The Cannes Film Festival

Cannes Continues to Surprise

During the first few days of its 2009 edition, the Cannes Film Festival has offered the kind of cinematic diversity that has long established its top-notch reputation. On Sunday, the first French film to screen in competition this year was The Prophet, directed by Jacques Audiard, son of the late, great French screenwriter Michel Audiard. Rumored as a top contender for the Palme d’Or, The Prophet tells the story of Malik, a young North African boy (played by Tahar Rahim) who, in prison for a minor offense, falls in with a gang of Corsican inmates and is inevitably trapped in a downward spiral of brutality.

Sunday also marked the premiere of Agora, by Chilean director Alejandro Amenabar, who won the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film in 2004 for The Sea Inside. A historical epic set in the Roman-ruled Egypt of the 4th century, Agora stars English actress Rachel Weisz-2005 Oscar winner for her supporting role in The Constant Gardener-as a philosopher and atheist during the rise of Christianity.

Another packed premier on Sunday was Taking Woodstock, the new film by Ang Lee, based on a book by Elliot Tiber and Tom Monte about the famed 1969 three-day music festival. The most buzz-mostly bad-was about Antichrist the new psychological thriller from Danish director Lars Von Trier starring Willem Dafoe and Charlotte Gainsbourg as a couple grieving after the death of their only child. On its opening night the film elicited reactions ranging from laughter and loud boos to gasps of disbelief.

For more information on everything Cannes go to the website.