21 films were selected for the 2024 Venice Film Festival competition and in the pack we find some surprises and several shoe-ins for the 81st edition (August 28th until September 7th). We will of course be there for wall-to-wall coverage. The big surprise title among the pack of the seven English language film has to be Dutch filmmaker Halina Reijn‘s third feature film Babygirl — an A24 project starring Nicole Kidman, Harris Dickinson, Antonio Banderas, Sophie Wilde and Jean Reno and was shot this past December. The Bodies Bodies Bodies helmer looks at power dynamics and sexuality in the workplace. In other portraits of women walking tall we have Pedro Almodovar‘s first foray in the English language The Room Next Door, Pablo Larrain‘s Maria and Todd Phillips‘ Joker: Folie à Deux. Aussie filmmaker Justin Kurzel makes a first visit to the Lido with The Order about a series of bank robberies and car heists that frightened communities in the Pacific Northwest. A lone FBI agent believes that the crimes were not the work of financially motivated criminals, but rather a group of dangerous domestic terrorists. Nicholas Hoult, Jude Law, Tye Sheridan, Jurnee Smollett and Odessa Young star.
If we had to cherry pick — we’d invest in these two backed by British coin offerings: Athina Rachel Tsangari‘s Harvest with Caleb Landry Jones possibly burning down the house and Brady Corbet‘s three-decade and three-plus hour sprawling The Brutalist which features Adrien Brody, Felicity Jones, Joe Alwyn, Alessandro Nivola, Jonathan Hyde, Guy Pearce and a 15-minute intermission. And speaking of lengthy film items…we can always bet on about a half dozen Italian filmmakers to break into the comp, and Luca Guadagnino‘s Queer will be one of the most sought after premieres.
Maura Delpero and Giulia Louise Steigerwaltl will see their sophomore films get some Lido love – Delpero’s Vermiglio is set during final year of the world war, and tells the story of three sisters, Lucia, Ada and Flavia: they’re no longer children but not yet women either. Steigerwalt’s Diva Futura is a drama set in the 80s and 90s starring Stars Denise Capezza, Pietro Castellitto and Barbara Ronchi best known for Marco Bellocchio’s Sweet Dreams (2016). Completing the Italian quintet, we have the third feature film by the tandem of Fabio Grassadonia and Antonio Piazza. Like their previous pair, Sicilian Letters also digs deep into the underground mafia world. Acclaimed filmmmaker Gianni Amelio will dig into the past with Campo di Battaglia.
On the films from France side, Emmanuel Mouret‘s Trois Amies was tipped to be selected for the Lido for a long while now as was the case for Leurs Enfants Après Eux by twin brothers Ludovic and Zoran Boukherma. And speaking of siblings, sisters Delphine and Muriel Coulin arrive with The Quiet Son — which stars Vincent Lindon as Pierre, a devoted father in his 50s who raises his two sons alone.
On the Euro side, we have a title change for Georgian filmmaker Dea Kulumbegashvili‘s highly anticipated sophomore feature. After Beginning we now have April — the story about a newborn who dies during delivery, the morals and professionalism of an OBGYN, Nina, come under scrutiny amid rumors that she performs illegal abortions for those in need. Norwegian filmmaker Dag Johan Haugerud slips in the second part in his trilogy simply called Love. Sex premiered in Berlin, and Dreams will likely be set for a major 2025 premiere. From South America, Argentina-based Luis Ortega will launch Kill the Jockey which looks at how Remo’s self-destructive behavior overshadows his talent. Abril, an upcoming jockey is pregnant by Remo and has to decide between child or continuing to race. They both race for Sirena, an businessman who saved Remo’s life in the past. Ortega was last featured El Ángel in the Un Certain Regard section in Cannes in 2018. In neighboring Brazil and set for a Toronto premiere as well, Walter Salles digs into the past with I’m Still Here – an adaptation of Marcelo Rubens Paiva’s 2015 book Ainda Estou Aqui. Set in 1971. The lives of Eunice Paiva and her five children abruptly change after the disappearance of her husband, former Brazilian Labour Party’s congressman Rubens Paiva.
From Asia, we see the promise in the career for Singaporean filmmaker Yeo Siew Hua. After winning the Golden Leopard in Locarno in 2018 for his feature debut (A Land Imagined), we now move into the direction of a thriller called Stranger Eyes. After the disappearance of his baby daughter, Darren receives mysterious DVDs containing videos of his private life and most intimate moments. When he finds the mysterious voyeur, Darren turns the gaze around and confronts his own image in the other. And speaking of Locarno, Wang Bing will feature the second part of his trilogy and the final part in the same month. Youth – Homecoming completes his intimate look at young textile workers from China. Here are the Golden Lion hopefuls:
The Room Next Door, dir: Pedro Almodovar
Campo di Battaglia, dir: Gianni Amelio
Leurs Enfants Après Eux, dirs: Ludovic Boukherma, Zoran Boukherma
The Brutalist, dir: Brady Corbet
The Quiet Son, dirs: Delphine Coulin, Muriel Coulin
Vermiglio, dir: Maura Delpero
Sicilian Letters, dirs: Fabio Grassadonia, Antonio Piazza
Queer, dir: Luca Guadagnino
Love, dir: Dag Johan Haugerud
April, dir: Dea Kulumbegashvili
The Order, dir: Justin Kurzel
Maria, dir: Pablo Larrain
Trois Amies, dir: Emmanuel Mouret
Kill the Jockey, dir: Luis Ortega
Joker: Folie à Deux, dir: Todd Phillips
Babygirl, dir: Halina Reijn
I’m Still Here, dir: Walter Salles
Diva Futura, dir: Giulia Louise Steigerwalt
Harvest, dir: Athina Rachel Tsangari
Youth – Homecoming, dir: Wang Bing
Stranger Eyes, dir: Yeo Siew Hua
