Cannes 2013: ScreenAnarchy Says Au Revoir with All Our Reviews and Top Picks

It's always a melancholy feeling saying farewell to another year of the Cannes Film Festival wraps up for another year. It was a particularly excellent year for films on the Croisette and you'll be reading plenty more about them as they continue to make their way across the pond. Brian Clark and I tried to keep things locked down on the review front. We've got links to all our reviews, previews, and news features for you here. Scroll down from there to get our top picks from the festival and some further thouhts. Enjoy!

The Competition Reviews
BEHIND THE CANDELABRA Plays A Familiar Tune by Ryland
BLUE IS THE WARMEST COLOR Does Coming-Of-Age With Phenomenal NSFW Aplomb by Ryland
BORGMAN Fiendishly Recounts The Time The Devil Went Up To Holland by Brian
Coming to America is Gorgeous, But Slow Business in James Gray's THE IMMIGRANT by Brian
INSIDE LLEWYN DAVIS by Ryland
First Impression: INSIDE LLEWYN DAVIS Makes the Bad Times Fun by Ryland
NEBRASKA is a Long Drive with a Charming Destination by Ryland
ONLY GOD FORGIVES and the Art of Violence by Ryland
First Impression: ONLY GOD FORGIVES Is A Hyper-Violent Feast For The Senses by Ryland
Asghar Farhadi's THE PAST Is An Intense, Mesmerizing Excavation Of Secrets And Lies by Brian
Takashi Miike's SHIELD OF STRAW Gets Middling Results From High Concept by Brian
Ozon's YOUNG AND BEAUTIFUL Finds New Problems With Sexual Awakenings by Brian

Un Certain Regard Reviews
Claire Denis' THE BASTARDS Throws A Bleak, Sneaky Sucker Punch by Brian
THE BLING RING Pawns Character for Coolness by Ryland

Out of Competition Reviews
BLOOD TIES Knots Up 1970s New York by Ryland

Directors' Fortnight Reviews
BLUE RUIN Or, Revenge Is A Pain In The Ass by Brian
JODOROWSKY'S DUNE Delightfully Journeys Into The Brilliance That Might Have Been by Ryland
Sci-Fi Horror Flick LAST DAYS ON MARS Is As Lifeless As The Planet Itself by Brian
Jean-Luc Godard Does 3-D In THE THREE DISASTERS, And No, James Cameron Will Not Be Spared by Brian
Anurag Kashyap's UGLY Is a Riveting Thriller About Awful Things by Brian

Critics Week Reviws
The Agony, Ecstasy of Masked Wrestling Gets Film Noir Treatment In OUR HEROES ARE DEAD TONIGHT by Brian

News and Features
All the Awards
Dark Sky Films And Snowfort Pictures Gaze Together With STARRY EYES
Weinsteins Trot Out Lineup, Slightly Less Exciting Than Last Year
Quinzaine Organizers Denounce Iranian Filmmaker
Why Would Someone Want To Blow Up Christoph Waltz?

Preview Series
Part 1: Critics' Week and Directors' Fortnight Sidebars
Part 2: The Official Competition
Part 3: Midnight, Un Certain Regard, and Everything Else


What was your overall favorite film of the fest?
Brian: Claire Denis' The Bastards has stuck with me the most -- a gorgeous, bleak, nasty piece of genre work.
Ryland: Call it divisive, call it dull, call it self-indulgent... I don't care. Refn's Only God Forgives was the best movie I saw at Cannes and now tops my list for year's best.

What was your favorite film in the main competition?
Brian: The Past was great, and not only showed that Asghar Farhadi does drama better than almost anyone, but also that he's growing as a visual filmmaker.

What was your favorite film NOT in the main competition?
Ryland: Not only was it the most interesting film of the festival, but Jodorowsky's Dune was also the funniest film I saw at Cannes.

What film are you most disappointed you missed?
Brian: I skipped Blue is the Warmest Color because of the runtime and some screening conflicts, but then everyone told me that a) it was an amazing film and b) it was extremely sexy. Whoops!
Ryland: Erik Matti's On The Job didn't screen until the day I left so I was super bummed to miss it. Luckily we just learned Well Go will be putting it out in the States!

What film surprised you the most? (Either good or bad)
Brian: Based on James Gray's other work, I expected to be riveted by The Immigrant. Instead it made me sleepy.
Ryland: When I spotted a 3-hour French lesbian drama on the program I thought there was no way I would sit through Blue is the Warmest Color (aka La vie D'Adele). A bit of early buzz and some good screening schedule luck and the film became my second favorite film of the fest and went on to (deservedly) win the Palme d'Or.

Who gave the most stunning performance?
Brian: So many good performances, but I think the most memorable for me was Macon Blair in Blue Ruin, who was a big part of why the film was able to stand head and shoulders above most other ho-hum revenge stories.
Ryland: How can I not choose Adele Exarchopoulos for her unbelievably tender turn in Blue is the Warmest Color?

What was your favorite non-film moment of the fest?
Brian: I did a debate on Radio-Television-Swiss, in French, with critic Rafael Wolf and Les Caheirs du Cinema critic Charlotte Garson. I was terrified because of my subpar French, but everyone at least pretended to understand what I said... though I'm sure my grammar was at the level of a first grader.
Ryland: The band of American online critics at Cannes is a small one - and rather merry one at that. It was great to have good friends there to battle the numerous line frustrations with together (both cinematic and alcoholic).

Any last thoughts on Cannes 2013?
Brian: Special shout-out to Borgman, which was not only a lot of fun, but also had the best title of any film at the festival. Now waiting for the sequel, Borgmania.
Ryland: Even though I loved Blue is the Warmest Color, we all know Steve was obviously Borgmaned out of his first choice. Let's face it, they shoulda gone Borgman.