Cannes 2024 – Day 11: the hero Rasoulof, the masterclass of George Lucas, the voice of Trintignant
Every day, the hot spot live from the 77th Cannes Film Festival.
Film of the day: Wild fig tree seeds by Mohammad Rasoulof (in competition)
Mohammad Rasoulof therefore left his country, Iran, where he was recently sentenced to five years in prison, flogging and confiscation of his property. And he ended up appearing where the world was waiting for him: at the Grand Théâtre Lumière in Cannes on Friday afternoon for the world premiere of his new film, Wild fig tree seeds. The standing ovation that greeted Rasoulof and his team was obviously more fervent and nourishing than for the screenings of the other films in competition. And applause punctuated the screening, in the scenes where the characters' opposition to the authoritarian Iranian theocratic regime is most directly expressed.
But Wild fig tree seeds is not just a political film – let's say instead that politics and cinema are constantly intertwined. Hot testimony – and filmed clandestinely – on the “woman, life, freedom” movement, the film examines the heartbreak of a family: a father investigating judge at the revolutionary court in Tehran, his wife, and his grown-up daughters who attend on their smartphones and from their windows to the protest movement which shook Iran after the death of Mahsa Amini. Compellingly intertwining moral drama and paranoid thriller, Wild fig tree seeds confirms the importance of Rasoulof on the world cinema scene. The standing ovation should resume tomorrow evening, when the winners are announced.
The voice of the day: Jean-Louis Trintignant in The Most Precious of Goods (in competition)
She emerges from beyond the grave, at the opening of The Most Precious of Goods, the animated film by Michel Hazanavicius adapted from the tale by Jean-Claude Grumberg. The magical voice, unique in the world, of Jean-Louis Trintignant. That of the latest films, Happy Ending Or The Most Beautiful Years of a Life, hoarse and slightly trembling, but always tinged with that hint of irony that makes things more bearable – even this story, that of a Jewish child miraculously saved from the Shoah by a couple of Polish lumberjacks. We will only hear him three times during the film, which is otherwise very quiet (the vocal cast also includes Grégory Gadebois, Dominique Blanc, Denis Podalydès, etc.), mainly “narrated” by the music of Alexandre Desplat , and where the director of The Artist once again explores his taste for silent cinema. However, it is Trintignant who will have the last word: “Silence”.
The star of the day: George Lucas in master class
George Lucas will receive an honorary Palme d'Or this Saturday during the closing ceremony, but he was already the star of the day on Friday in Cannes. In a crowded and white-hot Debussy room, the creator of the Star Wars saga notably remembered his debut on the Croisette, in 1971 for his first film, THX1138in the presence of his co-writer Walter Murch, who came to attend the event.
“Warner Bros. didn't want to pay for the trip. They said that Fortnight is just for beginning directors, they didn't care. Walter and I still decided to go there. There was crazy rain and we realized that it was really a small parallel selection with few resources. We sneaked into the screening, we didn't even have tickets. And we missed the press conference. I didn't know there was one!”
The first part of the master class, where Lucas looked back on his beginnings, was by far the most interesting. He thus recounted how Coppola told him to stop SF after the failure of THX and take up comedy. He will realize American Graffiti, with 140 million dollars in revenue and 5 Oscar nominations to boot. Then the discussion turned to Star Wars, with always the same hackneyed questions (will the trilogy ever come out in the original version?), to which he nevertheless answered without complaining, assuming his position as an all-powerful author listening neither to the studios nor to the temple guards.
“I have always remained independent because I am stubborn and I don't want to be told how I should make my films. I hate test screenings, you shouldn't ask the audience what they want, they don't know. This is what Hollywood does today, asking spectators what they want to see…”
George Lucas: “Where I grew up there were only two cinemas, one for B movies and one for Hollywood films. I had to go all the way to San Francisco to see avant-garde films, That’s what made me want to direct.” #cannes2024 pic.twitter.com/uyW9dEDDJP
— Premierefr (@PremiereFR) May 24, 2024
Three questions to Zhang Ziyi (She's Got No Name by Peter Chan, Out of competition)
In She's got No Name by Hong Kong director Peter Chan, the 45-year-old Chinese actress is a superstar in her country, made famous by her roles in Tiger and Dragon, The secret of flying daggers or 2046, plays a woman accused of killing her abusive husband in the 1940s. An itinerary “based on a true story” which merges with the upheavals of history (Second World War, invasion of Japan…) The opportunity perhaps to take the pulse of the situation of women in China. Zhang Ziyi, seated in a sofa on one of the many terraces of the Palace, receives in the presence of an army of men and women responsible for keeping watch. So we beat around the bush without really succeeding in breaking the ice.
How does the journey of this battered woman say anything about the situation of women in China?
Zhang Ziyi: This woman remained passive all her life, submissive to her sailor, accepting humiliation. The day she decided it was no longer bearable and to take control of her life, she completely changed her attitude. And this turnaround was extremely violent. She was a survivor until now, she simply became alive.
Could we imagine telling this same story but in today's China?
(She takes time before responding) It is stronger to place this drama in the historical context of the time. China was then under attack from the Japanese Imperial Army. The world was everywhere in fire and blood. Chinese society lived in a climate of tension. This woman's fight took place in a very specific moment.
Zhan-Zhou, this woman, lived in a mental and physical prison. How did you manage to express his emotions?
The game is based on a sometimes contradictory balance. What you can read on a face does not necessarily reflect what is happening inside the individual you are playing. This is the mystery of the incarnation. For this role, I felt that everything would be a matter of gaze. The truth of the feelings had to be read deep in my eyes.
Video of the day: Milo Machado-Graner
One year ago, Anatomy of a fall was crowned Palme d'Or at Cannes, where Milo Machado-Graner was visiting to Spectators! by Arnaud Desplechin. The opportunity to return with him to the crazy adventure of Justine Triet's film.
Song of the day: “Globe Trotter Lover” by Ilie Năstase in Nasty (Special session)
In a special session, the Cannes Film Festival opened its doors to the tennis legend: Ilie Năstase, a sort of George Best of the yellow ball. A great champion, a good face and a rock'n'roll attitude, the Romanian, the first number 1 in the history of the ATP rankings, took tennis out of its staid sphere to make it a popular sport at the start of the seventies. The documentary to its glory, Nasty, More Than Just Tennis, by a trio of Romanian directors, retraces this explosive itinerary. Towards the end, an archive from 1987 shows the recently retired champion trying his hand at a career as a crooner. And it’s in France that it’s happening. Result, Julio Iglesias all with sliced backs. Judge instead.
Today in Cannes
Well, that's it: it's the big day, that of the Palme d'Or – and the rest of the prize list, of course. Greta Gerwig's jury has seen it all, and the day is dedicated to projos covering the entire competition for festival-goers who may have missed something. For the ceremony, meet earlier than planned, at 6:45 p.m. (the Coupe de France final requires between PSG and OL, Thierry Frémaux's team). We will also see George Lucas being awarded an honorary Palme d'Or.
Apart from these catch-ups, we should certainly not skip Mohammad Rasoulof's press conference for his film Seeds of the sacred fig treethis morning at 10:15 a.m.
