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CANNES 2017 Official Selection

The Croisette in the crosshairs

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- Favourites, outsiders, likely bets and possible candidates: we help you navigate the jungle of potential hopefuls for the 70th Cannes Film Festival (17-28 May 2017)

The Croisette in the crosshairs
(© Louis Fauquembergue / FDC)

As the 67th Berlin Film Festival prepares to unveil its winners on Saturday, the world’s film-industry professionals are already turning their attention and directing their energy towards the 70th Cannes Film Festival (17-28 May 2017), which is far and away the finest showcase for the seventh art, as well as being the most prolific film market. And now that General Delegate Thierry Frémaux has lifted at least part of the veil on the internal goings-on when it comes to choosing the titles in competition on the Croisette in his recent, enthralling book Sélection officielle, we know that the decision process is kicking off as we speak and that the line-up will be fleshed out, in secret, little by little over the next two months. And as is customary, rumours, predictions and other divinations abound on Planet Cinephile as everyone strives to foretell the identity of the titles that will be vying for the 2017 Palme d'Or, set to be handed out by a jury chaired by Pedro Almodóvar (see the news). Here we give a non-exhaustive overview of the possible candidates.

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Starting with European filmmakers, the most favourable odds for punters are on Happy End [+see also:
film review
trailer
Q&A: Michael Haneke
film profile
]
by Austria’s Michael Haneke, Loveless [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Andrey Zvyagintsev
film profile
]
by Russia’s Andrey ZvyagintsevA Gentle Creature [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Sergei Loznitsa
film profile
]
by Ukraine’s Sergei Loznitsa, Thelma [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Eili Harboe
interview: Joachim Trier
film profile
]
by Norway’s Joachim Trier, Jupiter's Moon [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Kornél Mundruczó
film profile
]
 by Hungary’s Kornel Mundruczo, The Square [+see also:
film review
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interview: Ruben Östlund
film profile
]
by Sweden’s Ruben Ostlund and You Were Never Really Here [+see also:
film review
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Q&A: Lynne Ramsay
film profile
]
by Scotland’s Lynne Ramsay, to which we could add the French films Mektoub is Mektoub by Abdellatif Kechiche (see the news), Ismael’s Ghosts [+see also:
film review
trailer
Q&A: Arnaud Desplechin
film profile
]
by Arnaud Desplechin, Jeannette [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Bruno Dumont
film profile
]
by Bruno Dumont and The Workshop [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Laurent Cantet
film profile
]
by Laurent Cantet

For the USA, the most serious contenders seem to be The Beguiled by Sofia Coppola, Wonderstruck by Todd Haynes and Radegund by Terrence Malick (which has just been bought by UGC for French distribution), and even Downsizing by Alexander Payne.

Also well positioned in the list of “likely titles” are Une saison en France [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Mahamat-Saleh Haroun
film profile
]
by Chad’s Mahamat-Saleh Haroun, Radiance by Japan’s Naomi Kawase and Claire's Camera [+see also:
trailer
film profile
]
by South Korea’s Hong Sang-soo (toplined by Isabelle Huppert and shot during last year’s Cannes, during the actual festival). 

Will they be ready in time? This is the question people are asking about The Killing of a Sacred Deer [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Yorgos Lanthimos
film profile
]
by Greece’s Yorgos Lanthimos (who is apparently engrossed in the pre-production of his subsequent film) and Where Life is Born by Mexico’s Carlos Reygadas, and especially about features filmed in late 2016 or early 2017, such as April's Daughter by Mexico’s Michel Franco, Roma by his fellow countryman Alfonso Cuaron, Kings [+see also:
film review
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film profile
]
by Turkey’s Deniz Gamze Ergüven, Based on a True Story [+see also:
film review
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]
by Roman Polanski, and even the mysterious Burning by South Korea’s Lee Chang Dong (based on a work by Haruki Murakami). As for Zama [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Lucrecia Martel
film profile
]
 by Argentina’s Lucrecia Martel, it wouldn’t be able to take part in the competition whatever happens, as jury chair Pedro Almodóvar is involved as the film’s co-producer. Lastly, we can be certain that Luxembourg by Ukraine’s Myroslav Slaboshpitskiy (see the news) will not be ready by May.

