Julia Ducournau, so I made history

Cannes 2021 will remain in the annals of the festival: all in masks with the negative result of the Covid test to be shown at the entrance, an unprecedented gaffe by jury president Spike Lee to unveil the Palme d'Or, the historic victory of a woman, the French Julia Ducournau for the second time ever (the other was Jane Campion and also halfway with Chen Kaige) and after 28 years.

But who is this director who made history and who at the official dinner on the beach of the Majestic on Saturday evening received the compliments of all the colleagues in line as for a papal audience?

She is young, 37 years old, from Paris, a Valkyrie who reveres Cronenberg, a Hitchcock and horror enthusiast and only two feature films to her credit. Discovered by the Semaine della Critique for the cannibal tale Raw - A crude truth in 2016, Julia Ducournau signed with Titane the portrait of a mutant warrior, Alexia / Adrien played by Agathe Rousselle, magnetic revelation of a disturbing and divisive film (the criticism loved or hated with no middle ground), banned to 16 in France and that - despite the thriller / horror / violence excess of the story of a * serial killer who makes love with a car and masks his sexual identity looking for the lost father (Vincent Lindon) - launched the theme of gender and fluidity like a bomb.

"We are beyond the concepts of gender, it is in love that we feel who we are without determinism", he said last night after receiving the Palme d'Or on stage, he warmly thanked the jury for "recognizing the greedy need. and visceral that we have of a more fluid and inclusive world, for asking for greater diversity in our experiences in cinema and in our lives and thanks also to the jury for letting monsters in. Perfection is a dead end and monstrosity, which it frightens some and it crosses my work, it is a weapon and a force to push back the walls of normality that enclose and separate us ". A guy like this leaves his mark because guided by an undoubted talent, he carries a burning energy, a powerful and radical charge that does not go unnoticed,at least not by a young, feminine and contemporary part of the jury. It is no coincidence that at the dinner on Saturday next to Ducournau, in addition to her actress Agathe Rousselle, there were jurors Melanie Laurent and Jessica Hausner, her main supporters. The Palme d'Or in Cannes, historic for women who are definitely absent from one of the most important places in cinema, is also a sign of openness to a more inclusive world, and brings to the fore heroines who are uncommon protagonists or at least who do not correspond to that that has been expected of them so far.historical for women who are definitely absent from one of the most important places in cinema, it is also a sign of openness to a more inclusive world, and brings to the fore heroines who are uncommon protagonists or at least who do not correspond to what has been expected of them so far .historical for women who are definitely absent from one of the most important places in cinema, it is also a sign of openness to a more inclusive world, and brings to the fore heroines who are uncommon protagonists or at least who do not correspond to what has been expected of them so far .

