After a week and a half of Mediterranean sun, fun and countless Aperol Spritzs, the Venice Film Festival came to a close this evening, with the annual awards ceremony ahead of closing film “The Magnificent Seven.” And as usual, the jury (headed this year by “Skyfall” and “American Beauty” director Sam Mendes) delivered some surprises.
The Golden Lion, the top prize, went to Lav Diaz’s “The Woman Who Left,” something of a surprise choice, given its three-and-a-half hour length, and Diaz not being the most accessible of filmmakers. Perhaps it was because the film was the same length that Mendes’ “Spectre” felt like? Meanwhile, Tom Ford’s “Nocturnal Animals” (review) took the Silver Lion Grand Jury Prize, the best director trophy was split between Amat Escalante for “The Untamed” and veteran Andrei Konchalovsky for “Paradise” (reviews of the latter two coming soon). Oscar Martinez took Best Actor for “The Distinguished Citizen.”
READ MORE: Tense, Nasty ‘Hounds Of Love’ Is An Eyecatching Debut [Venice Review]
Perhaps of more interest to U.S. awards watchers was a victory for Emma Stone in “La La Land” (review), who won out in a tough field also including fellow A-listers Natalie Portman and Amy Adams. It’s likely to make her the front-runner for the eventual Oscar race. Portman starrer “Jackie” (review) didn’t go empty handed though, with the film winning Best Screenplay for writer Noah Oppenheim. Francois Ozon’s “Frantz” won Best Young Actor for Paula Beer, and more controversially, Amir Lily Amirpour’s ‘The Bad Batch” (review) took a Special Jury Prize, despite a mostly hostile reaction from critics.
As ever, it’s an interesting selection. Check out the full list of winners below, and come back Monday to see what our critic Jessica Kiang thought was the best and worst of the festival.
Official Competition
Golden Lion – “The Woman Who Left”
Silver Lion: Grand Jury Prize – “Nocturnal Animals”
Best Director – Amat Escalante for “The Untamed”/Andrei Konchalovsky for “Paradise.”
Best Actress – Emma Stone for “La La Land”
Best Actor – Oscar Martinez for “The Distinguished Citizen”
Best Screenplay – Noah Oppenheim for “Jackie”
Best Young Actor – Paula Beer for “Frantz”
Special Jury Prize – “The Bad Batch”
Best First Film (all sections) – “The Last Of Us”
Orrizonti
Best Film – “Liberami”
Best Director – Fien Troch for “Home”
Special Jury Prize – Reha Erdem for “Big Big World”
Best Actor – Nuno Lopse for “Sao Jorge”
Best Actress – Ruth Diaz for “The Fury Of A Patient Man”
Best Screenplay – Wang Bing for “Bitter Money”