Sean Baker’s “Anora,” a Brooklyn odyssey that is both comic and devastating, has been awarded the Palme d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival. The film follows the story of a sex worker who marries the son of an affluent Russian oligarch.
On Saturday, Baker accepted the award while the protagonist of his film, Mikey Madison, was in attendance at the Cannes closing ceremony. Baker, the director of “The Florida Project,” has achieved a new high point with the victory of “Anora.” It is also astonishing that indie distributor Neon has won the Palme d’Or for the fifth consecutive year, following “Parasite,” “Titane,” “Triangle of Sadness,” and last year’s victor, “Anatomy of a Fall.”
Baker, with a chuckle, stated, “This has been my sole objective as a filmmaker for the past three decades, so I am uncertain about my future plans.”
But However, Baker, the first American filmmaker to win the Palme d’Or since Terrence Mallick in 2012 with “The Tree of Life,” promptly responded that his aspiration was to “continue the fight to preserve cinema.” director, who is 53 years old, stated that the world needed to be reminded that “watching a film at home while scrolling through your phone, answering emails, and half-paying attention is just not the way, although some tech companies would like us to believe so.”
Baker stated, “Consequently, I believe that the future of cinema lies in the movie theater, where it all began.”
Though “Anora” was undoubtedly the most highly regarded film of the festival, its victory was somewhat unexpected. Many anticipated that either the Iranian film “The Seed of the Sacred Fig” or the delicate Indian drama “All We Imagine As Light” would emerge victorious. Finally, both of those films were awarded rewards.
Yet, it was not the sole abruptness of the closing ceremony. When George Lucas was awarded an honorific Palme d’Or, Francis Ford Coppola, his former friend and occasional collaborator, presented it to him, thereby reuniting two of the most influential figures in American filmmaking over the past fifty years.
The Grand Prix, Cannes’ second-highest accolade, was awarded to “All We Imagine As Light,” a film that explores the concept of sisterhood in contemporary Mumbai. . Payal Kapadia’s second feature was the first Indian film to compete at Cannes in three decades.
The jury bestowed a special prize upon Mohammad Rasoulof’s “The Seed of the Sacred Fig,” a drama that was produced clandestinely in Iran.
The best screenplay award was given to Coralie Fargeat’s body horror film “The Substance,” which features Demi Moore as a Hollywood actress who resorts to gory measures to preserve her vitality.
“I am firmly convinced that films have the power to transform the world, and I am optimistic that this film will serve as a small step in the construction of new foundations,” stated Fargeat.
A group of actors, including Karla Sofía Gascón, Zoe Saldaña, Selena Gomez, and Adriana Paz, were awarded the Best Actress award for Jacques Audiard’s “Emilia Perez,” a Spanish-language musical that follows the transformation of a Mexican drug kingpin into a woman. While some speculated that Moore might win the award, it was ultimately given to the ensemble. . Gascón is the first transgender actor to receive a significant honor at Cannes, and he accepted the award.
In addition to the jury reward, “Emilia Perez” was awarded two prizes at Cannes, a festival where awards are typically distributed evenly.
Jesse Plemons wins best actor for Yorgos Lanthimos’ “Kinds of Kindness.”
Miguel Gomes, a Portuguese director, was awarded the title of best director for his film “Grand Tour,” which depicts a man’s escape from Rangoon with his fiancée in 1917.
Gomes shrugged. “Occasionally, I strike it fortunate.”
Halfdan Ullmann Tøndel was awarded the Camera d’Or, the best first feature award in all of Cannes’ official selections, for “Armand,” which features Renate Reinsve, the heroine of “The Worst Person in the World.” Tøndel is the grandson of Norwegian actor Liv Ullman and Swedish filmmaker Ingmar Bergman.
Lucas was to receive an honorary Palme d’Or during the abbreviated awards ceremony. Meryl Streep and the Japanese anime factory Studio Ghibli were both honored by Cannes during the festival.