It is that time of year again where all eyes of the cinematic world turn their attention to Cannes, France, host of the prestigious Cannes Film Festival. Located in the French Rivera, this small French town has become a mecca for cinephile and cinematic auteurs as they screen their films on the famous La Croisette over the course of ten days.
Now entering its 79th edition the festival is entering a new era where its pedigree is more renowned than ever before. Yet this year feels different. Outside of the global political uncertainties, this year’s edition is what many have dubbed “Hollywood-lite” due to a lack of a major studio presence at the festival. Last year Mission Impossible: The Final Reckoning had its world premiere at the Palais des Festivals. The previous one was Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga, and the year before that it was Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny and Elemental. This year, no major Hollywood studio films have been announced to premiere at the festival.
And it is not just Hollywood that is missing, but the US itself. With only two American filmmakers competing In Competition and two in Un Certain Regard, there is a surprisingly lack of American auteurs. And it’s not just Americans who are missing, there is little representation from Latin America, Africa and Oceania in this year’s lineup in all selections. Despite promising Cannes to remain a global stage for cinema, it appears that stage still remains mostly for European and Asian Filmmakers.
Though there is a lack of representation, there are still over 200 films from nearly 150 countries, selected out of over 5,000 films submitted for this year’s editions. With 22 films competing for the prestigious Palme d’Or, jury president Park-Chan Wook will be launching the awards race for the 2027 Award Season. With so many films in competition and outside of competition, here is a list of 15 films you should look out for at this year’s edition of the festival.
All of a Sudden. Directed by Hamaguchi Ryusuke
Hamaguchi Ryusuke returns to the Cannes film festival with his latest feature, All of a Sudden, five years after winning Best Screenplay at the 2021 Cannes Film Festival. All of a Sudden marks Hamaguchi’s French-language debut as it follows a director of a nursing home in the Parisian suburbs attempting to introduce Humanitude to her practice. During this change, she meets a terminally ill Japanese playwright. Led by Virginie Efira and Tao Okamoto, this 3-hour-long drama is hoping to move the Cannes jury to tears as Hamaguchi chases the Palme d’Or.
Club Kid. Directed by Jordan Firstman
American actor, Jordan Firstman (I Love LA, Hacks), makes his directorial debut at Cannes Film Festival in the Un Certain Regard with Club Kid. Written and starring Jordan Firstman, Cara Delevingne, Diego Calva, and Reggie Absolom, it follows a washed-up undergrown party promoter whose life takes an unexpected turn when he is forced to care for a son he never knew he had. Promising to be a crowd-pleaser about reconnection and redemption, keep Club Kid on your radar.
Colony. Directed by Yeon Sang-ho
Train to Busan director Yeon Sang-ho returns to Cannes with another terrifying midnight zombie flick, Colony. Premiering in the midnight section, Colony follows a biotechnology professor attending a biotech conference that goes terribly wrong after a rapidly mutating virus takes over the convention forcing authority to seal the facility, trapping survivors inside. Promising to be a non-stop terrifying thrill ride, Colony is sure to be a hell of a good time.
Coward. Directed by Lukas Dhont
Lukas Dhont returns to Cannes with his latest feature Coward. It follows a group of First World War soldiers using theater to cope with the terrible realities of war. However, as with all of Dhont’s previous films, there is more to it that meets the eye as he dives heat first into the human condition and the complicated reality of relationships. Starring a cast of unknown actors, Coward is planning on moving audiences showing the healing power of the arts.
Fatherland. Directed by Pawel Pawlikowski
Pawel Pawlikowski returns to Cannes with his latest historical drama, Fatherland. In 1949, German writer Thomas Mann and his daughter embark on a road trip across a Germany in ruins. As with all of Pawlikoski’s previous films, narratively they are simple, but thematically they are rich with intrigue and Fatherland seems no different. Starring Sandra Huller and Hanns Zischler, Fatherland explores the reality of returning to a wartorn home that exiled you.
