79th Venice Film Festival: A Recap

Film festival season is in full swing with the 79th Annual Venice Film Festival beginning on Aug. 28 and ending on Sept. 10. The event hosted several new movies the public can expect to see in theaters soon, with first reviews and moments at the festival that may set the stage for how the public receives these films. Here’s a recap of this year's film festival.

The elephant in the room at the festival, and the film that received the most press was undoubtedly Olivia Wilde’s sophomore film, “Don’t Worry Darling.” The film stars Florence Pugh and Harry Styles as the lead couple, Alice and Jack, and supporting actors Chris Pine, Gemma Chan and Nick Kroll. This movie has been fraught with controversy for several different reasons, including questions about Styles and Wilde’s relationship on and off set, allegations of unprofessionalism while filming, inconsistencies about how and why Shia LaBeouf left the film and issues with the movie’s promotion by Wilde – which Pugh has alluded to being uncomfortable with. The months of drama surrounding the film lead up to tension between the cast members at the film festival during “Don’t Worry Darling”’s cast panel, movie screening and red carpet appearance. Moreover, this drama overshadowed the movie itself, which has received mixed reviews from critics thus far. “Don’t Worry Darling” will be released on Sept. 23.

Aside from “Don’t Worry Darling,'' several other movies made their debuts. “The Whale,” starring Brendan Fraser and Sadie Sink, is a Hollywood comeback for Fraser. The film focuses on his character Charlie, who is an isolated and severely obese English teacher. The plot follows his attempt to reconnect with his estranged daughter (played by Sink). At the film festival, Fraser received a personal, six-minute standing ovation, which brought him to tears. Reviews have been mostly positive for this film thus far, although debate online about Fraser’s character and fatphobia may sway viewers upon its release. 

Another film at the festival that received acclaim from critics is “Blonde,” the story of Marilyn Monroe directed by Andrew Dominik. Ana de Armas stars as Monroe with co-stars Lucy DeVito and Garret Dillahunt, with Brad Pitt as one of the producers of the film. At the film festival, “Blonde” received a 14-minute standing ovation, which was one of the longest of the festival. Armas’ transformation into Monroe was one of the takeaways from this film which has her working with a dialect coach for a year in order to prepare for the role. This film is rated NC-17 and debuts in theaters Sept. 16, before it moves to Netflix on Sept. 23.

One of the most highly rated films of the festival thus far is “The Banshees of Inisherin” starring Colin Farrell, Brendan Gleeson and Kelly Condon, and directed by Martin McDonagh. The film has a 100% on Rotten Tomatoes and an 89% Metacritic score following its debut at the festival. This film is about two lifelong friends on a small island off the coast of Ireland during the Irish Civil War. The movie took home awards for Best Actor (Colin Farrell) and Best Screenplay with a 15-minute standing ovation at the festival, making it one of the longest the festival has seen this year. “The Banshees of Inisherin” will be available on Oct. 21.

Other notable films present this year include “Bones and All” with Timothee Chalamet and Taylor Russell, directed by Luca Guadagnino; “White Noise” starring Adam Driver, Greta Gerwig and Don Cheadle, directed by Noah Baumbach; “Pearl” starring Mia Goth, directed by Ti West and more. 

Erin-Leigh HoffmanVenice Film Festival, Recap, Film, VeniceComment