Among the outsiders, we could mention Okja by South Korea’s Bong Joon-ho, When the Waves Are Gone [+see also:
film review
interview: Lav Diaz
film profile
]
by Filipino director Lav Diaz, Feng Zhong You Duo Yu Zuo De Yun by China’s Lou Ye (in a more mainstream register than his previous works, at least on the face of it), Strolling Invader by Japan’s Kiyoshi Kurosawa, Foxtrot by Israel’s Samuel Maoz, Abracadabra [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Pablo Berger
film profile
]
by Spaniard Pablo Berger, Mug [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Małgorzata Szumowska
film profile
]
 by Poland’s Malgorzata Szumowska, Under the Silver Lake by rising US star David Robert Mitchell, The Racer and the Jailbird [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Michael Roskam
film profile
]
by Belgium’s Michael R Roskam, Grain [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Semih Kaplanoğlu
film profile
]
by Turkey’s Semih Kaplanoglu (which has been in post-production for quite some time now), A Sort of Family by Argentina’s Diego Lerman, The Summit [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Santiago Mitre
film profile
]
by his fellow countryman Santiago Mitre, Monos [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile
]
by Uruguay’s Alejandro Landes, Western by Germany’s Valeska Grisebach, Lean on Pete by British director Andrew Haigh (see the news), Dark River [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Clio Barnard
film profile
]
by his fellow countrywoman Clio Barnard and, sticking up for the French side, Redoubtable by Michel Hazanavicius (see the news), BPM (Beats per Minute) [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Arnaud Valois
interview: Robin Campillo
film profile
]
by Robin Campillo and Barbara by Mathieu Amalric (see the news).

Other titles in the starting blocks include His Master's Voice [+see also:
trailer
film profile
]
by Hungary’s Gyorgy Palfi, Dovlatov by Russia’s Alexey German Jr, How to Talk to Girls at Parties [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile
]
by US director John Cameron Mitchell, Good Favour [+see also:
trailer
film profile
]
by Ireland’s Rebecca Daly, L'insulte by Lebanon’s Ziad Doueiri (see the news), Euphoria [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile
]
by Sweden’s Lisa Langseth, Love Me Not by Greece’s Alexandros Avranas and Eye on Juliet by Canada’s Kim Nguyen. Also assembling on the starting line are Oro by Spaniard Agustin Diaz Yanes (see the news), The Box by Venezuela’s Lorenzo Vigas, A ciambra [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Jonas Carpignano
film profile
]
by Italy’s Jonas Carpignano, Nina by Slovakia’s Juraj Lehotsky (see the news), A Storm in the Stars by Saudi Arabia’s Haifaa Al-Mansour (see the news), Les Carnivores by Belgian brothers Jérémie and Yannick Renier, Laissez bronzer les cadavres by Brussels-based French duo Hélène Cattet and Bruno Forzani (see the news), The Real Estate [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Cédric Kahn
film profile
]
by Sweden’s Mans Mansson and Axel Petersén, Beyond Words [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Urszula Antoniak
film profile
]
by Polish-Dutch director Urszula Antoniak, Frost [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Sharunas Bartas
film profile
]
by Lithuania’s Sharunas Bartas, Khibula by Georgia’s George OvashviliKoko-di Koko-da [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Johannes Nyholm
film profile
]
by Sweden’s Johannes Nyholm, the new, as-yet untitled film by Slovenia’s Olmo Omerzu and Under the Tree by Iceland’s Hafsteinn Gunnar Sigurdsson. And on the French side, there are Black Tide [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile
]
 by Erick Zonca, L'amant d'un jour by Philippe Garrel (see the news), Rodin [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile
]
by Jacques DoillonNos années folles by André Téchiné (see the news), Mrs. Hyde by Serge Bozon (see the news), Marvin [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile
]
by Anne Fontaine, Au revoir, là-haut by Albert Dupontel, Endangered Species [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile
]
by Gilles Bourdos and Demain et tous les autres jours by Noémie Lvovsky (see the news), whereas as things stand, The Guardians [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Xavier Beauvois
film profile
]
 by Xavier Beauvois (see the news) will likely still be in post-production. 

The feature debuts in with a chance of being selected include titles such as I Am Not a Witch [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Rungano Nyoni
film profile
]
by Zambia’s Rungano NyoniYesterday [+see also:
trailer
film profile
]
by Hungary’s Balint Kenyeres, On Chesil Beach by the UK’s Dominic Cooke, After the War by his fellow countrywoman Annarita Zambrano (see the news), La part sauvage by Belgium’s Guérin Van Der Vorst, The Gulf by Turkey’s Emre Yeksan, The Charmer [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Ardalan Esmaili
interview: Milad Alami
film profile
]
by Iran’s Milad Alami and, for France, If You Saw His Heart [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile
]
by Joan Chemla, Ava [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Léa Mysius
film profile
]
by Léa Mysius (see the news), Bloody Milk [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Hubert Charuel
film profile
]
 by Hubert CharuelLa fête est finie [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Marie Garel-Weiss
film profile
]
 by Marie Garel Weiss, Cornelius, the Howling Miller [+see also:
trailer
film profile
]
by Yann Le Quellec (see the news), Jusqu'à la garde by Xavier Legrand (news) and Luna by Elsa Dirringer.

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(Translated from French)

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