Cannes 2015 has closed its celluloid curtain and the awards have been bestowed (proper dress attire still required). Check out the winners below.
The films that had been getting a lot of the top-prize buzz have been very diverse: there's the slow-burning 9th century martial arts film from Taiwan (The Assassin), the newest (most brutal) version of William Shakespeare's Macbeth (starring Michael Fassbender as the power-hungry warrior, and Marion Cotillard as his Lady), the 1950s-set lesbian melodrama, Carol (starring Cate Blanchett and Rooney Mara), and a devastating Auschwitz drama, Son of Saul, about a man trying to save a corpse from the prison camp flames, because he believes its his son. Our own Croisette-critic-on-the-grounds, Talia Soghomonian, chose Youth as her personal Palme pick from the competition litter. Youth is the follow-up to the Oscar-winning The Great Beauty, starring Michael Caine and Harvey Keitel as old friends on a European retreat.
But ultimately it was Jacques Audiard's (Rust and Bone, A Prophet) Dheepan that won the Palme d'Or. Here's the official synopsis of the film:
To escape the civil war in Sri Lanka, a former soldier, a young woman and a little girl pose as a family. They end up settling in a housing project outside Paris. They barely know one another, but try to build a life together.
Needless to say, the Coen Brothers'-fronted jury had an interesting buffet to choose from and they spread it across many countries: films from Mexico, the USA, Greece, France, Taiwan, and Hungary all received awards. Check out all the winners below! And come back for more coverage of Cannes.
For the unfamiliar, the esteemed Palme d'Or is essentially first place, the Grand Prize is second place, and a Jury Prize mention can be viewed as third place. The top prizes are given to the director of the film.
2015 CANNES COMPETITION FILMS
Palme d'Or WINNER: Jacques Audiard, Dheepan
Grand Prize WINNER: László Nemes, Son of Saul
Best Director WINNER: Hou Hsiao-Hsein, The Assassin
Best Actor WINNER: Vincent Lindon, The Measure of a Man
Best Actress WINNER (TIE): Rooney Mara, Carol and Emmanuel Bercot, Mon Roi
Best Screenplay WINNER: Michel Franco, Chronic
Jury Prize WINNER: Yorgos Lanthimos, The Lobster
ELIGIBLE FILMS:
The Assassin (Taiwan/China/Hong Kong) directed by Hou Hsiao-Hsein
Carol (USA) Directed by Todd Haynes
Chronic (Mexico) Directed by Michel Franco
Dheepan (France) Directed by Jacques Audiard
The Lobster (Greece/France/UK) Directed by Yorgos Lanthimos
Louder Than Bombs (Norway/France/USA) Directed by Joachim Trier
Macbeth (UK/France/USA) Directed by Justin Kurzel
Marguerite & Julien (France) Directed by Valérie Donzelli
The Measure of a Man (France) Directed by Stéphane Brizé
Mon Roi (France) Directed by Maïwenn
Mountains May Depart (China) Directed by Jia Zhang-Ke
My Mother (Italy) Directed by Nanni Moretti
Our Little Sister (Japan) Directed by Hirokazu Kore-eda
The Sea of Trees (USA) Directed by Gus Van Sant
Sicario (USA/Canada) Directed by Denis Villeneuve
Son of Saul (Hungary) Directed by László Nemes
Tale of Tales (Italy/France/UK) directed by Matteo Garrone
Youth (Italy) directed by Paolo Sorrentino