Cannes 2009: Fish Tank and Thirst Share 3rd Place Ribbon (Grand Jury Prize)

There were cheers and jeers for the winners of the Grand Jury Prize. Andrea Arnold’s Fish Tank (my top feature of the festival) shared the third place prize and was a critical favorite while Park Chan-Wook was critically panned winner for his vampire thriller film from Korea. Both are small films that might benefit from such a push especially on the film fest circuit and domestic markets. 

Fish Tank sees Katie Jarvis play a troubled 15-year-old excluded from school and ostracized by her friends. Fassbender takes on the role of a mysterious stranger who romances Mia’s mother.

Thirst sees Song Kang-ho and Shin Ha-kyun in a plot that involves a priest who participates in a medical experiment to find a cure for a deadly disease with traumatic repercussions.