MADDS MIKKELSEN WINS "BEST ACTOR" AT CANNES

Madds Mikkelsen in Toronto - TIFF 2009

Congratulations to Madds Mikkelsen who was awarded Best Actor at the Cannes Film Festival for his work in Danish Film The Hunt, earlier today.  The Actor last came to Toronto for TIFF 2009 with Coco Chanel & Igor Stravinsky. This year marks the 65th edition of the Festival, and along with the brilliant Mikkelsen, Actresses Cosmina Stratan and Cristina Flutur both won for their performances in Beyond the Hills.

Director Michael Haneke was most victorious of all winning top honours with his Film Amour, which follows an 80-year-old Couple George (Jean-Louis Trintignant) and Anne (Emanuelle Riva) after the latter suffers a Heart Attack.  The Drama won the prestigious Palme D'Or Award.

Unfortunately, Father and Son directing Duo David and Brandon Cronenberg despite getting a feverish amount of buzz for their Toronto-filmed Entries, Cosmopolis and Antiviral respectively, walked away empty-handed from the Festival.

For a complete list of Winners, click here.

(Photo credit: Mr. Will-W.)

"COSMOPOLIS", "ON THE ROAD", "THE PAPERBOY", "LAWLESS" & MORE TO PREMIERE IN CANNES

Sarah Gadon & Robert Pattinson filming Cosmopolis in Toronto - May 2011

The complete Line-up for the 2012 Cannes Film Festival (May 16-27, 2012) has been announced and it will be a Twilight Cannes-vention for sorts with Megastar Couple  Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart each represented with both Toronto-filmed Cosmopolis (David Cronenberg) and On the Road  (Walter Salles) respectively. Both are listed as being in-competition for the prestigious Palme d'Or.

Also going in with a lot of buzz is Lawless starring Tom Hardy, Shia LeBeouf, Jessica Chastain, Gary Oldman, Guy Pearce and Mia Wasikowska. The Paperboy (Lee Daniels) starring Zac Efron, John Cusack and Matthew McConaughey, also comes highly-touted.

In addition to David Cronenberg being represented this year, his Son Brandon Cronenberg makes his directorial Feature Debut with Toronto-filmed Antiviral which stars Sarah Gadon (who also stars in Cosmopolis) and Malcolm McDowell, whom we interviewed recently.

Director Wes Anderson also is represented with Moonrise Kingdom starring Bill Murray, Edward Norton, Bruce Willis and Tilda Swinton, which is selected as the Festival's Opening Night Film, screening out-of-competition.

Here is the complete Line-up for the 2012 Cannes Film Festival:

"THE TREE OF LIFE" AND KIRSTEN DUNST WIN BIG AT CANNES

Still from The Tree of Life

Congratulations to Terence Malick for his victory at the Cannes Film Festival.  The shy Director's Feature The Tree of Life just received the coveted Palme d'Or Award for Best Feature; he was not on-hand to accept the Award.  Despite some "boos" having been heard at its Premiere in Cannes last week, it turns out that the Drama starring Sean Penn and Brad Pitt is a Critical Darling after all.  The Film gets a Canadian release on June 10, 2011.

In a surprising turn of events, Kirsten Dunst was awarded Best Actress for her work in Lars von Trier's Melancholia.  The Dancer in the Dark Director known best for tortured Heroines in his Films, recently generated a bit of controversy when he made some Anti-Semetic remarks he made, getting him banned from the Festival. Melancholia is a Sci-Fi Piece about two Sisters whose relationship is compromised as another Planet threatens to collide with Earth.

Melancholia is due in theatres November 4, 2011 and also stars Charlotte Gainsbourg, Kiefer Sutherland and Alexander Skarsgård.  The Film is garnering some controversy as Dunst appears fully nude for the first time ever in it after having publicly gone on the record to say that Pedro Almodóvar is the only Director for whom she would remove her clothing.  Expect this one to do the Festival rounds including a possible TIFF stopoff this September.

(Photo credit: Fox Searchlight)

"THE TREE OF LIFE" GARNERS BOOS AND PRAISE IN CANNES

Still from Tree of Life

Despite some high expectations for The Thin Red Line Director Terence Malick’s latest work The Tree of Life, reviews unfortunately were mixed after today’s first screening of it at the Cannes Film Festival. Many have been awaiting the Film after multiple delays in its release, almost two years to be exact.

Although many top Critics had positive things to say about the philosophical Drama starring Brad Pitt, Jessica Chastain and Sean Penn, there reportedly was a bit of "booing" post-screening, which some Critics like Eric Kohn of IndieWire, took to Twitter clarifying this as an exaggeration.

