Cannes Film Festival: "So, do you have the name of the Palme?"

“In summary, it's long, it's boring, it's invigorating, it's trying… and it's the Palme d'or!

“Friday evening, in Nicolas Bedos' “Mascarade”, this tirade of the character interpreted by Charles Berling made the spectators of the Palace laugh a lot.

For the last evening before the closing of the Cannes Film Festival, this Saturday evening, the selectors had chosen this exuberant comedy, in which Isabelle Adjani plays a fallen diva who is bored in her sumptuous villa on the Côte d'Azur.

This Saturday morning, we say to ourselves that if Berling had summed up the unstoppable assets to win the Palme d'Or, the work of journalists would be greatly facilitated.

Because, a few hours from the winners of this 75th edition, there is only one challenge left before packing your suitcase: guessing the name of the big winner.

Especially since this time, the closing ceremony does not begin until 8:30 p.m., compared to 7:30 p.m. in previous years.

A consequence of the passage of the evening from Canal + to France 2 (the public channel will broadcast the award ceremony after its news), which does not suit the daily press, constrained by its closing times... For this, the Canal years, it was still practical.

More than ever, therefore, the great sport of this final day is to hunt for clues.

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The jury, chaired by Vincent Lindon, has been meeting since this morning in a villa in the heights of Cannes kept secret and placed under police protection.

Legend has it that jurors even have their cell phones confiscated upon arrival.

Rumors on the Croisette

But here it is: there will be no white smoke at the end of the conclave and, as soon as the deliberations are over, the Festival bosses, Thierry Frémaux and Pierre Lescure, who are attending the discussions, will warn the teams of the films selected in official competition.

To politely shower their hopes or, on the contrary, to ask them to come back, they received their prize, without telling them if it was the Palme d'Or or one of the six other awards.

“My messages could not be more laconic:

”, said Frémaux in his book “Official Selection”, published in 2017.

From then on, journalists call the protagonists of the films (and their relatives) to try to pull the worms out of their noses.

Photographers stashed at Nice airport even throw out a few tips: if such a director was seen when he got off the plane, it's because his feature film has a price, if such an actress landed this Saturday, it smells good. Interpretation Prize.

Information and rumors then ignite the Croisette and the question we hear on a loop between the ice cream parlors, the mounted police and the postcard stands is “So, do you have the name of La Palme?

".

But until 8:30 p.m., beware of the smoke: some, to talk about a film, swear that they will win the pompom when they leave empty-handed.

The Palme du bluff will be awarded tonight, along with the Palme d'or.