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Cannes Film Festival 2018

May 10, 2018
The Harvard Crimson sends two writers—Mila Gauvin II '19 and Caroline A. Tsai '20—to France to cover the 71st annual Cannes Film Festival.

By Mila Gauvin II and Caroline A. Tsai

'Cold War' still
May 19, 2018
From Cannes: ‘Zimna wojna’ (‘Cold War’) a Bleak Love Story
Without seeming resolute or preachy, Pawlikowski’s “Cold War” is a clarion call for the enduring power of love in a bleak time.
By Mila Gauvin II and Caroline A. Tsai
'Un Couteau dans le Coeur' still
May 19, 2018
From Cannes: ‘Un Couteau dans le Coeur’ (‘Knife + Heart’) Takes Little Death to Fatal Extremes
“Un Couteau dans le Coeur” tries to achieve some semblance of self-awareness, a sly wink at its own garish kitsch in neon lettering. But unlike Anne’s pornography, the film never reaches its—ahem—climax.
By Caroline A. Tsai
'Capharnaum' still
May 19, 2018
From Cannes: ‘Capharnaüm’ Says No to Child Neglect, Yes to Child Acting Prodigies
In “Capharnaüm,” director Nadine Labaki paints a depressing tableau of a vicious cycle that Zain unfortunately gets caught up in, one that starts one node up in Zain's family tree with his parents.
By Mila Gauvin II
'BlacKkKlansman' still
May 19, 2018
From Cannes: 'BlacKkKlansman' a Thriller That Brings Together Past and Present
Spike Lee’s “BlacKkKlansman” is a testament to the director’s ability to weave the politics of the past and present, of identity, race, and religion, in an alternatively comedic, disturbing, and suspenseful thrill ride based on an unbelievably true story.
By Mila Gauvin II
'Shoplifters' still
May 19, 2018
From Cannes: ‘Manbiki Kazoku’ (‘Shoplifters’) A Heartbreaking Look at Family
Japanese filmmaker Hirokazu Kore-eda gently teases out the truth, until the Shibata family reveals the dark secrets that bind them together.
By Caroline A. Tsai
'Euforia' still
May 19, 2018
From Cannes: ‘Euforia’ Misplaces Humor, Undercuts Tragedy
Italian director Valeria Golino turns her film into a bloodless pseudo-comedy that handles its very serious subjects with flippant, misplaced humor.
By Caroline A. Tsai
'Under the Silver Lake' still
May 18, 2018
From Cannes: ‘Under the Silver Lake’ a Psychedelic, Pedantic Story of Los Angeles Folklore
Mitchell’s imagery simmers evocatively, refreshingly trippy—though it all seems to gesture at a statement that he hasn’t clarified, even to himself, like a string of blissed-out, drug-addled musings he scribbled while half-asleep.
By Caroline A. Tsai
'Climax' still
May 18, 2018
From Cannes: Gaspar Noé’s Craze-Inducing Warning Against Drugs Reaches a ‘Climax’
"Climax" is a trippy prism of an arthouse film that succeeds in its attempt to destabilize its audience into the same debauchery as its characters, though at times the actors and director, too, fall into the easy trap of overdoing it.
By Mila Gauvin II
Han Solo still
May 17, 2018
From Cannes: Han Flies ‘Solo’ in New Star Wars Spin-Off
Han Solo is the hero who wants to be the anti-hero, the pilot who wants to fly solo but secretly needs a fleet.
By Caroline A. Tsai
long-day-into-night-still
May 16, 2018
From Cannes: ‘Di Qiu Zui Hou De Ye Wan’ (‘Long Day’s Journey Into Night’) Scintillating In Its Obscurity
Bi Gan makes 3D film into a cinematic experience integral to the film’s second half, in a way that amplifies the first half’s slow-moving narrative—both in direction and in plot—a beautiful tale of a man in search of the ghost of his past.
By Mila Gauvin II
'Little Tickles' still
May 16, 2018
From Cannes: ‘Les Chatouilles’ (‘Little Tickles’) A Carefully Choreographed, Poignant Account of Abuse
Simply by the act of telling her therapist about her childhood, Odette becomes the author of her own story in "Les Chatouilles."
By Caroline A. Tsai
'Lazzaro Felice' still
May 16, 2018
From Cannes: ‘Lazzaro Felice’ (‘Happy as Lazzaro’): A Sad, Mythological Tale
Rohrwacher’s fifth feature film is a testament to her directorial talent, her visually stunning work as mythical as the tale it depicts.
By Mila Gauvin II
'GIrl' still
May 16, 2018
From Cannes: ‘Girl’ En Pointe, Slightly Less On Point
While “Girl” begins as a stunning body of work, it stumbles somewhere in its empathy, and doesn’t quite recover to stick the landing.
By Caroline A. Tsai
Le Grand Bain still
May 16, 2018
From Cannes: ‘Le Grand Bain’ (‘Sink or Swim’) Makes A Big, Chlorinated Splash
Part synchronized swimming training practice, part group therapy session, the group of aging, out of shape, and hopelessly dedicated men make an unexpectedly supportive and uproarious—if not unoriginal—party.
By Mila Gauvin II
'Fahrenheit 451' Still
May 14, 2018
From Cannes: Cooler Than Ice, ‘Fahrenheit 451’ Butchers Bradbury
