10 Most Exciting Movies Coming Out of Cannes 2019
6. Portrait de la jeune fille en feu (Portrait of A Lady on Fire)
Portrait of a Lady on Fire Review
Director: Céline Sciamma
Screenwriter: Céline Sciamma
Starring: Noémie Merlant, Adèle Haenel, Luàna Bajrami, Valeria Golino
Described by screenwriter-director Céline Sciamma herself as “so meta” because of how the film debuted at the historically male-centred Cannes Film Festival and has a subject matter that tackles the lack of representation and/or appreciation for female artists, Portrait of A Lady on Fire was one of 2019’s hottest talking points, Wendy Ide of Screendaily describing the film as “unhurried and intimate” and the film taking home the official Queer Palm (feature film) award.
7. Dolor y gloria (Pain and Glory)
Director: Pedro Almodóvar
Screenwriter: Pedro Almodóvar
Starring: Antonio Banderas, Penélope Cruz, Leonardo Sbaraglia, Asier Etxeandia, Cecilia Roth
Described by Jordan Farley of Total Film as “Almodóvar’s most personal feature to date”, Pain and Glory follows a chronically ill filmmaker reflecting upon his childhood ahead of a screening of one of his early features. Starring the Cannes 2019 Best Actor award winner Antonio Banderas who provides a performance many have touted as an early contender for next year’s Oscars, this Almodóvar entry is said to “feel like the summation of a life’s work”.
8. Atlantics
Director: Mati Diop
Screenwriter: Mati Diop, Olivier Demangel
Starring: Abdou Balde, Aminata Kane, Ibrahima Mbaye, Amadou Mbow
Atlantics made waves at Cannes 2019 for being the first film to win an award at the festival that was directed by a Black woman. Mati Diop, the film’s French-Senegalese screenwriter and director, received the Grand Prix award for her work on this tale of desperate workers in Dakar, Senegal who plot an escape from their treacherous working and living conditions by ocean. Presenting “a lot of ideas about class, post-imperialism and spiritual values” according to Leslie Felperin of The Hollywood Reporter, Atlantics is a “lyrical, richly evocative ghost story” and a history-making victor to boot.