Fjord. Directed by Cristian Mungui
Cristain Mungui, director of the Palme d’Or winning feature, 4 Months, 2 Weeks and 3 Days returns to Cannes with his latest feature Fjord. Starring Sevastian Stan and Renate Reinsve, Mungui prepares to make you deeply uncomfortable yet again as he dives into the complicated world of family dynamics and immigration as a Romanian family living in Norway is subject to an intense investigation.
Her Private Hell. Directed by Nicolas Winding Refn
Nicolas Winding Refn returns to the Cannes Film Festival with his first feature film in 10 years, Her Private Hell. The synopsis has been kept under wraps but what is known is that it stars Sophie Thatcher, Charles Melton, and Havana Rose Liu and it promises to have plenty of glamour, sex and violence in this hypnotic, unhinged thriller.
Hope. Directed by Na Hong-jin
Director Na Hong-jin returns to the Cannes Film Festival with his first feature film in 10 years, Hope. A remote village is confronted with a terrifying unknown that sends the town into survival and chaos. Starring Hwang Jung-min, Zo In-sung, Alicia Vikander, and Michael Fassbender, Na is planning on keeping his audience on his toes as he takes us into the terrifying unknown.
Kokurojo: The Samurai and The Prisoner. Directed by Kurosawa Kiyoshi
Kiyoshi Kurosawa takes a step away from his usual route and decides that he wants to make a period piece with Kokurojo: The Samurai and the Prisoner. Promising to be a blend of drama, history, and mystery, and starring Masahiro Motaki and Masaki Suda, Kurosawa prepares to show another side of his directorial skill as he takes us to 16th Century Feudal Japan.
The Man I Love. Directed by Ira Sachs
If I had a nickel every time Rami Malek played someone battling AIDS, I would have two nickels. Ira Sachs makes his Cannes debut with The Man I Love, a film about an actor battling AIDS in 1980s New York who is hoping to put on one last great show. Starring Rami Malek, Rebecca Hall, and Ebon Moss-Bachrach, Sachs is planning on giving us another insightful look into the mind of an artist.
Minotau. Directed by Andrey Zvyagintsev
Russian filmmaker Andrey Zvyagintsev returns to Cannes with his latest feature, Minotaur. A director of a Russian company prepares to fire his employees but is halted in his tracks after he discovers his wife is having an affair. Alluded to be an allegory for the Russian-Ukraine war, Zvyagintsev presents what is possibly his most ambitious and his most dangerous work to date.
Parallel Tales. Directed by Asghar Farhadi
Iranian director, Asghar Farhadi, filmmaker behind the Academy Award winning film, A Separation, returns to Cannes with his latest feature, Parallel Tales. One part romance, another part thriller, it follows a young man spiraling in obsession as he falls madly in love with an older woman. Starring Isabelle Hupper, Vincent Cassel, Virginie Efira and Pierre Niney, Parallel Tales is taking a look at the dangerous world of love and obsession.
Sheep in the Box. Directed by Hirokazu Kore-eda
Former Palmer d’Or winner, Hirokazu Kore-eda returns to Cannes with his latest feature Sheep in the Box. As with his previous films, he explores human connection through the most tragic of circumstances. With Sheep in the Box’s case, the tragic loss of a child as a couple welcomes a humanoid robot into their home to be their son. Starring Haruka Ayase and Daigo Yamamoto, Sheep in the Box takes a look at grief and the many ways that we explore it.
Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma. Directed by Jane Schoenbrun
Jane Schoenbrun makes their directorial debut at Cannes with their latest feature, Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma. The opening film of the Un Certain Regard selection, this horror flick looks like a love letter to films like Friday the 13th and Queer cinema. Starring Hannah Einbinder and Gillian Anderson, Camp Miasma promises to be a cinephile psychedelic dream.
The Unknown. Directed by Arthur Harari
Arthur Harari, Academy-Award winning screenplay writer of Anatomy of a Fall, returns to Cannes with his latest feature, The Unknown. Co-written by Justine Triet, director of Anatomy of the Fall, be sure to keep this film on your radar as it dives into body horror and dysmorphia as a photographer wakes up in the body of a woman that he was following home. Starring Leo Seydoux and Niels Scheider, The Unknown looks at sex and gender relationships through the most intimate lens.
The Cannes Film Festival runs from May 12th through May 23rd.
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