Here’s what some of the Critics are saying for The Tree of Life:

“This film is not for everyone, and I will admit I am agnostic about the final sequence, which suggests a closure and a redemption nothing else in the film has prepared us for. But this is visionary cinema on an unashamedly huge scale: cinema that's thinking big.”. - PETER BRADSHAW - THE GUARDIAN

PRAISE FOR "SLEEPING BEAUTY" AT CANNES FILM FESTIVAL

Still from Sleeping Beauty

Andrew O’Hehir at Salon is one of the first to review Julia Leigh’s Sleeping Beauty which is getting a tremendous amount of buzz at the Cannes Film Festival. In the Review, he calls the Australian Film “a strikingly impressive debut”. 

The Toronto International Film Festival’s Cameron Bailey who would is on the look-out to being titles over to Toronto this September, noted on Twitter that “Realized I watched SLEEPING BEAUTY through feminist film theory goggles, but others didn't.” – meaning he “got” it, despite mixed reactions. I’m expecting this one to get a Premiere at TIFF, seeing that Producer Jane Campion has a good relationship with the Festival and that TIFF is never shy of avoiding controversial titles.

THE WEINSTEIN CO. TO DISTRIBUTE MERYL STREEP'S "THE IRON LADY"

Meryl Streep as Margaret Thatcher

It’s official! The Weinstein Co. have acquired U.S. rights to The Iron Lady, a Biopic by Mamma Mia! Director Phyllida Lloyd about former UK Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. Starring Meryl Streep, it is said only Studio footage was shopped around to Executives attending the Cannes Film Festival and earlier this morning it was confirmed that The Weinstein Co. won the bidding match for the Film, produced by U.K.-based Pathé Films.

As many of you might recall, The Weinstein Co. indeed is hot again, just having successfully campaigned The King’s Speech to a Best Picture victory at the Oscars earlier this year. The Iron Lady equally is being touted as a Film to watch this forthcoming Oscars season. Perhaps, we’ll see a TIFF 2011 Premiere, warranting a rare visit from Streep to Toronto? Exciting!

(Photo credit: Pathé Films)

LADY GAGA PERFORMS "JUDAS" IN CANNES

Lady Gaga in Cannes - May 2011

French Fans got a lucky treat Thursday as Lady Gaga taped an outdoor performance of her current Single Judas during the Cannes Film Festival fanfare, just outside The Martinez Hotel where many stars including Rachel McAdams and Woody Allen were staying. The appearance was broadcast live on Le Grand Journal, which airs on Canal Plus.

Here we see Gaga in Cannes donning a red Veil (not to be confused with her famous red Hood) and Egyptian-inspired get-up with lots of gold. Decadence. Just earlier today, Gaga was spotted in a black Veil and Leopard Print Sheer Bodysuit in London at a taping of ITV's The Graham Norton Show. JustJared has the pics here.

Watch Gaga perform Judas in full below:

"MIDNIGHT IN PARIS" WINS RAVES AT CANNES

Still from Midnight in Paris

They love it! Woody Allen's new Film Midnight in Paris with an all-star Cast of Owen Wilson, Rachel McAdams, Michael Sheen, Marion Cotillard and more, just premiered as the opening night Gala at the Cannes Film Festival.

Thus far, reactions seem to be positive. Todd McCarthy at The Hollywood Reporter calls the Film "as beguiling as a stroll around Paris on a warm spring evening" and Jeffrey Wells of Hollywood Elsewhere states that it is a "relatively minor piece that works very well by way of charm and humour". Lookin' good! 

Yes, this is the Film responsible for McAdams and Sheen meeting and falling in love!

Midnight in Paris opens in theatres through Sony Pictures Classics May 20, 2011.

See Photos from its Press Conference held earlier today right here at Zimbio.

(Photo credit: Sony Pictures Classics)

EMILY BROWNING STARS IN "SLEEPING BEAUTY"

Poster for Sleeping Beauty

"There will be very heavy penalties for breaches of discretion. Am I clear?".

Australian Director Julia Leigh makes her directorial debut with Sleeping Beauty, which is far from an Adaptation of the Fairy Tale of the same title. Jane Campion who brought Bright Star to TIFF 2009 produces the Thriller starring Sucker Punch's Emily Browning. It is a Story about a young Woman who enters a secret Prostitution ring and her specialty is taking pills which make her fall asleep, allowing her Clients to fulfill their most dark, disturbing fantasies on her while she is unconscious.

Sleeping Beauty will be premiere at the Cannes Film Festival next month. Paramount Pictures will be handling distribution it appears, although there is no set release date. Hopefully this will get a Premiere at TIFF 2011? Could it be this year's Black Swan?

Watch its eerie Trailer in full below:

NEW PROMOTIONAL PHOTO OF MERYL STREEP AS MARGARET THATCHER

Meryl Streep in The Iron Lady

Pathé Films has released this amazing Promotional Shot of Meryl Streep as former-British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher in The Iron Lady. Chameleon!

The Film which is now in its second week of Production in London, will get a Sneak Preview at the Cannes Festival in May. This is going to be positively amazing!

