This meandering documentary about the Cannes Film Festival, made by Time's film critic Richard Schickel, consists almost exclusively of anecdotes and interviews with directors, some actors, and (naturelment) a lot of critics. Though this makes the film visually quite dull, some of the stories are interesting, and you do get a sense of Cannes' past glory as the first truly international film marketplace.
But whatever charm the festival had in its heyday could not survive its own success, and today the "festival" seems like a preview of some hedonist's outer circle of Hell -- most enjoyable from a continent's remove, at least.
But whatever charm the festival had in its heyday could not survive its own success, and today the "festival" seems like a preview of some hedonist's outer circle of Hell -- most enjoyable from a continent's remove, at least.