Monday, May 23, 2011

The Tree of Life wins Palme d'Or at 2011 Cannes


Jury President Robert de Niro (L) shakes hands with producer Bill Pohlad (R) who receives the Palme d'Or award for the film ''The Tree of Life'', by director Terrence Malick, as they pose with Camera d'Or award winner director Pablo Giorgelli (2nd L) during the closing ceremony of the 64th Cannes Film Festival, May 22, 2011.
Credit: Reuters/Eric Gaillard.

Sunday evening, American director Terrence Malick’s The Tree of Life won the prestigious Palme d’Or of the 64th Cannes Film Festival.

Provocative Danish director Lars Von Trier who was banned from the Cannes for his controversial comments that portrayed him as an apologist of Adolf Hitler’s Nazi proved that he could not be ignored as his apocalyptic film "Melancholia" got the Best Actress award for American actress Kirsten Dunst.


CANNES, FRANCE – MAY 22: Actress Kirsten Dunst accepts her award for Best Actress at the Closing Ceremony at the Palais des Festivals during the 64th Cannes Film Festival on May 22, 2011 in Cannes, France. (Photo by Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images)


"What a week! My thanks to the Jury, this is a real honour. I'm grateful to the Festival for keeping the film in Competition. And I'm grateful to Lars Von Trier for letting me play the role with such freedom.," said the excited Kirsten Dunst who is famous for her romantic role of Mary Jane Watson the girlfriend and later wife of Peter Parker, the alter ego of Spider-Man in the Spider-Man trilogy.



The Films of Terrence Malick (MOMI, May 13-15) from Matt Zoller Seitz on Vimeo.



This is Malick’s fifth feature, starring Brad Pitt, Sean Penn and Jessica Chastain. The film story centers around a family with three boys in the 1950s. The eldest son witnesses the loss of innocence.

SYNOPSIS
The Tree of Life is the impressionistic story of a Midwestern family in the 1950's. The film follows the life journey of the eldest son, Jack, through the innocence of childhood to his disillusioned adult years as he tries to reconcile a complicated relationship with his father. Jack finds himself a lost soul in the modern world, seeking answers to the origins and meaning of life while questioning the existence of faith.

Thetreeoflifeposter

FEATURE FILMS



SHORT FILMS



• Prize of Un Certain Regard Ex-aequo
ARIRANG directed by KIM Ki-Duk

• HALT AUF FREIER STRECKE (STOPPED ON TRACK) directed by Andreas DRESEN

• Un Certain Regard Special Jury Prize
ELENA directed by Andrey ZVYAGINTSEV

• Directing Prize of Un Certain Regard
BÉ OMID É DIDAR directed by Mohammad RASOULOF

CINEFONDATION :

• 1st Prize Cinéfondation
DER BRIEF (THE LETTER) directed by Doroteya DROUMEVA

• 2nd Prize - Cinéfondation
DRARI directed by Kamal LAZRAQ

• 3rd Prize Cinéfondation
YA-GAN-BI-HANG (FLY BY NIGHT) directed by SON Tae-gyum

The Jury
Robert De Niro
President of the Jury

Olivier ASSAYAS
Director

Martina GUSMAN

Mahamat-Saleh HAROUN
Director

Jude LAW

Nansun SHI

Uma THURMAN
Actress

Johnnie TO
Director

Linn ULLMANN


~ Ekenyerengozi Michael Chima


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