(Photo credit: Pathé Films)

THAI FILM WINS BIG IN CANNES

Apichatpong Weerasethakul, better known as just "Joe" in Thailand, pulled a surprise upset for the coveted Palme D'Or Award at the 63rd Cannes Film Festival, which concluded last night. His film Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives is described as a dying man's meditation of his past lives and ghostly relatives, winning high points with this year's Jury, led by President and acclaimed filmmaker Tim Burton.  The film apparently contains a sex scene between a Princess and a Catfish. How original!

As predicted, Oscar winner Javier Bardem took home the award for Best Actor in Alejandro González Iñárritu's Biutiful, sharing the award with Italian actor Elio Germano in Daniele Luchetti's Our Life. Apparently Bardem's girlfriend Penélope Cruz was seen in tears after he thanked her in his Acceptance Speech.

DIRECTOR DOUG LIMAN DEFENDS NAOMI WATTS

On Naomi Watts' performance in Fair Game, director Doug Liman responds to critics who feel her performance lacked warmth or dimension: "It would have been easy to create a fiction that Naomi’s Valerie is an emotional NOC. That she has this steely exterior but when she comes home and she’s something else. In fiction you can make up anything, but I actually spent time around the real Val and found her completely compelling as a person and she kept that façade no matter what she was doing and I wanted Naomi Watts’ character to follow suit." 

Watts is rumoured to have put on a career best performance as disgraced CIA agent Valerie Plame in Liman's film, screening in Cannes.  I personally think they should just FedEx me a copy of this Screener and I will decide for them!  STAT.

AN EARLY LOOK: BLUE VALENTINE

Canadian actor Ryan Gosling and Michelle Williams, soon to arrive in Toronto to film Sarah Polley's Take This Waltz, are causing a stir in Cannes with their latest film Blue Valentine, based on their strong performances.  The romantic drama follows a couple, cross-cutting different stages in the evolution of their relationship.  The film is directed by Derek Cianfrance, who has done a couple Hip-Hop documentaries in the past.  The film to be released via The Weinstein Co. this winter (and via our friends at Alliance Films in Canada), will be released in tandem with Oscars season and possible see a screening at TIFF in September.  One to look out for. (Photo credit: Getty Images)

NO BUSINESS IN CANNES

I’m sorry ladies, but you have no business being in Cannes. I’ve checked your IMDB pages and there is nothing remotely-related to the Cannes Film Festival on the Docket for any of you. It seems that every time I click on some photos from the festivities in the French Riviera, I keep seeing Eva Longoria-Parker, Lindsay Lohan and Aishwaraya Rai pop up. And honestly, you know it’s a bad sign when I ask my Indian friend Tym about Rai and she asked, “Wasn’t she last in that movie ‘Indian Spice Girls’?”. I think she meant Rai’s 2005 film Mistress of Spices. Yes, even the people of India aren’t watching her movies, so what gives?

Please tell me this isn’t the most star power the festival could muster. Another reason why the Toronto International Film Festival reigns supreme. We get the titles that sway Academy voters and we get the real stars. Cannes 0, Toronto 1. (Photo credit: Rex/Getty Images)

"ROUTE IRISH" FAVOURED TO WIN THE PALME D'OR AT CANNES

Director Ken Loach's last minute submission for this year's Palme D'Or competition at the Cannes Film Festival, is now the favourite to win the prestigious prize.  The film called Route Irish as about two ex-soliders from Liverpool contracted out to help in Iraq.  One of the soldiers dies while on assignment and the other rejects the government's official positioning on his mate's passing.  He then decides to do his own investigation.  Loach last won the presitigious Palme D'Or in 2006 with The Wind That Shakes The Barley, which subsequently got ignored at the Oscars, but he is a Cannes darling.

The film I'm keeping a tab on most is Doug Liman's Fair Game starring Naomi Watts and Sean Penn, based on the memoirs of disgraced CIA agent Valerie Plame.  Oddsmakers are listing the film at 10-1 to win the Palme D'Or, making it far from being the favourite... but there's still a chance.  Last year's winner The White Ribbon by German director Michael Haneke won the award, and was heavily favoured to win Best Foreign Picture at the Oscars this year subsequently, but falling short. 

CANNES FILM FESTIVAL TITLES ANNOUNCED

Director Doug Liman's Fair Game will be among many future Oscar-contending films at this year's 63rd Cannes Film Festival  to be held May 12-23, 2010.  The film stars Sean Penn and Naomi Watts, who will be appearing together yet again after garnering critical success in The Assasination of Richard Nixon and 21 Grams previously.  The political drama is about CIA agent Valerie Plame, who is exposed by White House Officials after he wrote a New York Times piece with incriminating evidence against the Bush administration and its decision to invade Iraq.  Heavy stuff. 

The story inspired 2008's Nothing But The Truth starring Vera Farmiga and Kate Beckinsale, but Liman's film is the actual real deal.  Watts has a second film, You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger, which also is the latest film from legendary Woody Allen.  It also stars Anthony Hopkins, Antonio Banderas, Freida Pinto and Josh Brolin.  Hmm, gee... I wonder who will be cast as the Tall Dark Stranger in this one?  Could it be sexy MANtonio?