Ready to fill up your cinematic appetite? This year’s list brings together several iconic filmmakers, including Francis Ford Coppola, George Miller, and Yorgos Lanthimos.
It’s that time of year again when the global film scene buzzes with excitement for the Cannes Film Festival. A feast for film lovers, this event is the ultimate stage where groundbreaking works are premiered, setting the tone for the year’s cinematic trends and awards season contenders.
This year’s 77th Cannes Film Festival features 22 films competing for the coveted Palme d’Or. Among the contenders are Yorgos Lanthimos’s Kinds of Kindness, Francis Ford Coppola’s Megalopolis, and Paolo Sorrentino’s Parthenope. Though out of competition, another major highlight is George Miller’s Furiosa, a prequel to Mad Max: Fury Road, starring Anya Taylor-Joy.
Here’s the Complete List of Films Participating at the Cannes Film Festival 2024
Running from May 14 to 25, the 2024 Cannes Film Festival in the south of France promises to be spectacular. Greta Gerwig will lead the jury, joined by film luminaries like Hirokazu Kore-eda, Lily Gladstone, and Eva Green. The festival will also honor the Hollywood legend, director, screenwriter, and producer George Lucas with an honorary Palme d’Or. At the same time, Kevin Costner will premiere the first installment of his Western epic, Horizon: An American Saga.
Here’s a quick look at the must-see films for this year’s Cannes Film Festival.
- All We Imagined As Light (Payal Kapadia)
This intimate film, marking India’s return to Cannes after 30 years, delves into the lives of two nurses and roommates in Mumbai as they embark on a transformative journey to a beach town in search of a space where their desires can thrive, navigating a poignant exploration of their aspirations and relationships.
- Anora (Sean Baker)
Sean Baker, known for hits like The Florida Project and Red Rocket, is back at Cannes with the rom-com Anora. Starring Mikey Madison, Mark Eydelshteyn, Yura Borisov, Karen Karagulian, and Vache Tovmasyan, the film follows the story of a young Brooklyn sex worker who impulsively marries an oligarch’s son—only to find how troublesome this is once the news reaches Russia.
- Beating Hearts (Gilles Lellouche)
Adapted from Neville Thompson’s 1997 novel Jackie Loves Johnser OK, this film takes viewers on an emotional rollercoaster spanning over 15 years in the lives of star-crossed lovers.
- Bird (Andrea Arnold)
Featuring Barry Keoghan of Saltburn, this film follows the story of 12-year-old Bailey, who lives with her dad and brother in a squat in North Kent, Southern England. With her dad occupied elsewhere, Bailey craves attention and adventure, leading her to cross paths with the character, played by Franz Rogowski.
- Caught by the Tides [Feng Liu Yi Dai] (Jia Zhangke)
The director’s sixth entry to Cannes surveys China’s 21st-century transformation through the fragile love story of a couple spanning two decades. Led by his brilliant wife, Zhao Tao, this film, in production since 2001, transcends time, space, and the director’s entire cinematic journey.
- Emilia Perez (Jacques Audiard)
With Selena Gomez, Zoe Saldana, and Edgar Ramirez, the director of Rust and Bone and Dheepan ventures into a Mexico-set musical crime comedy, which follows the story of a woman helping an escaped cartel boss undergo gender-affirming surgery to evade authorities.
- Grand Tour (Miguel Gomes)
This feature follows the story of a British colonial officer in Burma who fled from his wedding but was further pursued by his bride.
- Kinds of Kindness (Yorgos Lanthimos)
Emma Stone reunites with the Greek filmmaker for the third time, alongside Jesse Plemons, Willem Dafoe, Hong Chau, and Margaret Qualley, in a film intertwining three stories. It follows a man grappling for control over his life, a policeman confronted with his wife’s altered identity, and a woman’s journey to find a destined spiritual leader.
- Limonov (Kirill Serebrennikov)
In this feature, the exiled Russian director delves into the strange true story of dissident poet Eduard Limonov. Limonov fled the Soviet Union but later returned to establish a new Bolshevik Party after the Cold War.
- Marcello Mio (Christophe Honore)
Starring French icon Catherine Deneuve, this film tells the fictional story of a woman who begins impersonating her late father, the iconic Italian screen legend Marcello Mastroianni.
- Megalopolis (Francis Ford Coppola)
After 13 years, the director returns with a self-funded Roman epic fable set in modern America. Over 40 years in the making, the two-time Palme d’Or winner’s film focuses on an architect’s dream to rebuild New York City into a utopia after a catastrophic event.
- Motel Destino (Karim Aïnouz)
After debuting last year with Alicia Vikander and Jude Law’s Firebrand, the Brazilian filmmaker is back with an erotic comedy-thriller that unfolds between a young man with a target on his back and a woman trapped in an abusive marriage, craving freedom from her husband’s control.
- Oh, Canada (Paul Schrader)
Reuniting with American Gigolo star Richard Gere, this film depicts the story of famed documentary filmmaker Leonard Fife, an American leftist who fled to Canada to evade the Vietnam War draft. As he faces his mortality, he grapples with the consequences of his choices, leading to a poignant exploration of his life’s journey.
- The Apprentice (Ali Abbasi)
After demonstrating his works in The Last of Us, the Holy Spider director now stars Sebastian Stan as Donald Trump in a film that examines the president’s career as a real estate businessman in New York in the 1970s and 80s.
- The Substance (Coralie Fargeat)
Demi Moore returns to the screen in an ultra-violent horror flick, guaranteeing plenty of blood and guts splattered across the screen.
- The Shrouds (David Cronenberg)
A deeply personal project for the Canadian horror maestro, this supernatural film follows a man who constructs a device to communicate with his deceased wife.
- The Most Precious of Cargoes (Michel Hazanavicius)
In this allegorical hand-drawn animated feature, a Jewish girl survives the Holocaust after her father throws her from a train headed for Auschwitz, only to be discovered by a woodcutter and his family, embarking on a powerful journey of resilience and survival.
- Parthenope (Paolo Sorrentino)
Yet another love letter by the director, the film chronicles the lifelong journey of its protagonist from her birth in 1950 to the present day. This feminine epic, devoid of heroism yet overflowing with an unwavering passion for freedom, Naples, and the myriad faces of love—including the true, the futile, and the unutterable.
- The Girl with the Needle (Magnus von Horn)
Loosely based on true events, this film portrays Danish serial killer Dagmar Overbye, who ran an underground adoption agency in early 20th century Copenhagen, aiding impoverished women with unwanted pregnancies.
- Three Kilometers to the End of the World (Emanuel Parvu)
In this third feature, a last-minute entry at Cannes, the film portrays the harrowing journey of a 17-year-old gay teenager in the conservative Danube Delta area of Romania, where he was ostracized by his village community and suffered brutal assault.
- The Seed of the Sacred Fig (Mohammad Rasoulof)
In this politically charged film set in Iran, the director bravely navigates the story of Iman, an investigating judge in Tehran’s Revolutionary Court. As nationwide political protests escalate, Iman faces increasing mistrust and paranoia, compounded by the mysterious disappearance of his gun.
- Wild Diamond (Agathe Riedinger)
This debut film is a contemporary coming-of-age story that follows a young girl as she blossoms through a virtual persona on social media.
Cover image by: Kinds of Kindness Film
