Two comedies to duel at Cannes festival opening
Source: Agencies |
May 16, 2012, Wednesday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
COMEDY will dominate the opening of the Cannes film festival today, with Wes Anderson's child fantasy "Moonrise Kingdom" in a tussle with Sacha Baron Cohen's anarchic alter ego General Aladeen for the attention of the world's media.
Thousands of journalists and movie executives are in the glamorous Riviera resort for 12 hectic days of screenings, parties and dealmaking. The first day is typical of the clashes they face.
Anderson's film, starring Bruce Willis and Bill Murray, is the official opening entry in the main competition, ensuring a splashy launch with a press screening, news briefing, interviews and red carpet gala premiere this evening.
Yet just a short stroll away along the famous palm-lined Croisette waterfront, Baron Cohen will also be muscling in on the action with a press conference of his own at the swanky Carlton Hotel to promote his latest picture "The Dictator."
Judging by his outrageous sense of humour and eye for the theatrical, the British comic may steal much of the limelight as he adopts the character of Aladeen, a cruel North African dictator partly inspired by the Arab Spring uprisings.
Amid the pranks and late night parties, however, there is plenty of hard work to be done, with a giant marketplace showcasing hundreds of films and hoping to defy the economic gloom across much of Europe with a spate of sales.
In the main competition of 22 films, Brazilian director Walter Salles' adaptation of Jack Kerouac's novel "On the Road" has generated plenty of buzz, not least because "Twilight" actress Kristen Stewart has a leading role. Best known as Bella Swan from the vampire blockbusters, the 22-year-old American will be joined on the sun-kissed French Riviera by Twilight co-star Robert Pattinson.
John Hillcoat's movie "Lawless," a Depression-era gangster tale, features Tom Hardy, Jessica Chastain, Shia LaBeouf and Mia Wasikowska among others, underlining the importance of fresh acting talent at this year's festival.
Thousands of journalists and movie executives are in the glamorous Riviera resort for 12 hectic days of screenings, parties and dealmaking. The first day is typical of the clashes they face.
Anderson's film, starring Bruce Willis and Bill Murray, is the official opening entry in the main competition, ensuring a splashy launch with a press screening, news briefing, interviews and red carpet gala premiere this evening.
Yet just a short stroll away along the famous palm-lined Croisette waterfront, Baron Cohen will also be muscling in on the action with a press conference of his own at the swanky Carlton Hotel to promote his latest picture "The Dictator."
Judging by his outrageous sense of humour and eye for the theatrical, the British comic may steal much of the limelight as he adopts the character of Aladeen, a cruel North African dictator partly inspired by the Arab Spring uprisings.
Amid the pranks and late night parties, however, there is plenty of hard work to be done, with a giant marketplace showcasing hundreds of films and hoping to defy the economic gloom across much of Europe with a spate of sales.
In the main competition of 22 films, Brazilian director Walter Salles' adaptation of Jack Kerouac's novel "On the Road" has generated plenty of buzz, not least because "Twilight" actress Kristen Stewart has a leading role. Best known as Bella Swan from the vampire blockbusters, the 22-year-old American will be joined on the sun-kissed French Riviera by Twilight co-star Robert Pattinson.
John Hillcoat's movie "Lawless," a Depression-era gangster tale, features Tom Hardy, Jessica Chastain, Shia LaBeouf and Mia Wasikowska among others, underlining the importance of fresh acting talent at this year's festival.
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