This year the Cannes Film Festival winners were announced tonight, Saturday…making it easier for everyone to travel back to their home countries for an early start on Monday! In the past the winners were always announced on Sunday night…meaning some had already left the Festival, or that they had to lounge next to the beautiful Hotel du Cap swimming pool for just a little longer…waiting in hope.
And the winners are…
Palme d’Or – WINTER SLEEP, Directed by Nuri Bilge CEYLAN
Grand Prix – LE MERAVIGLIE (THE WONDERS), Directed by Alice ROHRWACHER
Award for Best Director – Bennett MILLER for FOXCATCHER
Award for Best Screenplay – Andrey ZVYAGINTSEV, Oleg NEGIN for LEVIATHAN
Award for Best Actress – Julianne MOORE in MAPS TO THE STARS Directed by David CRONENBERG
Award for Best Actor – Timothy SPALL in MR. TURNER Directed by Mike LEIGH
Jury Prize – MOMMY Directed by Xavier DOLAN
ADIEU AU LANGAGE (GOODBYE TO LANGUAGE) Directed by Jean-Luc GODARD
I could not be happier for Bennett Miller and Julianne Moore. Without a doubt, they were the most deserved for those awards. Bennett’s ‘Foxcatcher’ is just brilliant, and having sat through the press conference with the actors, it was obvious how much input Bennett had. He lived and breathed this film.
And Julianne Moore. She was incredible in ‘Maps to the Stars’. She always chooses roles that are challenging and that reveal more of her than most actresses would be willing to reveal…but this one pushes even Julianne further over the edge. She is surely one of the bravest and most versatile actresses of our time.
But it was for Timothy Spall that I found myself quietly sobbing with joy for him when he spoke to us after receiving his award. He was so visibly moved, so clearly the guy who is used to always coming second…or even last. Spall won Best Actor for his portrayal of the eccentric British painter JMW Turner (1775-1851) in ‘Mr Turner’, a role for which he learnt to paint with his left hand.
He walked into our press room afterwards and said “I am so proud, so touched, so deeply touched by this award. I’m a little overwhelmed,” he admitted.
He said when he received the award he got “very emotional. So sorry. There’s no fool like an old fool,” he said, wiping away tears. “I’ve got used to not expecting it. I’ve spent most of my career playing support roles.”
He said he was thrilled to have been the lead in this, and with a director that he has so much respect for – Mike Leigh. He stressed the movie was collaborative and the award was for all the team.
Spall said that he would be celebrating with a “paracetemol, biscuit and champagne.” He said that right now he feels like a “bewildered 16-year-old girl or boy, so astounded by this award.”
And so we come to the end of another fantastic Cannes Film Festival. We can’t wait for the next!