Acting laurels went to Spain’s Javier Bardem and France’s Juliette Binoche today at the Cannes Film Festival, where the top prize was copped by a Thai film about death and reincarnation: “Uncle Bonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives,” directed by Apichatpong Weerasethakul, pictured here with Charlotte Gainsbourg.
Bardem, an Oscar winner for “No Country for Old Men,” took best actor honors for his masterful portrayal of another dying man — a racketeer and single dad who exploits immigrants in Barcelona — in “Biutiful,” which received a mixed critical reception and, like “Uncle Boonmee,” is seeking distribution in the United States.
Bardem shared his prize with Elio Germano for Daniele Luchetti’s “Our Life,” an Italian drama about a widower with three sons.
Binoche who also appears on this year’s Cannes poster, won for “Certified Copy,” a serious romantic comedy set in Italy with dialogue in English and French, directed by past Palme d’Or winner Abbas Kiarostami of Iran.
The Palm d’Or win by “Uncle Boomee” was something of a surprise, as insiders were betting the top prize would go to Xavier Beauvois’ grim “Of Gods and Men,” which, like “Certified Copy,” has found a U.S. distributor.
Instead the fact-based French drama about seven French monks beheaded during Algeria’s civil war in 1996 received the second-place award, with third place going director Mahamat-Saleh Haroun of Chad’s “A Screaming Man,” yet another paternal drama about a man who loses his job during a civil war.
In perhaps the biggest surprise, French actor-filmmaker Mathieu Amalric — best known in the U.S. as the villain in the last James Bond movie — won the directing award for “On Tour,” a comedy in which he plays the manager of five American strippers touring France.
The screenplay honor was presented to South Korean director Lee Chang-dong for “Poetry,” a portrait of a grandmother (Yun Junghee) struggling to write a poem as she copes with the onset of Alzheimer’s.
Films from two past Palme d’Or winners from the U.K. — Mike Leigh’s comedy-drama “Another Year,” which received some of the best reviews of the festival, ‘’ and Ken Loach’s Iraq war thriller “Route Irish” — were shut out. Also snubbed was the lone American film among the 19 contenders, Doug Liman’s “Fair Game,” a drama about outed CIA operative Valerie Plame starring Naomi Watts and Sean Penn.
“Each and every one of us has some favorites that didn’t make it,” said Tim Burton, who headed the nine-person jury. “We tried to invent more prizes,” joked fellow jury member Kate Beckinsale.
With Post Wire Services