Angelina Jolie, Kristen Stewart or Ryan Gosling won't be walking the iconic red carpet at the Cannes Film Festival this year. Nor will Lionsgate be holding another glamorous shindig with J-Law, Josh Hutcherson and Liam Hemsworth on hand to celebrate it's blockbuster “Hunger Games” franchise. And, thankfully, we won't have the “Expendables” crew pretending to drive a tank down la Croisette. That being said, the 68th Festival du Cannes may have more recognizable Hollywood or Hollywood-adjacent stars on hand than in recent memory. There are at least eight English-language films in competition and studio fare such as Pixar's “Inside Out,” “Mad Max: Fury Road” and Woody Allen's latest, “Irrational Man,” are screening as well. Basically, if you're a movie fan, you should pay attention because many of the films we'll be reporting on won't just hit your local art house, but mega-multiplex as well.
HitFix's Kris Tapley has already chronicled Cannes' long history with Oscar and the potential players debuting this year, but there's much more on tap. Gasper Noe's “Love” is already being hyped as the sex-crazed movie everyone thought Lars Von Trier's “Nymphomaniac” was going to be. There is a legitimate Amy Winehouse documentary that is already ruffling feathers before its debut (“Amy”). Colin Farrell is kicking off a “True Detective” summer comeback with a role in the somewhat horrific-sounding “The Lobster.” Natalie Portman is bravely making her directorial debut in front of the most vicious bunch of critics you ever did see. And John C. Reilly has not one, but three movies screening during the festival. Oh, and how about Emily Blunt, Charlize Theron, Emma Stone, Josh Brolin, Marion Cotillard, Michael Fassbender, Cate Blanchett, Matthew McConaughey and none other than Amy “freakin'” Poehler posing for the photogs?
We'll be chronicling it all on HitFix so make sure to keep checking here at In Contention or follow @HitFixGregory for the latest updates (especially if you're an early riser). Get a head start by checking out the 19 movies movies you need to pay attention to during this year's festival in the embedded gallery below.
What movies are you most interested in hearing about from Cannes? Share your thoughts in the comments section.