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Journalism of Courage
CANNES, MAY 22: Asian films were the big winners at the Cannes Film Festival as it concluded its twelve-day run at the Palais des Festivals here last night. Film czars from the Far East and Iran won eight of the thirteen prizes, including the Grand Prize which went to Jaing Wen of China for Devils at the Doorstep, story about plight of ordinary villagers during the Japanese occupation.
However the top prize, Palme D’Or, eluded Asia. It went to Dancer in the Dark, a Danish film by Lars von Trier who had come close to winning the prize twice before. Bjork, a diminutive woman who gives a whale of a performance as a factory workers going blind, won the best actress for the same film. Dancer in the Dark is set in small town America where a young immigrant woman is trying to make ends meet. Her salvation is her passion for the all-dancing, all-singing Hollywood musicals. Shot entirely on location in Europe, the film is a strong indictment of the American legal system. Anything that the Americans might find offensive goes down very well in the European film festival circuit.
But it was Asia’s night. Is there a new cultural revolution going on in the Far East? Taiwan’s Edward Yang walked away with the best director award for A One and a Two, about the misfortunes of a middle class family in Taipei. Tony Leung of Hong Kong was declared the best actor for In the Mood for Love, a story of a man and woman trying to track down the infidelities of their respective spouses. The film, which was shot in Thailand, also won the prize for cinematography and editing. Philippines won its first Cannes prize, for best short film, Anino by Raymond Red.
Iran which makes few movies, incredibly took three top prizes. Twenty-year-old Samira Makhmalbaf’s Blackboards scooped up the Jury Prize. This was her second film and was made under difficult conditions in a country that does not give a free hand to its artistes. In a tearful acceptance speech, the director pleaded for democracy in her country. The prize was shared with Swedish director Roy Anderson’s Songs from the Second Floor. The Goden Camera award for the best first film by a director was shared by two Iranians, Hassan Yektapanah for Djomeh and Bahman Ghobadi for The Time for Drunken Horses.
The entire cast of The Wedding, a moving film set amidst poverty and alcoholism in Russia, won a special mention for acting. The Americans didn’t fare well. They took only the best screenplay prize, given to Neil LaBute for Nurse Betty.
As festivals go, this sun-drenched celebration of cinematic culture in south of France went off uneventfully. There was no film that could be labelled truly outstanding or memorable. But there were little gems all over the place. My personal favourite was Sweden’s Faithless directed by Liv Ullman but it was shut out at the awards. Eyebrows were raised when best actress Bjork failed to thank her director. Reportedly there was major friction on the sets between the star and the director during the making of the $15 million musical.
The concluding ceremonies brightened up when one woman turned up topless and another almost bottomless. Nowadays that’s pretty routine. For my money, our Arundhati Roy, a Member of the Cannes Grand Jury, was the best dressed woman in a splendid blue and gold ghaghara. I am astonished how photogenic she is.
Altogether, 1,397 films were reviewed by the official section committee for possible screening at Cannes. On these, 681 were full feature length. In the end 52 different countries found a place at Cannes. India, which makes more films than any other country in the world, was not one of them. Information and Broadcasting Ministry, in an effort to please all sections of a fragile government, submitted five films for consideration from five different regions: Samar (Hindi), Atmlyaswajan (Bengali), Biswaprakah (Oriya), Karunam (Malayalam), and Malli (Tamil). This may have been good politics back home but none of these films found favour with the selection committee.
