Corsini is one of seven women in the film in a main line-up of 21 titles, which is a very good number. Cannes has always welcomed beautiful young women in gowns and high heels on the red carpet, but she’s been less welcomed by women making films.Belgian film director Chantal AckermannOne of the giants of modern cinema, she had three films in the official program during her lifetime (she passed away in 2015), but none in the main competition. Another art giant, Agnès Varda, screened a dozen films at Cannes, but only his 1962 film Cleo from 5 to 7 was selected for the main competition. A festival with at least one of the following names: that theater after her.
Some of the seven women are competing for the first time. Some, like French director Catherine Breillat, return here with Last Summer. Briar attended Cannes in 2007 with The Last Mistress, a raw, frenetic and rude historical drama about women and lust starring Asia Argento. A few years later, in 2018, Argento rocked the festival by announcing onstage at her closing ceremony that she had been raped by Harvey Weinstein at an event in 1997. “This festival was his hunting ground,” Argento angrily brought the #MeToo movement to Cannes. (Argento was later accused of sexually assaulting an underage male actor, an accusation she denied.)
Cannes organizers tend to dodge criticism, but as the record number of women attending the event suggests, what is the public stance on complaints made by many women over the decades? You’re obviously paying attention. This record is important because Cannes is important. The festival does more than just capture the world’s attention every year. It builds careers, revives reputations, gives status, allows for the next contract (or two), and serves as an important prelude to the Academy Awards. More importantly, Cannes publicly and highly visible bequeaths to filmmakers the prized position historically bestowed upon men.
This wasn’t just because women like Ackermann and Varda had far fewer directing opportunities than men. Neither artist needed Cannes celebrations. They were great filmmakers without regular love. It’s hard to quantify how their careers (if any) would have been different had they continued to feud on a regular basis. But if they had been regularly programmed alongside the festival’s many beloved male authors, their careers would have been easier and the money would have flowed more generously in their direction. I can’t help it. Certainly Varda and Ackermann have done the right thing as president of the jury, and two-time Palme winner Ruben Ostlund is enjoying that position this year. I hope his choices are better than his movies.
