Cannes film fest opens with warning about state of world

The 72nd Cannes film festival has opened with film professionals from around the globe gathering in the French Riviera to celebrate cinema, but there were strong voices against “lies” of world leaders and their consequences to the people.
The influential film festival kicked off the 12-day extravaganza last evening with the opening film, ‘The Dead Don’t Die’ by American director Jim Jarmusch.
The American zombie drama about a small town waking up to find the dead coming alive followed a glittering red carpet gala that the festival is famous for. Among those walking the red carpet were the film’s cast comprising Adam Driver, Bill Murray, Tilda Swinton, Selena Gomez and Danny Glover.
The opening ceremony, which underlined cinema as a “collective experience”, witnessed the presentation of the competition jury for the Palme d’Or this year, headed by Oscar-winning Mexican director Alejandro Inarritu.
The gathering of the Who’s Who of world cinema paid homage to celebrated French director Agnes varda, who passed away three months ago.
The festival, which is known for reflecting political upheavals through film selections every year, showed it won’t shy away from talking about the contemporary society this time too.
The tone was set by the jury president, Inarritu, himself when he said he was concerned by what is happening around the world.
“I am basically against what is happening around the world,” Inarritu said at a jury press conference that preceded the opening ceremony last evening. (UNI)