French-Tunisian director Abdellatif Kechiche is the winner of the Palme d’Or at the 66th Cannes Film Festival for the French film Adèle’s Life (La vie d’Adèle), a story about the passionate relationship between two young women.
The audience greeted the tearful actresses, Adèle Exarchopoulos and Léa Seydoux, as well as the director, with prolonged applause. This is the first time the Palme d’Or has been awarded to a film that openly discusses homosexuality, this time from a female perspective. France is once again the recipient of this top award, five years after Laurent Cantet’s film The Class (Entre les murs).
I would like to dedicate this award, this film, to that beautiful French youth that has taught me so much about the spirit of freedom, about communal living, as well as to another youth, from the Tunisian revolution, which also wishes to live and love freely, said the visibly moved and happy director.
Adèle’s Life – Chapters 1 and 2, a loose adaptation of the animated film Blue is the Warmest Color by Julie Maroh, won the hearts of critics immediately after its screening.
The Grand Prix winner is Inside Llewyn Davis by American directors Joel and Ethan Coen. The Best Actress award went to French-Argentinian actress Bérénice Bejo for her role in the film The Past (Le Passe). American Bruce Dern was awarded Best Actor for his role in Nebraska. The Best Director award was received by Mexican Amat Escalante for Heli. The Best Screenplay is A Touch of Sin by Chinese Jie Zhangke.
The Jury Prize was awarded to Japanese Hirokazu Kore-Eda for Like Father, Like Son (Tel père, ton fils). The winner of the Golden Camera is Singaporean Anthony Chen for Ilo Ilo, and the Palme d’Or for Short Film was won by South Korean Byoung-gon Moon for Safe.
