Movies - The Sexiest Film Festival

I love to follow the news coming from the film festival circuit as it unfolds each year. There’s always some cool independent movies that get picked up at Sundance, and there are important major films introduced at Toronto. But Cannes is the most important in the world. Filmmakers from everywhere are represented, many of whom most Americans haven’t heard about but who are considered important up-and-comers or auteurs from other countries.

This year’s Cannes has me pretty excited to see these films, coming in the fall:

“Loving” by Jeff Nichols (U.S.), with Ruth Negga, Joel Edgerton and Michael Shannon, about the true story of an interracial couple in 1950’s Virginia who had to fight to stay out of jail, all the way to the Supreme Court. “Loving” is probably the best bet to make it to the Oscar race. Ms. Negga is reported to be a revelation; we won’t have that “Oscars So White” problem next year! Mr. Nichols’ 2012 film “Mud” was another southern story of a quiet but strong man, and part of Matthew McConaughey’s rise as a serious actor; it’s well worth renting if you haven’t seen it!
Michael Shannon has been in all of Nichols’ other films; I’m still waiting to see their most recent, Sci-fi tinged “Midnight Express”.

“Cafe Society” by Woody Allen (U.S.), which opened the festival, also starring Kristen Stewart, plus Jesse Eisenberg, Steve Carrell and Blake Lively. We loved “Midnight in Paris”, set largely in the 1920’s, so can his take on 1930’s Hollywood be anything but fun? Plus, the cinematographer is Italian three-time Oscar-winner Vittorio Storaro (“Reds”, “Apocalypse Now”, The Last Emperor”).

“Toni Erdmann” by Maren Ade (Germany), a dramedy about a father and daughter trying to reconnect. Probably the most acclaimed film at Cannes this year., although it didn’t win the top prize. The juries that dole out those awards are made up of actors and directors, nor critics, and perhaps think they have an obligation to reward socially serious subjects; frankly, I’m sure I’ll find Ken Loach’s “I, Daniel Blake”, about the struggles of the English working-class, tedious and uninspiring as cinema.

“Elle” by Paul Verhoeven (Holland), with Isabelle Huppert. Internationally, Ms. Huppert is considered perhaps the greatest actress. Mr. Verhoeven, who had huge Hollywood hits in the ‘80’s with “Robocop”, “Total Recall”, “Starship Troopers” and “Basic Instinct”, fell from grace with “Showgirls” (although it’s become a cult classic). Returning to Holland, this is only his second film in ten years. It’s a rape-revenge tale that’s elevated by Ms. Huppert’s extraordinary talent.

“Patterson” by Jim Jarmusch (U.S.), with Adam Driver as an aspiring poet and bus driver in the titular New Jersey town. Mr. Jarmusch, one of America’s greatest indie writer-directors, has been making a comeback, starting with the cool vampire film “Only Lovers Left Alive” in 2013.

“American Honey” by Andrea Arnold (U.K.), with Sasha Lane, Shia LeBeof. Its plot doesn’t sound too exciting: a girl joins some other teenagers travelling the Midwest selling magazines. Some hard partying and law bending ensue. But the experiential nature of the film is reputedly compelling for this long film; it’s immersive.

“Personal Shopper” by Olivier Assayas (France), with Kristen Stewart. This is their second film together, after last year’s critical hit, “Clouds of Sils Maria”. Ms. Stewart became the first American to win the Best Actress award at Cannes, ending any speculation that she might not progress from her “Twilight” phase as a pop star. I was already convinced, by her turn as Joan Jett in “The Runaways”. In “Clouds”, Ms. Stewart played the assistant to a powerful actress (Juliette Binoche) in Europe; this time she’s working for another celebrity in Paris while trying to contact her deceased brother through mediums. Yes, a ghost story!

“The Neon Demon” by Nicolas Winding Refn (Denmark), with Elle Fanning, “an intoxicating fever dream” that features a supermodel knife fight as just one of the envelope-pushing scenes that makes Refn’s films draw both praise and boos. If you saw his “Drive”, with Ryan Gosling, you know what I mean. Or “Bronson”, with a crazed Tom Hardy as England’s most notorious prisoner, often in full frontal mode.

“The Handmaiden” by Park Chan-wook (South Korea). Set in the 1930’s, this a social commentary with sensational elements: lesbian sex, double-crosses, plenty of intrigue and more lesbian sex. I’ll admit a weakness for this kind of film, be it “Blue Is the Warmest Color” (lesbian sex, teenage awakening) or “Ang Lee’s “Lust, Caution” (Asian sex, double-crosses, intrigue).
In fact, Americans just don’t make good, mature erotic NC-17 movies, so we have to rely on the French (2013’s “Young and Beautiful”by Ozon), the Mexicans ( 2001’s “Y Tu Mama Tambien” by Cuaron) or Italians (2005’s “The Dreamers” by Bertolucci, which famously debuted Eva Green’s breasts). To be fair “Nathalie”, a 2003 French film with Emmanuelle Beart, Fanny Ardant and Gerald Depardieu was remade in North America by Canadian Atom Egoyan as2009’s “Chloe”, with Amanda Seyfried, Julianne Moore and Liam Neeson doing a fine job, but it had to add a thriller-type ending. Still, if that’s what it takes….