Last week, the initial lineup for the Cannes Film Festival was released. There were some heavy hitters involved in that announcement, as per usual when it comes to one of the biggest showcases of cinema in the world. Following suit, the Cannes Directors’ Fortnight 2023 lineup announcement also includes a couple of big names surrounded by a ton of up-and-coming talent.

READ MORE: Cannes Critics’ Week 2023 Lineup: New Films From Jason Yu, Amanda Nell Eu & More

For many film fans, a couple of names will definitely stand out above the rest in the announcement of the 2023 Directors’ Fortnight.

Continue reading Cannes Directors’ Fortnight 2023 Lineup Includes New Films From Hong Sang-soo, Michel Gondry & More at The Playlist.

It would be disingenuous not to begin this review by mentioning that, yes, Panah Panahi is indeed related to the titan of Iranian cinema, Jafar Panahi. Panah is the acclaimed filmmaker’s son, and besides going to film school, he has also worked on his father’s films, most recently co-editing his latest feature, “3 Faces.” The most cynical among us may not be surprised to learn that the opening sequence of his feature debut “Hit the Road,” playing in Directors’ Fortnight, alone contains more thrilling cinema than most other films at this year’s Festival de Cannes put together.

Continue reading ‘Hit The Road’: Panah Panahi’s Directorial Debut Is Thrilling Cinema & A Breath Of Fresh Air [Cannes Review] at The Playlist.

Like father like son, and just like that, there’s competition in the Panahi family for the best filmmaker.  Having studied cinema at the Tehran University of Art, then moving into the roles of assistant cinematographer and assistant director, eventually acting as a consultant, editor, and assistant director on his famous filmmaking father, Jafar Panahi‘s most recent films, Panah Panahi is making his feature-length debut, “Hit The Road.” Making its debut in the Director’s Fortnight sidebar of the Cannes Film Festival, “ “Hit The Road,” a road trip family film, looks rather fabulous too, a humanist slice of life drama.

Continue reading ‘Hit The Road’ Trailer: Jafar Panahi’s Son, Panah Panahi’s Feature-Length Debut Premieres In The Director’s Fortnight Sidebar [Cannes Exclusive] at The Playlist.

Following the COVID-19-driven cancelation last year, the Cannes’ the Directors’ Fortnight sidebar section returns in full force. Organizer Paolo Moretti and his selection committee have unveiled the official selection for the 53rd edition of the Quinzaine des Réalisateurs, and it’s full of great picks and several women filmmakers (Cannes only has four films by female filmmakers playing in competition). Notably, the biggest highlight is probably the world premiere of Joanna Hogg‘s “The Souvenir Part II,” the sequel to her British coming-of-age drama starring Tilda Swinton and her daughter Honor Swinton Byrne.

Continue reading Cannes’ Directors’ Fortnight 2021 Lineup Includes ‘The Souvenir Part II,’ The Latest From Clio Barnard, Miguel Gomes & More at The Playlist.

So who knew that Edgar Allan Poe and “Man of Aran” early cinema pioneer Robert Flaherty threw a Herman Melville-themed party for Ernest Hemingway which, under the influence of bathtub gin and barometric anomaly (and a late appearance by Samuel Beckett), became so raucous it angered the Greek Gods who visited mythically grotesque punishments on its revelers, gone blind with masculine rage and insane with isolation and bad hooch?

Continue reading ‘The Lighthouse’: Robert Eggers’ Brilliant, Tempestuous Psychodrama With Robert Pattinson & Willem Dafoe [Cannes Review] at The Playlist.

Across his career, Quentin Dupieux has managed to keep to his own, singular, weirdo path without every quite breaking out of the cult circuit. Nonetheless, his work is championed in the right corners, and this year he’s headed to Cannes to open the Directors’ Fortnight sidebar with “Deerskin.” And don’t worry, he’s lost none of his oddball charm.

