Cannes 2025’s First Big Breakout |
Every year, the Cannes Film Festival lineup changes—but the drama stays the same.
I’m Rebecca Ford, and although I’m not currently in the South of France, I am hearing about the buzz from the festival all the way over here in Los Angeles. As is almost always the case, scandal and controversy have a way of popping up at Cannes every year. This time around, there’s been much chatter about a red-carpet rule that prohibits nudity and voluminous dresses. Heidi Klum may have broken the latter on opening night with her billowy floral Elie Saab gown, while juror Halle Berry told the press that she actually had to switch out her opening-night look so she wouldn’t be in violation of the new rules.
Opening night also brought Robert De Niro to the stage to receive his honorary Palme d’Or, and the famously vocal actor wasn’t shy about his thoughts on Donald Trump. “America’s philistine president has had himself appointed head of one of America’s premier cultural institutions,” he said to the crowd. “He has cut funding and support to the arts, humanities, and education. And now he has announced a 100% tariff on films produced outside the US…. You can’t put a price on creativity.”
And all of that happened on the very first day! I can’t wait to see what unfolds next.
But what about the movies? It seems that at least one film has already popped: Sound of Falling, from German filmmaker Mascha Schilinski. The movie, which centers on generations of girls who have lived on the same farm in northern Germany, earned rave reviews after it premiered on Wednesday. It’s still looking for a US distributor, but I have a feeling that’s going to change very quickly. Every year, there is at least one international film that comes in under the radar and has a rapturous debut (see: Anatomy of a Fall), and more often than not these days those films are picked up by a distributor that is able to navigate an awards campaign. There’s still plenty of festival left, but we’re off to a strong start with Sound of Falling.
Many of the festival’s most anticipated films will play in the coming days, including Kristen Stewart’s directorial debut and Ari Aster’s Eddington on Friday; and Lynne Ramsay’s Die My Love, Richard Linklater’s Nouvelle Vague, and Wes Anderson’s The Phoenician Scheme this weekend. So there’s a real possibility that by early next week we’ll be talking about some other newly minted awards contenders. Be sure to follow along on Vanity Fair’s live blog all weekend and next week as David Canfield and Richard Lawson update us live from the ground at Cannes. And if you’re as Cannes-obsessed as we are, tune in to Little Gold Men every day next week for our breaking updates from the festival. |