During a time when the freedom of speech and the importance of facts are being threatened, it’s a shame that Bahrani delivers a watered-down version of a complex novel that demands so much more.
By Mila Gauvin II and Caroline A. Tsai
Cannes Par Jour: Day 2 picture
May 16, 2018
Cannes Par Jour: Day 2
Oh, what’s that? A yellow press badge? I don’t… I’m afraid I don’t see anything… Hmm… Did you hear something, Jacques? Mm… I don’t think so? Maybe the light Riviera breeze? Or perhaps a Chanel No. 5-scented fart slipped out of Dame Helen Mirren over there? Hmm.
By Caroline A. Tsai
'Filles de Soleil' Still
May 13, 2018
From Cannes: ‘Les Filles Du Soleil’ (‘Girls of the Sun’) A Heart-Rending Picture of Female Resistance and Resilience
At its heart, “Les Filles du Soleil” is a stunning, visceral recognition of the power of female leadership.
By Mila Gauvin II and Caroline A. Tsai
'Gueule d'Ange' Still
May 13, 2018
From Cannes: ‘Gueule d’Ange’ (‘Angel Face’) Touchingly Depicts Girlhood, Destructive Motherhood
Marlene treats Elli less like her daughter and more like an adult friend, or more accurately, like an extension of herself—binge-drinking in front of her, making her over in garish neon lipstick and glittery eye shadow. It’s fun playing dress-up, until it isn’t.
By Caroline A. Tsai
'Gräns' Still
May 13, 2018
From Cannes: ‘Gräns’ (‘Border’) an Eccentric Fable on Fitting In
The end result is, like the film’s protagonist, a strange hybrid of several genres that is one part Swedish noir, one part romance, one part moralistic fable for a film that plays jump rope with the border of what viewers can bear to see on screen.
By Caroline A. Tsai
'Le Livre d'Image' Still
May 13, 2018
From Cannes: ‘The Image Book’ (‘Le Livre D’Image’) Too Psychedelic, Not Enough Substance
The result is a film whose statement gets lost in the mix, expressed in too fragmented a way to pack an effective punch.
By Mila Gauvin II
'Plaire, Aimer, et Courir Vite' ('Sorry Angel') Still
May 12, 2018
From Cannes: ‘Plaire, Aimer, et Courir Vite’ ('Sorry Angel’) Sweet, Yet Self-Indulgent
It’s clear that "Sorry Angel" indulges in its own intellectual impulses, sometimes almost to the point of pretension.
By Caroline A. Tsai
Ash still
May 12, 2018
From Cannes: 'Jiang Hu Er Nv' (‘Ash Is Purest White’) A Transcendent, Kaleidoscopic Love Story
“How much love can be repeated? How many people are worth waiting for?” croons an amateur singer, words that echo throughout Jia Zhangke’s “Ash Is the Purest White.” As it turns out, not that many—if any at all—at least for Qiao.
By Mila Gauvin II
Sextape still
May 12, 2018
From Cannes: ‘Sextape’ Would Have Been Better Off As an Actual Sex Tape
By shirking away the potentially moralizing and prescriptive tone the movie could have taken, Desrosières goes too far and instead turns sexual assault into the punchline of a tasteless joke of a movie.
By Mila Gauvin II
Leto still
May 11, 2018
From Cannes: ‘Leto,’ a ‘Summer’ That Never Ends
In part over-stylized mini-rock musical, and in others, cinematic manifestation of the music at the heart of the movie, “Summer” toes the line between genuine and overambitious.
By Mila Gauvin II
'Wildlife'
May 11, 2018
From Cannes: ‘Wildlife’ Brilliantly Unveils Animosity Behind Suburbia
"Wildlife" is an intimate look at what happens when dreams fail and conventions collapse.
By Caroline A. Tsai
Cannes Par Jour Day 1 picture
May 15, 2018
Cannes Par Jour: Day 1
After Caroline’s and my harrowing arrival to Cannes, we told ourselves, “Things can only go up from here!” Guess what? We were wrong.
By Mila Gauvin II
Birds of Passage still
May 11, 2018
From Cannes: ‘Pájaros de Verano’ (‘Birds of Passage’) Soar Over the Deserts of Columbia
In “Birds of Passage,” Guerra and Gallego create a Shakespearean play set in ’70s, indigenous Columbia with expert pacing, understated but effective acting, and an eye for exquisite cinematography.
By Mila Gauvin II
'Donbass' photo
May 10, 2018
From Cannes: Democracy Dies in ‘Donbass’
Loznitsa’s vignettes, exaggerated as they are, appropriate the farce of political decline, proving the power of satire to weaponize corruption in its own, brutal way.
By Mila Gauvin II and Caroline A. Tsai
'Everybody Knows' still
May 11, 2018
From Cannes: ‘Todos Lo Saben’ (‘Everybody Knows’) Drags Melodrama to Center Stage
Though plot twists are surprising in their particular minutiae, “everybody knows” roughly how the film will play out.
By Caroline A. Tsai
Cannes Par Jour: Day 0 Photo
May 11, 2018
Cannes Par Jour: Day 0
Cannes reporter Caroline A. Tsai wants to file a complaint with the universe: Excuse me, god? I was told there would be Chalamet.
By Caroline A. Tsai
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