READ MORE: 3 Clips From Pedro Almodovar’s “Pain and Glory” Starring Antonio Banderas & Penelope Cruz

The latest from the director behind “Rubber,” “Wrong,” “Wrong Cops,” and “Reality” stars Jean Dujardin and Adele Haenel in a story about….well, it’s hard to say really.

Continue reading ‘Deerskin’: Get Weird With The Trailer For Quentin Dupieux’s Cannes Entry at The Playlist.

Last year was a fairly big year for John Carpenter. No, the legendary director didn’t have a new film hit theaters. Instead, his greatest creation, “Halloween,” was remade/rebooted/sequel-ized and went on to be one of the biggest hits of the year, earning a whopping $254 million worldwide. And because of that, Carpenter found himself in the public eye, yet again, giving some of the best interviews of 2018, and reminding everyone of his greatness.

Continue reading John Carpenter To Be Honored At 2019 Cannes Directors’ Fortnight With Golden Coach Award at The Playlist.

Every new feature film from controversial director Gaspar Noé is a fresh attempt to push the boundaries of art and taste. So when the suggestively titled “Climax” premieres at the Director’s Fortnight in Cannes, it’s a safe bet that it comes with the intention of blowing some minds and making a lot of people very uncomfortable.

READ MORE: The 2018 Cannes Film Festival: The 20 Most Anticipated Movies

Noé was last seen at Cannes in 2015 premiering his previous film, the sex-in-3D erotic drama “Love,” which despite its explicit scenes of unsimulated coitus, was widely regarded as one of the director’s most tender, least abrasive (and, some would argue, dullest) works.

Continue reading ‘Climax’ Trailer: Gaspar Noé’s Latest Is A Crazed Dance Party Out Of Control at The Playlist.

Underwhelmed by the recent announcement of the full Cannes Film Festival lineup and perhaps its lack of big-name auteurs? Some of the suspects you are looking for, Claire Denis, Terry Gilliam, et al, are still missing and may never turn up frankly, but today’s Directors’ Fortnight announcement may give cinephiles more to look forward to in May.

READ MORE: Cannes: Films By Spike Lee, David Robert Mitchell and Jean-Luc Godard Lead The 2018 Festival Lineup

The 50th edition of the Director’s Fortnight announced its full lineup and highlights include the surprise inclusion of a new, previously unknown Gaspar Noé picture called “Climax.” Never before discussed or reported, “Climax” follows on the heels of “Love,” Noé’s pornographic/erotic 3D drama that premiered in Competition at Cannes in 2015.

Continue reading Cannes Directors’ Fortnight Announces Gaspar Noé’s Latest, Nicolas Cage’s ‘Mandy’ & More at The Playlist.

Give any cinephile worth their salt the keys to one of the major European festivals and you can bet they’ll find a high-profile slot for the latest film by Claire Denis. However, the film festival gatekeepers deny a Competition berth to one of the best regarded filmmakers in contemporary French cinema with surprising regularity. She’s only competed at Cannes once — and that was over 25 years ago — although an argument could be made that some of her recent work is perhaps too delicate (“35 Shots of Rum”) or too raw (“Bastards”) for the scrutiny that such a spotlight invites.

Continue reading ‘Let the Sunshine In’ Starring Juliette Binoche Is An Unprecedented Misfire From Claire Denis [Cannes Review] at The Playlist.

Joan Of Arc fought with her faith for France, but most stories around The Maid of Orléans focus on her final teenage years where she was captured and burned at the stake by the English. Filmmaker Bruno Dumont takes a different angle with “Jeanette: The Childhood Of Joan Of Arc,” exploring the young martyr’s early years — through song.

Starring Aline Charles, Élise Charles, Jeanne Voisin, Lise Leplat Prudhomme, Lucile Gauthier, and Victoria Lefebvre, the musical takes a look at Joan at eight years old, where she starts feeling for the cause, while living in small French village.

