2025 Cannes Film Festival Recap

The Cannes Film Festival is an annual film festival held in Cannes, France, and it is the largest and one of the most well-known film festivals in the world. This festival premieres new films of all different genres from around the globe. The 78th Cannes Film Festival's Palme d'Or, the top prize at the festival, was awarded to Jafar Panahi's It Was Just an Accident, which is being distributed by NEON and will release later this year. While I did not attend the festival in person this year, I was fortunate enough to be sent digital screeners to cover it as a member of the press for a second time. I watched eight different films that premiered at the 78th Cannes Film Festival, which I will be reviewing here! I hope you check out all these films when they release in the future!

Official Competition:

Film #1: The Phoenician Scheme

To start this review off, I did not actually receive a screener for this film but rather attended a press screening in Philadelphia for the film before its Cannes premiere. The Phoenician Scheme, Wes Anderson’s latest film, is a very solid espionage black comedy film that probably won’t sway you one way or the other about how you feel about Wes Anderson. The film has some very funny moments that are definitely worth seeing with a crowd. This film explores themes of society and religion; it really feels like Wes Anderson is exploring the state of the world, especially in this film. This is a less ensemble film than I initially would have thought and is more of a trio film with Benicio del Toro, Mia Threapleton, and Michael Cera in the lead roles. Each, I feel, works perfectly in a Wes Anderson film, but especially Michael Cera. The film feels like a Wes Anderson film with his distinct style, but the cinematography and set design were especially great. The film never reaches the highs of some of his previous work, but if you are into Wes Anderson, you will probably have a good time with this!

Review: 3.5/5 Stars

Focus Features holds the United States distribution rights, and the film is set to release wide in U.S. theaters on June 6, 2025

Un Certain Regard:

Film #2: Caravan

Caravan, Czech director Zuzana Kirchnerová’s feature debut, is a poignant road-trip film focusing on a single mom’s experience with her son who has Down syndrome. The film is a moving sort of coming-of-age story for both a mom and child as they try to navigate life and embark on a vacation. This film is grounded in its approach, and there are emotional moments that will hit you in the feels, especially towards the end. The film, as a road-trip film, is quite conventional and meanders a little more than I would like, but there seems to be a purpose in each vignette told. This is a very solid directorial debut from Kirchnerová, who certainly knows how to make her characters grounded with compassion and raw emotion.

Review: 3.5/5 Stars

The Film is Still Seeking U.S. Distribution, International Sales: Alpha Violet

Film #3: Once Upon a Time in Gaza- Won 2025 Un Certain Regard Best Directing Prize

Once Upon a Time in Gaza, directed by Tarzan and Arab Nasser, never truly compelled me with its story, even though there are some good moments throughout. Starting the film in Gaza in 2007, the film is a mixture of a buddy film, film-within-a-film, and a political look at Gaza, and there are certainly parallels to the present day. However, the film is sort of on the surface most of the film, especially in the second act where the film-within-a-film aspect comes into play. The film didn’t necessarily hit the highs I was expecting it might towards the beginning of the film. While I was not in love with this film, I certainly, though, look forward to seeing what these directors do next!

Review: 3/5 Stars

The Film is Still Seeking U.S. Distribution, International Sales: The Party Film Sales

Film #4: Love Me Tender

Love Me Tender is a solid, but overly long drama about a woman fighting for custody of her son. The film explores many themes around custody battles and parenthood in general. The exploration of these complex topics is done with a lot of nuance and humanity. What helps this film a lot is the performance by Vicky Krieps, which is really great. Her performance is emotional, raw, and genuinely human. The film suffers ultimately from its runtime and the film meandering, especially in the second half. There are certain scenes that could have been trimmed, and there are subplots that really don’t add anything to the story. That being said, this is still a very good film that ultimately gets bogged down by a weak screenplay.

Review: 3.5/5 Stars

The Film is Still Seeking U.S. Distribution, International Sales: Be For Films

Cannes Critics' Week:

Film #5: Nino- Lead Actor Theodor Pellerin Won 2025 Cannes Critics' Week Rising Star Award

Nino emotionally resonated with me more than I would have thought. The film follows Nino, played by Théodore Pellerin in the title role, as he faces a major life challenge. It takes place over a three-day weekend and follows his everyday life in such a raw and human way. All of the challenges and all of the joys of human life are captured on screen. Théodore Pellerin delivers an excellent, introspective performance and gives one of the best indie performances I have seen this year. This film is on a smaller scale, both in scope and story, but there is an emotional heart to the film, and the way in which it presents life in the face of challenges resonated with me!

Review: 4/5 Stars

The Film is Still Seeking U.S. Distribution, International Sales: The Party Film Sales

Film #6: A Useful Ghost- Won the 2025 Cannes Critics' Week Grand Prize

Thai cinema returns for the first time in 10 years to the Cannes Film Festival in one of its sidebar programs, Cannes Critics’ Week. A Useful Ghost is certainly one of the most unique premises you will see on screen this year. This supernatural film combines elements of dark comedy, fantasy, and drama in a love story where a spirit possesses a vacuum cleaner. This layered story is filled with intriguing themes about capitalism, pollution, and love in the unlikeliest places. The performances as well, especially from Davika Hoorne, are very solid. However, the film is a little too long for its own good at a little over 2 hours, and the screenplay is filled with many different ideas, some of which are not conveyed to the fullest extent, in my opinion. The ending also ends quite suddenly, which I wasn’t a huge fan of. While there are some negatives, this is a solid film with one of the most singular visions of the year!

Review: 3.5/5 Stars

The Film is Still Seeking U.S. Distribution, International Sales: Best Friend Forever

Directors' Fortnight:

Film #7: Militantropos

Militantropos is a documentary that follows the lives of Ukrainian soldiers, people that are evacuating, and citizens that are trying to live normal lives. The documentary showcases harrowing footage of people on the ground in Ukraine as their everyday lives are destroyed by Russia and their troops and the will to fight back. The three documentarians keep the audience at a distance, and there really is no central narrative. That doesn’t mean the footage and overall documentary is ineffective; it just never reaches a point where I connected completely with it. Militantropos, while keeping the audience at a distance, is still beautifully shot and tells an important story of what the war is actually like for people in Ukraine.

Review: 3/5 Stars

The Film is Still Seeking U.S. Distribution, International Sales: Square Eyes

ACID Cannes 2025:

Film #8: Put Your Soul on Your Hand and Walk

While Put Your Soul on Your Hand and Walk premiered in ACID, a Cannes Film Festival parallel section, this film was the best film I saw during the festival. It is an absolutely heartbreaking documentary and an essential one for every single person to watch if given the opportunity. The film is a look at the war in Gaza through the eyes of Fatem, a young Palestinian living through the bombs and documenting the war. It is a truly horrifying look at the war itself and everything going on in Gaza as her family has to suffer through starvation, bombs being dropped, and more. But the film eventually becomes more tragic as, after the film gets selected for the Cannes Film Festival, a day later Fatem and her family are assassinated following an Israeli airstrike. I cannot put into words the anger, sadness, and all that I felt during my viewing of the film. It is undoubtedly one of the best documentaries and films of the year so far and a film that will stick with me for a very long time.

Review: 4.5/5 Stars (My Favorite of the 8 Films)

The Film is Still Seeking U.S. Distribution, International Sales: Cercamon

Want more Cannes Film Festival Coverage? Check out my 2024 Cannes Film Festival Recap Here: https://owenmwilczek.wixsite.com/lightscamerafilms/post/2024-cannes-film-festival-recap