Cannes Film Festival 2023
Catherine Deneuve recites "Hope" by Lesya Ukrainka at the opening ceremony.
CANNES — Cinema for Peace chair Catherine Deneuve opened the 76th Cannes Film Festival by reciting the poem "Hope" by well-known Ukrainian poet Lesya Ukrainka, translated into French, talking about the longing to be able to return to a peaceful Ukraine.
Every year, thousands flock to the south of France to watch the most anticipated film premieres from acclaimed directors around the world. The world’s most prestigious, glamourous, and sometimes controversial film festival is a can’t-miss event, even if you’re thousands of miles away from the seaside Cote D’Azur town that lends its name and streets for two weeks in the summer.
The titles on show at this year’s Cannes Film Festival are stirring excitement in cinephiles everywhere and for good reason. This year features high-profile premieres ranging from Martin Scorsese’s, Killers of the Flower Moon starring Leonardo DiCaprio, the fifth installment of the Indiana Jones series, Wes Anderson’s cosmic grief comedy, Asteroid City, to the more auteur-driven work the festival is famous for.
Cannes has often been seen itself as a social platform for bringing to the forefront political issues. The 2022 festival began with an address from Ukraine’s President Zelenskyy, speaking about the role of cinema in global affairs. The film festival also issued a statement demanding the release of several filmmakers detained in Iran.
This year, Cannes sees itself as more of a target than a platform. Several unions have threatened to protest during the festival in response to Emmanuel Macron’s unpopular pension reform. Some utility workers have even threatened to shut off the power. Cannes is also making headlines for its choice to screen, Jeanne du Barry, in which Johnny Depp stars at Louis XV, his first role in three years after a series of contentious defamation and abuse lawsuits against his former wife, Amber Heard.
The festival is also taking place amid the backdrop of a writer’s strike in Hollywood. Film and TV writers are seeking higher pay, reforms for the streaming era, and safeguards against the use of artificial intelligence. Cannes jury member, Paul Dano said he planned to join the picket lines when he returned home.
The film festival’s red carpet is also accustomed to protests and this year was no different, despite the increase in security. On Sunday night, ahead of the screening of the French film Aside, a woman wearing a dress in the colors of the Ukrainian flag poured fake blood on herself in protest of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Meanwhile, feminist activist anti-surrogacy group SCUM interrupted the red carpet for Catherine Corsini’s film, Homecoming.
Over the years, Cannes has drawn an increasing amount of ire for the lack of gender parity in their main competition lineup. In 2018, 82 women (the same number of women-directed films that had played the main competition up to that point) from the film industry led a protest on the steps of the Palais demanding improvements, including participants such as jury president Cate Blanchett. This year, the festival features the most female directors in competition with six — still only about a third of the competition lineup.
Click to watch the trailer for “Killers of the Flower Moon" by Martin Scorsese.
Click to watch the trailer for “Anselm – Das Rauschen der Zeit" by Wim Wenders
Click to watch the trailer for “Tiger Stripes" by Amanda Nell Eu.
Click to watch the trailer for “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny" by James Mangold.
Click to watch the trailer for “May December" by Todd Haynes.