THE TREE OF LIFE IS A GOLDEN PALM

Terrence Malick’s The Tree of Life, starring Brad Pitt, was the controversial winner of the 64th Cannes Film Festival’ top prize, the Palme d’Or, on Sunday. Major critics attending the festival either hailed it or scorned it; few gave it merely so-so reviews. Malick, who shuns the spotlight himself and declined to participate in a news conference with the film’s stars, producers and writer, was not on hand to receive the coveted award, which was presented by Jane Fonda. (Producer Bill Pohlad accepted it.) Neither was Danish director Lars von Trier, whose film Melancholia won a best actress prize for Kirsten Dunst. However, von Trier did not attend because he had been declared persona non grata by the festival for engaging in an absurd riff at a news conference in which he joked that he was a Nazi. Another Danish director, Nicolas Winding Refn, was present to accept the best director award for his action film Drive, starring Ryan Gosling (perhaps the most commercially viable film honored by the jury, which was headed by Robert De Niro). The best actor award went to France’s Jean Dujardin, who hardly speaks a word as a silent film star in Michel Hazanavicius’s The Artist.

THE OFFICIAL LIST OF WINNERS

FEATURE FILMS

Palme d’Or

THE TREE OF LIFE by Terrence MALICK

Grand Prix

BIR ZAMANLAR ANADOLU’DA (Once Upon A Time In Anatolia) by Nuri Bilge CEYLAN

THE KID WITH A BIKE by Jean-Pierre & Luc DARDENNE

Award for Best Director

Nicolas WINDING REFN for DRIVE

Jury Prize

POLISS by MAÏWENN

Award for Best Actor

Jean DUJARDIN in  THE ARTIST by Michel HAZANAVICIUS

Award for Best Actress

Kirsten DUNST in  MELANCHOLIA by Lars von TRIER

Award for Best Screenplay
 

Joseph CEDAR for FOOTNOTE

SHORT FILMS

Palme d’Or
 

CROSS-COUNTRY by Maryna VRODA

Jury Prize

BADPAKJE 46 (Swimsuit 46) by Wannes DESTOOP

CAMERA D’OR

LAS ACACIAS¬† by¬† Pablo GIORGELLI presented during CRITICS’ WEEK

UN CERTAIN REGARD

UN CERTAIN REGARD PRIZE Ex-æquo

ARIRANG by KIM Ki-Duk

HALT AUF FREIER STRECKE (Stopped on Track) by Andreas DRESEN

SPECIAL JURY PRIZE

ELENA by Andrey ZVYAGINTSEV

AWARD FOR BEST DIRECTOR

BÉ OMID É DIDAR (Au revoir) by Mohammad RASOULOF

CINEFONDATION

First Prize Cinéfondation

DER BRIEF (The Letter) by Doroteya Droumeva
dffb, Germany

Second Prize Cinéfondation
DRARI  by Kamal Lazraq
La Fémis, France

Third Prize Cinéfondation
YA-GAN-BI-HANG (Fly by Night) by Son Tae-gyum
Chung-Ang University, South Korea

 

The Jury of the CST has awarded the “PRIX VULCAIN DE L‚ÄôARTISTE-TECHNICIEN” to :
 

José Luis ALCAINE, for his work on lighting to support the storyline in the film, LA PIEL QUE HABITO by Pedro ALMODÓVAR.

Special Distinction: Joe BINI and Paul DAVIES for WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT KEVIN by Lynne RAMSAY.