The Best Actor in the Vase of Meiyu

Chapter 931: General Depression
The annual Cannes Film Festival is drawing to a close, and now only the closing ceremony and awards ceremony remain. However, it is precisely during this period before the awards are announced that it is the most exciting and lively moment——

Everyone is defending their own version of the Palme d'Or.

Literally, everyone.

As the saying goes, there is no first in literature and no second in martial arts. It is often difficult to judge the champion of an artistic work, but everyone has their own favorite in their mind and hopes that their favorite can win the Palme d'Or trophy.

That was undoubtedly the moment of glory.

The jury's selection results have not yet been announced, and the entire Cannes is speculating; but the official program score has been announced and has sparked heated discussion.

This year, a total of twenty works in the main competition unit of the Cannes Film Festival held their world premieres, and ten professional film critics in the official program evaluated them one by one.

"Dogville" ranked first in the program guide and finally got an average score of 3.1 out of a full four points.

Despite the controversy and provocation, Lars von Trier once again sparked heated discussions with his work, which also made "Dogville" the strongest contender for the Palme d'Or.

Who knows, maybe after three years, Lars von Trier will be able to win the Palme d'Or for the second time?
"Far Away", this work from director Ceylan, received a final score of 3.0 in the official program guide and was also well received, winning applause from film critics.

The above two works are the only two films with a score of more than three points at this year's Cannes Film Festival.

Honestly, it's disappointing --

At least that's what the official brochure says.

Of course, the Cannes Film Festival focuses on artistic works, which is a controversial subject. It is difficult to satisfy film critics and the jury, so the official program scoring is generally stricter, and getting a score of more than three points is not an easy thing.

but!

Despite this, in previous years there should have been at least three, four, or even more films that scored three points; this year there were only two, and both barely broke the three-point mark. It can still be seen that the overall weakness of the main competition unit of this year's film festival is unsatisfactory.

Not only the official program, but also the media attending Cannes are the same——

The overall rating was below expectations.

It is precisely because of this that the explosive discussions triggered by "Dogville" and "Elephant" have become the focus that no one in Cannes can miss.

Also, because of this, the official program score of two points does not seem so bad, and "The Shorty" is barely acceptable.

The official program score list, from top to bottom, from high to low:
“Mystic River,” 2.9.

"Barbarian Invasion", 2.7.

"Five o'clock in the afternoon", 2.5.

"Swimming Pool Murder", 2.4.

“Elephant”, 2.1.

Wait, are we sure the rankings are correct? The elephant is ranked seventh?
It ranks seventh among the twenty works, which is not outstanding, but not bad either. At least it is at the top of the middle class, and such performance far exceeds expectations.

A few days ago, when the official program guide of "Elephant" was released, the failing score of 2.1 was shocking, and it also triggered complaints from netizens, who couldn't wait to sentence Anson to death, and gloated that Anson should continue to be a vase and not dream of transforming himself so easily.

But now it seems that the rating of "Elephant" is not too bad.

Everyone was stunned.

So, is “elephant” a good thing or a bad thing?

Moreover, there is no harm without comparison. Compared with the "elephant", the one who is truly disappointing is someone else.

"Mystic River".

This "Mystic River" directed by Clint Eastwood has attracted much attention, with a star-studded cast and a heavyweight lineup. It is undoubtedly the most anticipated film at Cannes this year. However, the response to the film seems to be a bit... lukewarm.

It’s not that bad.

The film received rave reviews and a standing ovation at the Salle Lumiere. It also sparked heated discussion after the premiere. However, the praise did not seem to form a frenzy, and the discussion did not seem to extend further. Everything was just...neither good nor bad.

The official program catalogue scored 2.9, ranking third.

The results are not bad, but that’s all, no less and no more.

When people discuss "Mystic River", praise and recognition still account for the majority; but the problem is that when people discuss all the works in Cannes, they forget that there is such a work if they are not careful enough.

The location is a bit awkward.

Instead of doing this, it would be better to be more straightforward and cause controversy like "Elephant".

"Black and red are also red."

It is precisely because of this that "Dogville" won first place in the official brochure amid controversy. It has become a hot topic, has a good reputation, is the focus and has the limelight. It can be said to be the biggest winner of Cannes this year, and the call for it to win the Palme d'Or is rising steadily.

However, there is such a movie, which landed in Cannes like a hurricane, and turned the whole Cannes upside down. Even "Dogville" and "Elephant" were inferior to it. There was no exception inside and outside, up and down -

"Brown Bunny".

Black and red does not necessarily mean red, because the controversy caused by the movie "The Brown Bunny" has far exceeded expectations and has evolved into a complete disaster.

The film was directed and starred by Vincent-Gallo. It was screened for the full 118 minutes at Cannes without any cuts.

The movie tells the story of a motorcycle racer played by Vincent Gallo who is unable to establish a stable relationship with others because he is obsessed with his ex-girlfriend.

Near the end of the film, there is a close-up shot of the ex-girlfriend character played by Chloe-Sevigny performing a "BJ" on Vincent Gallo, and a close-up action shot follows.

Controversy set off Cannes.

Firstly, "Brown Bunny" itself is not a masterpiece. It is a minimalist work with almost no plot. The infinitely desolate minimalist shots focus on the loneliness and pain of a man after losing his beloved. However, the film is never restrained in rendering emotions, with a kind of self-pity without any illness, and fails to truly achieve the minimalist effect of hearing thunder in silence.

Secondly, the bold shot at the end of the film drops a bombshell.

The latter, snatched away all the topicality of the former, and the film critics started to curse at him -

The heroine Chloë Sevigny agreed to perform on her own initiative, and her agent tried to stop her in every way but failed. After Chloë agreed to perform a scene in the movie for real, her agent terminated the cooperation with her.

Chloë defended herself as "dedicating herself to art" and used Andy Warhol to defend herself and the film; but obviously, her agent disagreed.

At this year's Cannes Film Festival, Chloë first starred in "Dogville" and then in "The Brown Bunny", which immediately pushed her to the forefront.

After the premiere of "The Brown Bunny", there was an overwhelming amount of criticism, with Roger Ebert even swearing, a rare out-of-control move.

Not only did he call it "the worst movie in the history of Cannes", but he also complained that "watching it is worse than watching my colonoscopy", and his words did not hide his disgust for the movie at all.

And, Roger is not alone.

The official Cannes program is out, and "The Brown Bunny" received five one points and five zero points, with an average score of 0.5.

Break the bottom line.

Objectively speaking, critics said that the movie itself was not good; but because the ending was so shocking and quickly dominated all discussion, people began to think that the critics were all hypocrites and that they gave low scores solely because of the shock of the last scene.

Even Vincent Gallo thought so. It was a spectacle that he cursed at film critics and media reporters when he was angry.

(End of this chapter)