Continue reading First Trailer For Bruno Dumont’s Musical ‘Jeannette: The Childhood Of Joan Of Arc’ Sings A Rebellious Song at The Playlist.

As we inch closer to the Cannes Film Festival‘s opening night on May 17, festival organizers find themselves bombarded by questions about Netflix‘s involvement in the festival. Last week, French exhibitors released a statement decrying Netflix’s involvement in the festival given their ongoing attempts to circumvent French film laws. A few days later, Cannes director Thierry Frémaux defended the selections of Netflix titles “The Meyerowitz Stories” and “Okja,” noting that he “hardly spoke to Netflix” during the deliberation process.

Continue reading Cannes Directors’ Fortnight Boss Discusses ‘Complicated’ Selection Of Netflix’s ‘Bushwick’ at The Playlist.

Savvy Cannes-goers know that while the Official Selection has some of the biggest hitters (and certainly has them this year) on the Croisette, the Directors’ Fortnight sidebar is often the home of some of the most daring and exciting cinema that any festival has to offer. Focused a little more on newer filmmakers (but not exclusively), recent years have seen the bow of excellent movies like “Divines,” “My Life As A Zucchini,” “Neruda,” “Green Room,” “Embrace Of The Serpent,” “Mustang,” “Arabian Nights,” “Girlhood” and “Whiplash” within the parallel selection.

Continue reading Cannes Directors’ Fortnight 2017 Line-Up Led By Claire Denis, Abel Ferrera, Sean Baker… And Dave Bautista at The Playlist.

One of the unequivocal delights of this year’s 69th Cannes Film Festival was discovering director Claude Barras‘ “My Life as a Courgette,” a 66-minute stop-motion animation treat. The film, depicting a few months in the life of an orphan named Courgette who still feels responsible for the death of his alcoholic mother cuts to the heart in the most non-manipulative kind of way. It’s a keeper.

Continue reading Cannes Review: Claude Barras’ Animated Drama ‘My Life As A Courgette’ Is A Simple Beauty at The Playlist.

Twelve days of cinephile heaven are over as the Cannes Film Festival wraps up for another year. This evening in the south of France, the George Miller-led jury have made their selection of the winners. And as per usual, there were some major curveballs.

Ashgar Farhadi‘s well-received but not particularly wildly acclaimed “The Salesman” landed two awards for Best Actor and Best Screenplay.

Continue reading Cannes: Ken Loach’s ‘I, Daniel Blake’ Wins Palme d’Or; Xavier Dolan Takes Grand Prix, Andrea Arnold Nabs Jury Prize at The Playlist.

“Gonzo” doesn’t always mean “good,” although along with “batshit,” it’s a word that has evolved almost entirely into a breathless, admiring positive in the film-reviewing lexicon. “Gonzo” tells you your grandmother won’t like it; it says “controversial” and implies a seat-of-the-pants thrill ride in which the flaws are the very same thing as the virtues. It suggests enjoyably questionable taste and an independent-spirited, guerrilla-warfare approach to the filmmaking. And it tacitly castigates anyone who doesn’t get with it as being a stuffy, literal-minded, humorless bore — a general downer at parties.

Continue reading Cannes Review: Paul Schrader’s ‘Dog Eat Dog’ With Nicolas Cage & Willem Dafoe Is Never Boring, But Never Coherent Either at The Playlist.

Laura Poitras has done it again. Much like the celebrated Edward Snowden documentary “Citizenfour,” “Risk” is instilled with a sense of immediate urgency as an apprehensive cloud hovers over every action, every word, every wayward glance. The focus here is on WikiLeaks-founder Julian Assange, who’s made it his life’s work to create a portal dedicated to the democratic ideal of free speech and free knowledge.

Continue reading Cannes Review: Laura Poitras’ Important, Urgent Julian Assange Documentary ‘Risk’ at The Playlist.

