What, no special programming for Shrek’s 20th anniversary? The Cannes Film Festival has announced the lineup for its 2021 festivities, with a record 24 films in contention for the top Palme d’Or prize. The New York Times reports that Wes Anderson’s long-delayed The French Dispatch, Sean Penn’s con artist-centric Flag Day, and Leos Carax’s bizarre musical-comedy Annette are among the competing films, a list that includes new dramas from directors Sean Baker and Paul Verhoeven. Out of competition, Cannes will also be premiering a Todd Haynes–directed documentary about the Velvet Underground, an unofficial biopic about Céline Dion’s life, Oliver Stone’s documentary about the JFK assassination, and an international revenge drama starring Matt Damon in his finest Bass Pro Shops apparel. Despite pandemic delays, Cannes will be held in-person this year from July 6 to 17. Read on for the full lineup.
In Competition
Annette, Leos Carax (France)
The Story of My Wife, Ildikó Enyedi (Hungary)
Benedetta, Paul Verhoeven (Netherlands)
Bergman Island, Mia-Hansen-Love (France)
Drive My Car, Rysuke Hamaguchi (Japan)
Ha’Berech (Ahed’s Knee), Nadav Lapid (Israel)
Casablanca Beats, Nabil Ayouch (Morocco)
Compartment No. 6, Juho Kuosmanen (Finland)
The Worst Person in the World, Joachim Trier (Norway)
La fracture, Catherine Corsini (France)
The Restless, Joachim Lafosse (Belgium)
Paris 13th District, Jacques Audiard (France)
Lingui, Mahamat-Saleh Haroun (Chad)
Memoria, Apichatpong Weerasethakul (Thailand)
Nitram, Justin Kurzel (Australia)
France, Bruno Dumont (France)
Petrov’s Flu, Kirill Serebrennikov (Russia)
Red Rocket, Sean Baker (U.S.)
Flag Day, Sean Penn (U.S.)
The French Dispatch, Wes Anderson (U.S.)
Titane, Julia Ducournau (France)
Tre Piani, Nanni Moretti (Italy)
Tout s’est bien passé, François Ozon (France)
A Hero, Asghar Farhadi (Iran)
Out of Competition
De son vivant, Emmanuelle Bercot (France)
Emergency Declaration, Han Jae-Rim (Korea)
The Velvet Underground, Todd Haynes (U.S.)
Bac Nord, Cédric Jimenez (France)
Aline, the Voice of Love, Valérie Lemercier (France)
Stillwater, Tom McCarthy (U.S.)
Cannes Premiere
Hold Me Tight, Mathieu Amalric (France)
Cow, Andrea Arnold (U.K.)
Love Songs for Tough Guys, Samuel Benchetrit (France)
Deception, Arnaud Desplechin (France)
Jane par Charlotte, Charlotte Gainsbourg (France)
In Front of Your Face, Hong Sang-Soo (Korea)
Mothering Sunday, Eva Husson (France)
Evolution, Kornél Mundruczo (Hungary)
Val, Ting Poo, Leo Scott (U.S.)
JFK Revisited: Through the Looking Glass, Oliver Stone (U.S.)