2012 Cannes Film Festival Predictions: Michel Gondry’s The We and I

Gist: Gondry has stumbled a bit under the pressure of following up one of the most whimsical rom-coms ever made, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. His subsequent attempts at recapturing the quirky intelligence of that film have put a clear strain on him, prompting ill-advised dabbling in Hollywood and aimless autobiographical docs – he’s only once loosened up a little for the refreshing Dave Chapelle’s Block Party. His next attempt at rejuvenation is this somewhat experimental film that should go a little something like this: “It’s [about] kids on a bus…it’s about the group effect, how people in groups transform when the group is dislocated. Because everyone jumps out of the bus at different times, there is a smaller group and how the relationships evolve.”

Prediction: Cannes likes Gondry enough to have him around occasionally for Special (The Thorn in the Heart) and Out of Comp screenings (Human Nature), but they’ve yet to place him in Competition. That should continue, as we imagine another Out of Competition screening for this one, or perhaps a competing slot in Un Certain Regard.