The second of Alejandro Jodorowsky‘s biographical series of hybrid docs (in a planned five) is called “Endless Poetry,” an unfortunately ironic title since the film quickly turns into an endurance test for people who aren’t hardcore fans. During his long and fascinating career, Jodorowsky has gifted us with ground-shaking midnight classics in “El Topo” and “The Holy Mountain,” but it’s his most recent predilection for finding out who he was as a young man that’s turned the director back to the camera after a 23-year hiatus.

Continue reading Cannes Review: Alejandro Jodorowsky’s Exhausting ‘Endless Poetry’ at The Playlist.

The 69th Cannes Film Festival is officially here, so to close out our set of features about it (here’s our Ranking of the 21st Century Palme d’Or Winners, the Best Breakout Films From Un Certain Regard, and 20 Movies Booed At Cannes) we turn our attention to the smaller, but often more genuinely innovative sidebar, the Directors’ Fortnight (known locally as the Quinzaine).

Established in 1969 by the French Directors Guild (and therefore not part of the festival’s Official Selection which reportedly leads to a little friction between the two entities), the parallel festival, held simultaneously with Cannes, has hosted some of the most exciting talents to have shaped modern film culture.

Continue reading The 20 Best Breakout Films From The Cannes Directors’ Fortnight at The Playlist.

A surpassingly strange chimera of visual magic and verbal delight, leavened with humor both bawdy and bittersweet, Pablo Larrain‘s “Neruda” takes the surname of its subject as its title, but in absolutely no other way under the sun does it resemble a standard biopic. For argument’s sake we’ll say that it “tells the story” of Chilean Nobel laureate and folk hero poet Pablo Neruda’s flight from the authorities after the Chilean Communist Party, of which he was a proud member with a seat in the Senate, was banned and a warrant issued for his arrest.

Continue reading Cannes Review: Pablo Larrain’s Brilliant, Bizarre, Experimental Odyssey ‘Neruda’ Starring Gael Garcia Bernal at The Playlist.

It’s a pretty interesting time for Gael Garcia Bernal. The actor just signed up for Jonas Cuaron‘s “Zorro” reboot simply titled “Z.,” but he’s keeping one foot firmly planted in the arthouse world. The actor is headed to the Cannes Directors’ Fortnight where he’ll be walking down the red carpet for Pablo Larrain‘s “Neruda,” and the first international trailer has landed.

Continue reading Watch: First International Trailer For Pablo Larraín’s ‘Neruda’ Starring Gael Garcia Bernal at The Playlist.

While the lights shine brightest on the Cannes Film Festival, cinephiles know that the sidebar lineups offer just as much excitement. And this year at the Cannes Directors’ Fortnight, director Anurag Kashyap — perhaps best known for his acclaimed, epic, award-winning “Gangs Of Wasseypur” — will arrive with the lean and mean “Psycho Raman.”

Starring Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Sobhita Dhulipala, and Vicky Kaushal, the thriller follows a serial killer and cop whose lives collide dangerously on the streets of Mumbai.

Continue reading Cannes Directors’ Fortnight Exclusive: Trailer For Serial Killer Thriller ‘Psycho Raman’ From The Director Of ‘Gangs Of Wasseypur’ at The Playlist.

New Paul Schrader, Pablo Larrain, Laura Poitras Films Headline Cannes Directors' Fortnight Line-Up

Continue reading New Paul Schrader, Pablo Larrain, Laura Poitras Films Headline Cannes Directors’ Fortnight Line-Up at The Playlist.

Cannes Review: Directors' Fortnight Prize Winner 'Mustang' By First-Timer Deniz Gamze Ergüven

Continue reading Cannes Review: Directors’ Fortnight Prize Winner ‘Mustang’ By First-Timer Deniz Gamze Ergüven at The Playlist.

Cannes Directors’ Fortnight Winners Include Arnaud Desplechin's 'My Golden Years' & More

Continue reading Cannes Directors’ Fortnight Winners Include Arnaud Desplechin’s ‘My Golden Years’ & More at The Playlist.