disappearance Of Josef Mengele – Kirill Serebrennikov
Orwell – Raoul Peck
The Wave – Sebastian Lélio
Special Screenings
Stories Of Surrender, Bono – Andrew Dominik
The Magnificent Life of Marcel Pagnol – Sylvain Chomet
