Every year, the world’s best filmmakers vie for the chance to compete at Cannes for the most illustrious film festival prize around: the Palme d’Or. This year’s festival kicks off on May 14 with a screening of Olivier Dahan’s Grace of Monaco starring Nicole Kidman as the venerable Grace Kelly. While that film is not in the running for the Palme d’Or, 18 films from around the globe will duke it out for the prize, including 3 with Canadian directors: David Cronenberg’s Maps to the Stars, Xavier Dolan’s Mommy, and Adam Egoyan’s The Captive. Canada’s favourite Ryan’s are also involved in the festival: Ryan Reynolds stars in Egoyan’s picture while Ryan Gosling is making his directorial debut with Lost River.
Details are still emerging about a lot of the films, but we’ve picked out a selection of trailers and info for the ones we’re looking forward to the most. For a full list of films screening at the festival head over to Cannes’ official website.
Grace of Monaco – Olivier Dahan (Opening film, Out of Competition)
“As the newly minted Princess of Monaco, former actress Grace Kelly (Kidman) proves herself against all odds by leading her adopted country in its struggle against France when it tries to take over Monaco.“
Starring: Nicole Kidman, Tim Roth, Frank Langella.
Saint Laurent – Bertrand Bonello (In Competition)
“A look at the life of French designer Yves Saint Laurent from the beginning of his career in 1958 when he met his lover and business partner, Pierre Berge.”
Starring: Pierre Niney, Guillaume Gallienne.
Maps to the Stars – David Cronenberg (In Competition)
“Led by the loathsome yet funny and touching child-star Benjie, we witness the convoluted world of shallow, selfish celebrities and their minions, all of whom are about to be manipulated and destroyed by the young woman who literally represents the fruit of their twisted machinations, Agatha, Benjie’s tormented, apparently psychotic sister. As much as it is a sharp, comic look at a vacant and corrupt world, MAPS TO THE STARS is also a haunting ghost story.”
Starring: Julianne Moore, Mia Wasikowska, John Cusack, Robert Pattinson.
Mommy – Xavier Dolan (In Competition)
“In a fictional Canada, a new law allows distressed parents to abandon their troubled children to the hospital system. Diane “Die” Despres, a feisty widow, tries to cope with Steve, her wild yet charismatic ADHD son. While they both try to make ends meet, Kyla, a mysterious neighbour, offers her help. As Kyla’s heart-warming presence becomes increasingly intense, questions emerge about her own mysterious life, and the way her destiny may ultimately be linked to that of Steve and Die.”
Starring: Anne Dorval, Suzanne Clément, Antoine-Olivier Pilon.
The Captive – Atom Egoyan (In Competition)
“A pick up truck pulls off the highway at a diner. Confident that his young daughter is safe in the back seat and promising to return with ice cream, the father slips out of his truck and into the diner. When he returns, she is gone. The psychological thriller, The Captive examines how this kidnapping destroys the relationships among those involved. As the film teases out the complex threads weaving together the victim, her family, the predators and the investigators, the mystery of what happened to the child, during the eight years she was missing, is revealed.”
Starring: Ryan Reynolds, Scott Speedman, Rosario Dawson, Mireille Enos.
The Homesman – Tommy Lee Jones (In Competition)
“Nebraska, 1854. Mary Bee, 31, lives a solitary existence in a God-fearing frontier town. She is designated by members of her church to take back East three traumatized women who have lost their minds. On the way, Mary saves the life of Briggs, a deserter and outlaw, who agrees to help in her mission in return for $300 if they reach their destination safely. Through snowstorms and perilous encounters with settlers and Indians, the two loners grow closer until Mary proposes marriage. Whatever Briggs chooses—a beautiful wife or carefree drifting—for both of them, life can never be the same again… “
Starring: Tommy Lee Jones, Hilary Swank, Hailee Steinfeld, William Fichtner, Meryl Streep.
Foxcatcher – Bennett Miller (In Competition)
“The story of Olympic Wrestling Champion Mark Schultz and how paranoid schizophrenic John duPont killed his brother, Olympic Champion Dave Schultz.”
Starring: Steve Carell, Channing Tatum, Mark Ruffalo.
Lost River -Ryan Gosling (Un Certain Regard)
“Set against the surreal dreamscape of a vanishing city, BILLY, a single mother of two, is swept into a macabre and dark fantasy underworld while BONES, her eighteen-year-old son, discovers a secret road leading to an underwater town. Both Billy and Bones must dive deep into the mystery, if their family is to survive.”
Starring: Christina Hendricks, Iain De Caestecker, Matt Smith, Saoirse Ronan, Eva Mendes.
How to Train Your Dragon 2 – Dean DeBlois (Out of Competition)
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“It’s been five years since Hiccup and Toothless successfully united dragons and vikings on the island of Berk. While Astrid, Snotlout and the rest of the gang are challenging each other to dragon races (the island’s new favourite contact sport), the now inseparable pair journey through the skies, charting unmapped territories and exploring new worlds. When one of their adventures leads to the discovery of a secret ice cave that is home to hundreds of new wild dragons and the mysterious Dragon Rider, the two friends find themselves at the centre of a battle to protect the peace. Now, Hiccup and Toothless must unite to stand up for what they believe while recognizing that only together do they have the power to change the future of both men and dragons.”
Starring: Jay Baruchel, Gerard Butler, Craig Ferguson, America Ferrera, Jonah Hill, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, T.J. Miller, Kristen Wiig, Djimon Hounsou, Cate Blanchett, Kit Harington.
The Rover – David Michôd (Out of Competition)
“Set in the near future, the world of The Rover is one where mankind’s greed and excesses have pushed civilization to the breaking point. With society in decline, the rule of law has disintegrated and life is cheap. Hardened loner Eric (Pearce) travels the desolate towns and roads of the Australian outback. When a brutal gang of thieves steals his car and only remaining possession, they leave behind the wounded Rey (Pattinson) in their wake. Forcing Rey to help track the gang, Eric gives chase.”
Starring: Guy Pearce, Robert Pattinson.
Cold in July – Jim Mickle (Director’s Fortnight)
“COLD IN JULY tells the story of Richard Dane, a small town frame builder from East Texas who is forced to kill a man in self-defense. He then meets Ben Russel, a rough ex-con and the father of the man Dane shot, who is hell-bent on avenging his son’s death. But small town corruption and paranoia turn these bitter enemies into unlikely allies, as the two guilt-stricken fathers begin a search for truth, aided by Dane’s tough minded wife and a pig-raising detective from the backwoods of Houston. Before it’s all over, they uncover a bigger secret, darker and more dangerous than any of them could have imagined.”
Starring: Michael C. Hall, Sam Shepard, Don Johnson.
Whiplash – Damien Chazelle (Director’s Fortnight)
“First year college student Andrew would do anything to become a famous musician. His commitment is put to the ultimate test when the unrelenting and eccentric band professor Fletcher all but drives him to madness. Fletcher’s extreme teaching methods rattle Andrew’s faith in drumming…and in himself. In the end, the struggle is only worthwhile if Andrew is really the one-in-a-million talent that Fletcher believes him to be.”
Starring: Miles Teller, J. K. Simmons.
Film descriptions from production companies where available.
