Palme d’Or – This Had Oscar Buzz

We’re kicking off this year’s May Miniseries this week! Introducing: Festival Fever!! We’re spending all month discussing the ethos around some of the most important film festivals–and if you subscribe to our Patreon, the mini has already begun! After the COVID year shut down the Cannes Film Festival for the first time in decades, 2021 rebounded with a robust edition. The Palme d’Or winner was a controversial pick: Julia Ducournau’s sophomore thriller Titane. The film garnered headlines for its audacious, no-holds-barred look at gender, parent-child relationships, and umm a serial killer who gets impregnated by a car.

This episode, we talk about the history of the Palme d’Or and the film’s unsuccessful placement as France’s International Feature submission. We also talk about our anticipation for Ducournau’s upcoming Cannes return with Alpha, Spike Lee accidentally spoiling the film’s win at Cannes, and queer reactions to the film.

Topics also include dancing firemen, Ducournau’s debut Raw, and our favorite Palme winners.

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By today’s standards, this week’s film stands out for its gobsmacking cast of Meryl streep, Gleen Close, Jeremy Irons, Antonio Banderas, and Winona Ryder. But back in the 90s, The House of the Spirits caught attention as both an adaptation of Isabel Allende’s beloved novel and the biggest acquisition Miramax had ever landed. Set over decades in Chile with mild mysticism and political revolution, the film whitewashed and condensed the novel into a poorly received epic long forgotten by year’s end – with Miramax enjoying their biggest success yet in Pulp Fiction.

The film was the follow-up to back-to-back Palme d’Or wins for director Bille August, after The Best Intentions and the Oscar-annointed Pelle the Conqueror. This episode, we look to Palme d”or winners for a round of Alter Egos as we discuss the film’s many problems. We discuss the false narrative of Streep vs. Close among Oscar obsessives, Ryder as a quintessentially 90s star, and Streep’s early 90s roadblocks.

Topics also include “an abundance of juices”, Irons’ expanding set of false teeth, and Close’s Oscar chances this year.

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Tag: Palme d’Or

340 – Titane (Festival Fever!)

135 – The House of the Spirits