"The Banishment" and "Les Chansons d'amour" screen in competition today at the Cannes Film Festival. Jay Weissberg of Variety writes of "The Banishment," "Influenced by Tarkovsky and heavily loaded with religious metaphors, pic's examination of a family's banishment from a domestic paradise that was never Eden anyway feels both indulgent and pseudo-deep, leaving auds cold rather than devastated." Regarding "Les Chansons d'amour," Weissberg observes, "Likeable film doesn't measure up to helmer Christophe Honore's previous "Inside Paris," stumbling a bit in capturing the genuine grief that sits at its heart, though once again his feel for family is unerring and some of pic's greatest charms come from the warmth they inspire."
Anticipation on the web by those in attendance continues to build for Ethan and Joel Coen's latest film "No Country for Old Men," which screens at the festival tomorrow. Anne Thompson notes on her blog, "The buzz on the Coens' No Country for Old Men (Scott Rudin's Paramount Vantage/Miramax co-production) is building to a roar off the high praise it got from an early screening for New York Film Fest programmers. It's in the league of Miller's Crossing, folks say." With "My Blueberry Nights" opening to luke warm reviews (characterized by A.O. Scott of the New York Times as "hyperbolic snap judgments"), David Fincher's "Zodiac" and Cristian Mungiu's "4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days" appear to be leading the competition pack.
