CANNES FILM FESTIVAL 2023 The seven must-see films from this year’s world cinema showcase.
EDITED BY JORDAN FARLEY @JORDANFARLEY
A) KILLERS OF THE FLOWER MOON
Based on David Grann’s 2017 non-fiction book of the same name, Martin Scorsese’s western (yes, he’s finally made it) delves deep into manifest destiny, greed, racism, neocolonialism and misogyny in a rich, immersive masterclass that braids together the interests of his past projects. Faith, persecution, racketeering, entitlement, the corrupting influence of money, the disposability of life… all are present in a nailed-on awards magnet that might be some of the best work we’ve ever seen from all involved.
Set in early 1920s Oklahoma, the story centres on Mollie (Lily Gladstone), a young Osage Nation woman and the hugely wealthy owner of headrights (the inherited mineral rights to oil-rich Osage County) – no wonder lascivious white men such as feckless WW1 returnee Ernest Burkhart (Leonardo DiCaprio) eye her with avarice. A tribal generation is being eradicated and stolen from via widespread conspiracy and murder – amovement spearheaded by Robert De Niro’s local white ‘saviour’, William ‘King’ Hale. Torn between faithfulness to her beau and terror at the devastation happening on her own lands, Mollie hopes that authorities outside of the complicit local cops might be able to stop the killing of people and culture.
Weaving the Tulsa race riots, the KKK and the Masons into its tapestry, Scorsese’s opus questions the misdeeds of America in the last century while linking them to the pressing issues of today. Addressing racial violence, nationalism, the continued epidemic of missing and murdered indigenous women and even our lurid obsession with true crime, Killers of the Flower Moon paints a robust picture of a moment in history that invites viewer introspection. As Ernest asks portentously when reading from a book on Osage history: ‘Can you see the wolves in this picture?’ Well, can you?
B) ANATOMY OF A FALL
Justine Triet’s courtroom drama took home three big prizes at this year’s Cannes: the coveted Palme d’Or, the highly competitive Palm Dog for very good boy Messi, and the unofficial prize of the catchiest song of the festival, with an instrumental cover of 50 Cent’s P.I.M.P. featuring at the heart of the film and in the minds of festival goers. A piercing dissection of a marriage, Anatomy of a Fall employs the suspicious death of Samuel (Samuel Theis) and the trial of his successful writer wife Sandra (Sandra Hüller) as a starting point to surgically examine ever-elusive notions of guilt and culpability while concurrently weaving a refined portrayal of modern parenthood, fluid gender roles and relationships.
C) HOW TO HAVE SEX
A trio of best friends embarks on a post-exams trip to Greece with one big goal in mind:
