There Critics’ Week of Cannes 2024, the section dedicated to first and second works, will open with the psychological thriller by Jonathan Millet “Ghost Trail” and will end with the genre film “Animal” Of Emma Benestan. The titles are two of the 11 feature films scheduled for the Semaine de la Critique, which takes place in parallel with the Cannes Film Festival (here is the programme).
The selected American film is “Blue Sun Palace” Of Constance Tsanga bittersweet story about two Chinese immigrants living in Queens who bond after a tragic death and find meaning in each other’s company. “As humble and dignified as its characters, this realistic and intimate first film sheds light on a little-seen community,” he has declared Ava Cahen, artistic director of Critics’ Week. “Blue Sun Palace” stars Lee Kang Sheng whose recent credits include “Twisted Strings.”
In addition to the opening and closing films, the Special Screenings section will include “Across the Sea” Of Said Hamich Benlarbi and the first feature film by Alexis Langlois “Les reines du drame”.
“Across the Sea,” a melodrama set in the 1990s and boasting a soundtrack of Raï music, depicts 10 years in the life of an illegal Moroccan immigrant in Marseille. The film stars Grégoire Colin, Anna Mouglalis and the emerging actor Ayoub Gretaa. “Across the Sea” marks the sequel to Hamich Benlarbi to “Retour to Bollène”.
“Les reines du drama”on the other hand, is a pop musical comedy that follows an influencer who falls in love with a 2000s punk singer. Cahen described the film as a “shimmering, vibrant love letter to cinema and its history, styles and genres. The film stars Louiza Aura and Gio Venture, along with Bilal Hassani, Asia Argento and Alma Jodorowsky.
“Ghost Trail” is inspired by real-life events and tells the story of a Syrian man who goes after some of the people who perpetrated horrors in the name of the regime during the civil war. Cahen described the film as a “exciting and sensorial film in which the finesse of the French-Tunisian actor Adam Bessa leaves us breathless”.
“Animal” is a feminist genre film “crossroads between westerns, slashers, body horror and revenge films, in the heart of the Camargue”, Cahen said. The film stars Oulaya Amamra, who previously starred in “Divines.”
Other films set to world premiere at Critics’ Week include the romance genre film “Locust”which marks the feature film debut of Taiwanese multidisciplinary artist KEFF; “Julie Keeps Quiet” by Leonardo Van Dijl; “Simon of the Mountain” by the Argentine director Federico Luis; “Baby” by the Brazilian director Marcelo Caetano; “The Brink of Dreams” by Nada Riyadh and Ayman El Amir e “Block Pass” by French director Antoine Chevrollier. A record 1,050 feature films were presented at the Semaine de la Critique, a third of which were directed by female directors. The 63rd edition of the Semaine de la Critique will take place from 15 to 23 May.
FILMS IN COMPETITION at the Cannes Critics’ Week 2024
Competition
- “Baby,” Marcelo Caetano
- “Blue Sun Palace,” Constance Tsang
- “The Brink of Dreams,” Nada Riyadh and Ayman El Amir
- “Julie Keeps Quiet,” Leonardo Van Dijl
- “Locust,” KEFF
- “Block Pass,” Antoine Chevrollier
- “Simon of the Mountain,” Federico Luis
Special Screenings
- “Ghost Trail,” Jonathan Millet (Opening Film)
- “Queens of Drama,” Saïd Hamich Benlarbi
- “Across the Sea,” Saïd Hamich Benlarbi
- “Animal,” Emma Benestan (Closing Film)
Tags: Critics Week Cannes program revealed
