Cannes 2019 – 5/14-5/15

It’s that time of the year for one of the world’s most prestigious film festivals, and the 72nd edition of the Festival de Cannes is no stranger to excitement as the famous Red Steps is graced with all the glitz and glamor of the biggest international film stars. When I learned of an opportunity to receive guest accreditation as a film student of University College London, I did not hesitate to jump on a plane to Nice and make new discoveries, as well as revisit the much loved classics.

Opening the festival was Jim Jarmusch’s The Dead Don’t Die, featuring an ensemble all-star cast that includes the wonderful Bill Murray alongside actors such as Tilda Swinton, Adam Driver, Chloë Sevigny, and even Selena Gomez – asserting herself as an actress in an atypical genre. Playing a police officer alongside Bill Murray who are running out of options, Adam Driver’s character often repeats the line “this is not going to end well” throughout the movie but the truth is, The Dead Don’t Die is an effective opener to the Festival de Cannes. Aside from some scripting issues, the film delivers everything one would look for in a zombie comedy. My verdict? Hats off to the Murray-Driver pair for their on-screen chemistry and deadpan seriousness!

I ended the day with an invitation for a Cannes Classics screening of Easy Rider, directed by Dennis Hopper and written by himself alongside Peter Fonda and Terry Southern. Although released in 1969, it was a first viewing for me, reminding us that cinema never really gets old.