One of the highlights leading up to the Cannes Film Festival is the official poster, and this year’s artwork certainly doesn’t disappoint. Released today, the poster of the 64th edition is an elegant black-and-white shot of Faye Dunaway photographed by director Jerry Schatzberg in 1970 for his movie Puzzle of a Downfall Child, in which she has the starring role.  Check it out after the jump.

It is rare for a president to see his life adapted to the big screen while he is still in office. George W Bush had the honors with Oliver Stone’s W in 2008, and equally controversial French president Nicolas Sarkozy’s political life is now the subject of La Conquête (The Conquest).

Described as a thriller, it follows his ambitious rise to power.  La Conquête recounts the events between April 27, 2002 and May 6, 2007 and follows Nicolas Sarkozy’s political career, thirst for power and concludes with his ultimate conquest: the presidency of France. (His other conquest, Carla Bruni, came months later.)  Hit the jump for more details, photos and the trailer.

A few hours before Woody Allen and his New Orleans Jazz band took the stage at the Grand Rex on Saturday night, the director was busy filming another movie in Paris. But this time, he was in front of the camera.

Between 4 and 5pm, Allen filmed a scene for French director Sophie Lellouche’s first movie Paris Manhattan in front of the Plaza Athénée hotel on the chic Avenue Montaigne, near the famed Avenue des Champs-Elysées.  So what is his rôle?  Hit the jump to find out.

The former Boomtown Rats rocker Bob Geldof, who gave a riveting performance as Pink in Alan Parker’s live-action and animated musical Pink Floyd – The Wall in 1982, is set to return to the big screen. He’s poised to take on a role inspired by outspoken philosopher and writer Bernard-Henri Lévy in the French film Mauvaise Fille (Bad Girl).

French actor Patrick Mille will make his directorial debut with the film, which is an adaptation of his girlfriend Justine Lévy’s best-selling autobiographical novel of the same name. Justine, whose previous two books have received rave literary reviews in the US, also happens to be Bernard-Henri’s daughter. Hit the jump to find out more about Geldof’s role.

It might be lucky number XIII for Stuart Townsend. The Irish actor plays the title role in XIII: The Series, a new Franco-Canadian conspiracy action-thriller.  Based on the French Belgian comic book series by Jean Van Hamme and William Vance and originally published in 1984, XIII was first adapted in 2008 in a miniseries called XIII: The Conspiracy starring Val Kilmer and Stephen Dorff in the title role. Van Hamme was reportedly inspired by Robert Ludlum’s The Bourne Identity when he wrote XIII.

Hit the jump to see the images.  XIII: The Series also stars Aisha Tyler and Virginie Ledoyen.

When the first publicity shot of Meryl Streep as the former British prime minister for the biopic The Iron Lady was recently released, we were struck by the resemblance. In the latest images from the set, shot in South London earlier this week, Streep, who is known for her perfectionism, appears to have physically altered herself to become Thatcher.

Check out the images after the jump.

The Green Hornet director Michel Gondry’s next movie will be an adaptation of Philip K. Dick’s 1966 science fiction novel, Ubik. The screenplay will remain loyal to Dick’s original text.

This will be the second attempt by a French filmmaker to adapt Dick’s famed work. In 1974, Jean-Pierre Gorin commissioned the writer to adapt his own novel to a screenplay. The movie never got made but Dick’s labor didn’t go entirely to waste – it was instead published as Ubik: The Screenplay.

Highly respected in France, Philip K. Dick is perhaps one of the most popular American sci-fi writers in the world – and Hollywood. Hit the jump to find out which classic movies were inspired by his works.

The first set photos from the big screen adaptation of Jack Kerouac’s seminal novel On the Road were published last November, and new images from the Walter Salles directed movie have finally been released.  The images show Salles’ choice of muted colors to depict the Sixties aesthetics and the smoky, hazy Beatnik ambience in which On the Road‘s heroes, Sal and Dean, evolve. Actors Kristen Stewart, Sam Riley and Garrett Hedlund look über-cool enough to play the lead roles of the Beat Generation’s most famous protagonists.  Hit the jump for the synopsis and images:

French actress Maria Schneider, who starred opposite Marlon Brando in Bernardo Bertolucci’s controversial 1972 movie Last Tango in Paris, has died in Paris from cancer, a family member told news agency AFP. She was 58. She was the daughter of late French actor Daniel Gélin and model Marie-Christine Schneider, who raised her on her own. Maria Schenider will be buried at the famous Père-Lachaise cemetary, where Jim Morrison and Oscar Wilde also rest.

Maria was only 20 when she was cast opposite 48-year-old Brando. Hit the jump to read more about her career and watch the trailer of Last Tango in Paris.

Back when Darth Vader was still Anakin Skywalker, he practiced The Force at his parent’s suburban home. No, not really, but in a commercial for the Volkswagen Passat 2012, a mini Star Wars fan fruitlessly tests his powers on various objects around the house, as John Williams’ classic “The Imperial March (Darth Vader’s Theme)” accompanies him through his trek.

In this very cute commercial, the pint-sized Darth Vader makes various attempts on an exercise bike, the family dog, the washing machine and a doll, but to no avail. His last hope is his dad’s Passat, and even he seems surprised when his power finally works… thanks to some extra help.  Check out the ad after the jump.

Woody Allen’s Midnight in Paris, a romcom which was shot in Paris last year, is set to open the 64^th Cannes Film Festival on May 11^th and will be released in French theaters on the same day. The movie features an international all-star cast, including Marion Cotillard, Rachel McAdams, Owen Wilson, Kathy Bates, Adrien Brody, Léa Seydoux and Gad Elmaleh.

But the talk of the town is the very special cameo appearance by a certain French leading lady. Find out who after the jump.

Forget the new Starbucks logo. While the coffee’s great, I’m not sure its mermaid design could rival a Darth Vader-inspired “Darth Roast” t-shirt. Designed by tattoo artist Jason C. Reed, the tee is a clever take on the famous coffeehouse’s logo featuring a headshot of the Dark Lord himself. Hit the jump to check out the shirt, which is on sale for today only.

The multiple award-winning French film Of Gods and Men (or Des Hommes et des Dieux) is slated for a limited release on Frebruary 25^th in Los Angeles and New York. Written/directed by Xavier Beauvois and starring Lambert Wilson (The Matrix Revolutions) and Michael Lonsdale (Agora, Moonraker), the critically-acclaimed film centers on eight French Christian monks who must decide whether to stay at their monastery following a deadly attack by an Islamic fundamentalist group.

Of Gods and Men, which turned out to be one of the biggest French box-office hits of 2010, first premiered at the Cannes Film Festival, where it won the Grand Prize. More recently, it was consecrated Best Foreign Language Film by the National Board of Review. Although the French were surprised that it had not earned an Oscar nod in the Best Foreign Film category, it did receive 10 nominations at the upcoming César Awards. Hit the jump to check out the trailer and synopsis.

Slash, most notable for his killer guitar riffs, is following in the footsteps of fellow rocker Rob Zombie and expanding his creative talents into the horror genre. The former Guns N’ Roses guitarist announced at Sundance that he has launched a film production company, aptly called Slasher Films, and that he already has several projects in development.

Hit the jump to learn more about Slasher Films and its upcoming work with writer Steve Niles’ (30 Days of Night) Wake the Dead.

After a superb amateur shot of Spider-Man running through the streets of Downtown L.A. hit the web, other non-professionals have returned to the on-location shoot of Marc Webb’s Spider-Man reboot and captured some great shots from the set.

Hit the jump to check them out. [Updated: We've included new set photos of some web-slinging action of Spidey!]