And then there is Spike Lee: the president of the jury turned gaffeur for a night under the eyes of the whole world. The director has never recovered: at dinner he walked around in a downcast manner, like a beaten dog, trying to greet as many people as possible. From a distance, festival delegate Thierry Fremaux was trying to keep calm in a chaotic and shocking festival finale. "It was hard, complicated, but we did it," he told ANSA, thanking the press tried by the situation. The test of a pandemic festival, because in fact we still are, was on a par with a laboratory test: let's see what happens if thousands of people wander around the same spaces. Little is known about the number of infections, apart from the low figures officially provided, the danger of gatherings remains,full rooms with zero spacing. On the other hand, the ecological push was very strong: no plastic, no paper, all eco-friendly. Taking coffee in biodegradable glasses and having no visible baskets, there are also those who have thought about chewing them. At the beginning of September the Venice Film Festival arrives, another world festival appointment: pending the selection that will be unveiled on July 26 and the rumors that are already circulating about the films, the health issue remains important even with practical consequences. Here in Cannes there have been important defections for Covid, starting with Lea Seydoux, and the arrival of the artists cannot be taken for granted due to the difficulties of getting around. After all, the Golden Lion went to Nomadland last year via zoom, so the previous one already exists.On the other hand, the ecological push was very strong: no plastic, no paper, all eco-friendly. Taking coffee in biodegradable glasses and having no visible baskets, there are also those who have thought about chewing them. At the beginning of September the Venice Film Festival arrives, another world festival appointment: pending the selection that will be unveiled on July 26 and the rumors that are already circulating about the films, the health issue remains important even with practical consequences. Here in Cannes there have been important defections for Covid, starting with Lea Seydoux, and the arrival of the artists cannot be taken for granted due to the difficulties of getting around. After all, the Golden Lion went to Nomadland last year via zoom, so the previous one already exists.On the other hand, the ecological push was very strong: no plastic, no paper, all eco-friendly. Taking coffee in biodegradable glasses and having no visible baskets, there are also those who have thought about chewing them. At the beginning of September the Venice Film Festival arrives, another world festival appointment: pending the selection that will be unveiled on July 26 and the rumors that are already circulating about the films, the health issue remains important even with practical consequences. Here in Cannes there have been important defections for Covid, starting with Lea Seydoux, and the arrival of the artists cannot be taken for granted due to the difficulties of getting around. After all, the Golden Lion went to Nomadland last year via zoom, so the previous one already exists.Taking coffee in biodegradable glasses and having no visible baskets, there are also those who have thought about chewing them. At the beginning of September the Venice Film Festival arrives, another world festival appointment: pending the selection that will be unveiled on July 26 and the rumors that are already circulating about the films, the health issue remains important even with practical consequences. Here in Cannes there have been important defections for Covid, starting with Lea Seydoux, and the arrival of the artists cannot be taken for granted due to the difficulties of getting around. After all, the Golden Lion went to Nomadland last year via zoom, so the previous one already exists.Taking coffee in biodegradable glasses and having no visible baskets, there are also those who have thought about chewing them. At the beginning of September the Venice Film Festival arrives, another world festival appointment: pending the selection that will be unveiled on July 26 and the rumors that are already circulating about the films, the health issue remains important even with practical consequences. Here in Cannes there have been important defections for Covid, starting with Lea Seydoux, and the arrival of the artists cannot be taken for granted due to the difficulties of getting around. After all, the Golden Lion went to Nomadland last year via zoom, so the previous one already exists.pending the selection that will be unveiled on July 26 and the rumors that are already circulating about the films, the health issue remains important even with practical consequences. Here in Cannes there have been important defections for Covid, starting with Lea Seydoux, and the arrival of the artists cannot be taken for granted due to the difficulties of getting around. After all, the Golden Lion went to Nomadland last year via zoom, so the previous one already exists.pending the selection that will be unveiled on July 26 and the rumors that are already circulating about the films, the health issue remains important even with practical consequences. Here in Cannes there have been important defections for Covid, starting with Lea Seydoux, and the arrival of the artists cannot be taken for granted due to the difficulties of getting around. After all, the Golden Lion went to Nomadland last year via zoom, so the previous one already exists.gold went last year via zoom to Nomadland, so the precedent already exists.gold went last year via zoom to Nomadland, so the precedent already exists.

What will be seen in Cannes in Italy? Very. Where, how, when? Who can tell? The release dates these days are very uncertain. The Palme d'Or Titane will be seen with I Wonder, the same distribution has the rights to Nitram, the beautiful film directed by Justin Kurzman and starring Caleb Landry Jones, awarded for best actor and Annette, opening film of the festival, musical work with Adam Driver and Marion Cotillard, who won the award for best direction by Leos Carax. Lucky Red Ha A Hero by Asghar Farhadi (Grand Prix), Flag Day by Sean Penn, Where is Anna Frank? by Ari Folman, Aline by Valérie Lemercier, Mothering Sunday by Eva Husson. Academy Two has Catherine Corsini's La Fracture, Lingui, Mahamat-Saleh Haroun's The Sacred Bonds, François Ozon's Tout S'est bien passé and Bruno Dumont's France. 01 Three floors by Nanni Moretti,to name just a few titles.