2021 Cannes Film Festival Lineup Includes Wes Anderson, Leos Carax, and More
BY SCOTTIE KNOLLIN
After a year off, the Cannes Film Festival is returning with a bang. The 74th edition of the international fest will take place in July as an in-person event. Spike Lee, who was set to lead the jury of the 2020 festival alongside premiering his film “Da 5 Bloods” out of competition, will complete his duties with this year’s festival.
Of the films that were announced as part of the Official Selection, Wes Anderson’s “The French Dispatch”, Paul Verhoeven’s “Benedetta”, and Leos Carax’s “Annette” were supposed to premiere during the 2020 festival in competition. All three are eagerly anticipated by film audiences.
Carax’s “Annette” will open the festival on July 6.
Anderson is just one of several Hollywood directors whose films were chosen this year. Also among the mix are Sean Penn (“Flag Day”) and Sean Baker (“Red Rocket”). Arthouse favorites Nadav Lapid (“Ahed’s Knee”) and Ildikó Enyedi (“The Story of My Wife”) are also included in the list of films competing for the Palme d’Or.
Playing out of competition, Charlotte Gainsbourg’s “Jane Par Charlotte” will premiere and Andrea Arnold’s “Cow” will begin its expected awards season run. Tom McCarthy’s “Stillwater” and Todd Haynes’ “The Velvet Underground” will also screen.
Festival organizers are planning to operate all screenings at 100 percent capacity, but moviegoers will be required to wear masks while visiting the festival. Cannes general delegate Thierry Frémaux said, “Vaccination is not mandatory, but testing is. Spectators can choose to present either a vaccination certificate or a negative test.”
In addition to the films named as part of the Official Selection, Cannes announced earlier this week that Jodie Foster would receive the Honorary Palme d’Or and be the guest of honor at the opening night ceremony. Foster notably attended her first Cannes at the age of 13 as a member of the cast of Martin Scorsese’s “Taxi Driver”, which won the Palme d’Or.
The 2021 Cannes Film Festival runs July 6 through July 17.
Opening Night Film
ANNETTTE; Dir. Leos Carax (France)
In Competition
AHED’S KNEE; Dir. Nadav Lapid (Israel)
ANNETTE; Dir. Leos Carax (France)
BENEDETTA; Dir. Paul Verhoeven (Netherlands)
BERGMAN ISLAND; Dir. Mia Hansen-Løve (France)
CASABLANCA BEATS; Dir. Nabil Ayouch (Morocco)
COMPARTMENT NO. 6; Dir. Juho Kuosmanen (Finland)
DRIVE MY CAR; Dir. Ryusuke Hamaguchi (Japan)
EVERYTHING WENT FINE; Dir. Francois Ozon (France)
THE FRENCH DISPATCH; Dir. Wes Anderson (USA)
A HERO; Dir. Asghar Farhadi (Iran)
LA FRACTURE; Dir. Catherine Corsini (France)
LINGUI; Dir. Mahamat-Saleh Haroun (Chad)
MEMORIA; Dir. Apichatpong Weerasethakul (Thailand)
NITRAM; Dir. Justin Kurzel (Australia)
PARIS, 13TH DISTRICT; Dir. Jacques Audiard (France)
PAR UN DEMI CLAIR MATIN; Dir. Bruno Dumont (France)
PETROV’S FLU; Dir. Kirill Serebrennikov (Russia)
RED ROCKET; Dir. Sean Baker (USA)
THE RESTLESS; Dir. Joachim Lafosse (Belgium)
THE STORY OF MY WIFE; Dir. Ildikó Enyedi (Hungary)
THREE FLOORS; Dir. Nanni Moretti (Italy)
TITANE; Dir. Julia Ducournau (France)
THE WORST PERSON IN THE WORLD; Dir. Joachim Trier (Norway)
FLAG DAY; Dir. Sean Penn (USA)
Un Certain Regard
AFTER YANG; Dir. Kogonada (USA)
BLUE BAYOU; Dir. Justin Chon (USA)
BONNE MERE; Dir. Hafsia Herzi (France)
COMMITMENT HASAN; Dir. Hasan Semih (Turkey)
FREDA; Gessica Généus (Haiti)
HOUSE ARREST; Dir. Alexey German Jr. (Russia)
THE INNOCENTS; Dir. Eskil Vogt (Norway)
LAMB; Dir. Valdimar Jóhansson (Iceland)
MONEYBOYS; Dir. B.C Yi (Austria)
NOCHE DE FUEGO; Dir. Tatiana Huezo (Mexico)
UN MONDE; Dir. Laura Wandel (Belgium)
WOMEN DO CRY; Dir. Mina Mileva and Vesela Kazakova (Bulgaria)
LA CIVIL; Dir. Teodora Ana Mihai (Romania, Belgium)
UNCLENCHING THE FISTS; Dir. Kira Kovalenko (Russia)
LET THEIR BE MORNING; Dir. Eran Kolirin (Israel)
REHANA MARYAM NOOR; Dir. Abdullah Mohammad Saad (Bangladesh)
Cannes Premiere
EVOLUTION; Dir. Kornel Mundruczo (Hungary)
COW; Dir. Andrea Arnold (UK)
DECEPTION; Dir. Arnaud Desplechin (France)
HOLD ME TIGHT; Dir. Mathieu Amalric (France)
IN FRONT OF YOUR FACE; Dir. Hong Sang-soo (Korea)
LOVE SONGS FOR TOUGH GUYS; Dir. Samuel Benchetrit (France)
MOTHERING SUNDAY; Dir. Eva Husson (France)
VAL; Dir. Ting Poo and Leo Scott (USA)
Out of Competition
ALINE, THE VOICE OF LOV; Dir. Valerie Lemercier (France)
BABI YAR. CONTEXT; Dir. Sergei Loznitsa (Ukraine)
BAC NORD; Dir. Cédric Jiminez (France)
EMERGENCY DECLARATION; Dir. Han Jae-Rim (Korea)
IN HIS LIFETIME; Dir. Emmanuelle Bercot (France)
STILLWATER; Dir. Tom McCarthy (USA)
THE VELVET UNDERGROUND; Dir. Todd Haynes (USA)
Special Screenings
BLACK NOTEBOOKS; Dir. Shlomi Elkabetz (Israel)
H6; Dir. Yé Yé (France)
JANE BY CHARLOTTE; Dir. Charlotte Gainsbourg (France)
JFK: THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS; Dir. Oliver Stone (USA)
MARINER AND THE MOUNTAINS; Dir. Karim Aïnouz (Brazil)
BABY YAR. CONTEXT; Dir. Sergei Loznitsa (Ukraine)
THE YEAR OF THE EVERLASTING STORM; Dir. Jafar Panahi (Israel), Anthony Chen (Singapore), Malik Vitthal (USA), Laura Poitras (USA), Dominga Sotomayor (Chile), David Lowery (USA), Apichatpong Weersethakul (Thailand)
Midnight Screenings
BLOODY ORANGES; Dir. Jean-Christophe Meurisse (France)
