Director Jim Jarmusch himself also seemed surprised that he received the Golden Lion on Saturday evening, the main prize during the closing ceremony of the 82nd edition of the Venice Film Festival. That was apparent from the spontaneous, comically timed ‘Oh Shit’ with which he started his word of thanks. The American later emphasized in his speech that, according to him, art does not have to address politics directly to be political. “It can generate empathy and make connections. That is the first step towards solutions.”
Jarmusch ‘Tragicomic triptych Father Mother Sister Brother highlights the sometimes uncomfortable dynamics in three families with adult children, with world stars such as Tom Waits and Adam Driver who play father and son. It is an unexpected winner at a festival edition where world politics and especially the war in Gaza inside and outside the movie rooms sometimes attracted more attention than the many management and acting stars who had traveled to Lido.
Jury chairman Alexander Payne had already emphasized at the start of the festival at the start of the festival that he had come to Venice “to talk and judge about Cinema” when he received questions about his personal views about Gaza. With a few exceptions, he and his jury rather intimate films from the main competition than productions that made clear social statements, turned out to be Saturday evening.
In addition to Jarmusch ‘Gouden Leeuw, for example, the choice for the Zilveren Leeuw also surprised for directing, which went to the first solo gap by American Benny Safdie – he previously directed together with his brother. In Safdies Gruizige Sportbiopic The Smashing Machine Plays Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) fighter Mark Kerr. A man with a body like a bull, but the voice and the character of a lamb, which becomes entangled in a painkiller slave after he loses a competition for the first time – a fact that is unimaginable and indigestible for him.
This year there were more remarkable films in the main competition in Venice about middle -aged men who end up in a crisis when they ‘fail’ in their own eyes. For example, one of the highlights in the first week of the Park Chan-Wooks Festival was black comedy No Other Choiceabout the completely excessive, bloody solution that the main character comes up with to get a job again. It was one of the films that was tipped in advance as a possible Golden Lion winner, but left empty-handed.
Grand Jury Prize
The jury of the festival did not stay completely away from the world problem. The Grand Jury Prize or Second prize went to the film that dominated the most conversations during the festival: Kainher Ben Hania’s The Voice of Hind Rajab. At the beginning of 2024, the 5-year-old Palestinian Hind Rajab had hours of contact with care providers of the Palestinian red crescent (PRCS). The girl was in a car in North Gaza that was attacked by the Israeli army-all her family members were killed in the car.
Ben Hania’s Docudrama is built around the real sound recordings made that day and shows how (after) care providers in the PRCS call center hear the (real) voice of Hind and do everything in their power to send an ambulance to her.
The horror that takes place in and around the car does not come into the picture, but the viewer sees how the Kafkaëske procedures that must be followed so that the ambulance staff are not shot at on the spot by the Israeli army, the PRCS care providers float to despair and anger. The feeling of total powerlessness that the care providers drives to madness was clear at the festival to the helplessness that countless attendees currently feel when they take news from Gaza.
Read also
From Frankenstein to Putin or Gaddafi: the ‘samples’ are rampant at Filmfestival Venice
At the premiere, the film received a 23 -minute standing ovation, a record. In any case, the war in Gaza was very present at Lido from the first to the last moments. For example, prior to the Filmmakers festival under the Venice4Palestine flag, “clearly condemn the continuous genocide in Gaza and ethnic purification in Palestine by the Israeli government and army.”
During press conferences, countless filmmakers were presented with questions about the war. After the premiere of his film, for example, Jarmusch was tested about the investor of his producer, Arthouse Streaming Platform Mubi, who has ties with the Israeli army. Halfway through the festival there was a large pro-Palestine demonstration with several thousand demonstrators who walked to the festival site from public transport terminal Lido Santa Maria Elisabetta. And also during the Awardceremony last Saturday evening, direct and indirect statements were made about Gaza.
Acting prices
The acting prizes awarded on Saturday evening surprise less than the other prizes. For example, Italian Toni Servillo received the Volpi Cup for best actor for his role in Paolo Sorrentino’s Amusante La Graziaan eternally doubting Catholic president who is not yet ready to say goodbye to his position, but must retire. The Chinese Xin Zhilei received the Volpi Cup for best actress for her role in The Sun Rises on US Allabout two alienated ex-lovers with a dark secret.
Within the main competition with many strong and intriguing films this year, it was noticeable that the more realistic stories often felt more frightening than the horror films that were shown. For example, expectations were high for a film like Frankensteinbut Guillermo del Toro’s Baroque monster film did not succeed in getting you on the tip of your chair as a viewer. Kathryn Bigelows did that extremely professionally and cleverly put together political thriller A House of Dynamite well.
Bigelow shows in her research -related film what the steps are when a rocket is spotted that goes to the American mainland. And especially how and within what limited time frame, crucial decisions must be made about escalating or de-escalating. Her mosaic film, which follows the same storyline three times from different perspectives, tries very explicitly to stimulate discussion about atomic weapons. The jury couldn’t appeal to that, because A House of Dynamite fell out of the prices. Just like BugoniaThe new film by Yorgos Lanthimos, a quirky variation on the classesatirefms such as The Menu. In Lanthimos’ film, two cousins kidnap a CEO that, according to them, is an alien.
Won prizes Below the CloudsGianfranco Rosi’s new documentary about daily life in Naples, who received the special jury prize, or third prize. The Marcello Mastroianni prize for young acting talent went to Luna Welder Silent FriendThe intriguing new film by Ildikó Enyedi about ‘De Blik’ from, among other things, a gink goboom in the world around her.
There were no Dutch films in the main competition of the festival this year, but Venice also applies as the stage for vr- and immersive films. There was a Dutch co -production in the prizes. The Flemish-Dutch VR film A Long Goodbye Van Kate Voet and Victor Maes, about a 72-year-old pianist with dementia, with music by Joep Beving and voice-overs by Marlies Heuer and Derek de Lint, received the ‘Achievement Prize’.