©Courtesy of Sony Pictures Classic
The top honor at the 81st Venice Film Festival went to The Room Next Door, starring Tilda Swinton and Julianne Moore, directed by Pedro Almodovar. Despite all the talk of standing ovations, many of the films have only received mixed or lightly positive review scores on critical aggregate sites after their Venice screenings.
Vermiglio received the Silver Lion prize, while Brady Corbet’s 3.5-hour period drama The Brutalist earned him the Best Director award. Best Actress went to Nicole Kidman for the erotic drama Baby Girl. The actress had to miss the ceremony as she raced back home following the sudden death of her mother. Vincent Lindon won best actor for ‘The Quiet Son’. The Best Screenplay award was given to Walter Salles’ I’m Still Here.
A Special Jury Prize was given to April by Dea Kulumbegashvili, while the Best New Actor award was given to Paul Kircher for his work in And Their Children After Them.
Isabelle Huppert headed up the jury for the 81st edition, which included filmmakers James Gray, Andrew Haigh, Agnieszka Holland, Kleber Mendonça Filho, Abderrahmane Sissako, Giuseppe Tornatore, Julia von Heinz, and actress Zhang Ziyi, they took some time to come to their decisions during a prolonged deliberation session yesterday.
The movie The Brutalist, which was directed by Brady Corbet and starred Adrien Brody, was quickly embraced by critics as the 3 hours and 15 minutes long film. Variety’s Owen Gleiberman referred to it as “paved with pleasing stateliness and flowing with incident and emotion”.
COMPETITION
Golden Lion for Best Film: “The Room Next Door,” Pedro Almodóvar
Grand Jury Prize: “Vermiglio,” Maura Delpero
Silver Lion for Best Director: Brady Corbet, “The Brutalist”
Special Jury Prize: “April,” Dea Kulumbegashvili
Best Screenplay: Murilo Hauser, Heitor Lorega, “I’m Still Here”
Volpi Cup for Best Actress: Nicole Kidman, “Babygirl”
Volpi Cup for Best Actor: Vincent Lindon, “The Quiet Son”
Marcello Mastroianni Award for Best Young Actor: Paul Kircher, “And their Children After Them”
HORIZONS
Best Film: “The New Year That Never Came,” Bogdan Mureşanu
Best Director: Sarah Friedland, “Familiar Touch”
Special Jury Prize: “One of Those Days When Hemme Dies,” Murat Firatoglu
Best Actress: Kathleen Chalfant, “Familiar Touch”
Best Actor: Francesco Gheghi, “Familia”
Best Screenplay: Scandar Copti, “Happy Holidays”
Best Short Film: “Who Loves the Sun,” Arshia Shakiba
LION OF THE FUTURE
Luigi de Laurentiis Award for Best Debut Feature: “Familiar Touch,” Sarah Friedland
HORIZONS EXTRA
Audience Award: “The Witness,” Nader Saeivar
VENICE CLASSICS
Best Documentary on Cinema: “Chain Reactions,” Alexandre O. Philippe
Best Restored Film: “Ecce Bombo,” Nanni Moretti
VENICE IMMERSIVE
Grand Jury Prize: “Ito Meikyu,” Boris Labbé
Special Jury Prize: “Oto’s Planet,” Gwenael François
Achievement Prize: “Impulse: Playing With Reality,” Barry Gene Murphy, May Abdalla
GIORNATE DEGLI AUTORI (announced earlier)
GdA Director’s Award: “Manas,” Marianna Brennand
Audience Award: “Taxi Monamour,” Ciro De Caro
Europa Cinemas Label Award: “Alpha,” Jan-Willem van Ewijk
CRITICS’ WEEK (announced earlier)
Grand Prize: “Don’t Cry, Butterfly,” Dương Diệu Linh
Special Mention: “No Sleep Till,” Alexandra Simpson
Audience Award: “Paul & Paulette Take a Bath” Jethro Massey
Verona Film Club Award for Most Innovative Film: “Don’t Cry, Butterfly,” Dương Diệu Linh
Mario Serandrei – Hotel Saturnia Award for Best Technical Contribution: “Homegrown,” Michael Premo
Best Short Film: “Things That My Best Friend Lost,” Marta Innocenti
Best Director (Short Film): “Nero Argento,” Francesco Manzato
Best Technical Contribution (Short Film): “At Least I Will Be 8 294 400 Pixel,” Marco Talarico