May is here, spring has sprung, and film fans from around the world are beginning to pack their bags, as in a couple short weeks they will be headed to the south of France for the Cannes Film Festival. Images and clips from the various films unspooling on the Croisette will continue to drip out until the kick off on May 16th, and today we’ve rounded up a few of the posters that have made their way online.
First up, intense Russian filmmaker Sergei Loznitsa returns to Cannes after delivering the downer “My Joy” in 2010, with his latest feature “In The Fog.” Based on the Russian novel, the story is a WWII tale set in German-occupied Russia, where an innocent man is accused of collaborating with the enemy and two men are ordered to kill him. Desperate to clear his name, the man is faced with a moral choice during an immoral time.
Less heavy, but no less dramatic, Im Sang-soo also returns after two years to the Croisette, following up “The Housemaid” with “The Taste Of Money.” The story focuses on Youngjak, the secretary of Mrs. Baek, who is the leader of a powerful Korean industrial giant. Tasked with looking after the affairs of this private and morally questionable family, Youngjak is soon caught in a spiral of domination and secrets, lost between his principles and the possibility of rapid career advancement to a more comfortable life. Youngjak must choose sides to survive in this world where money, sex and power are kings.
Finally, over in the Directors’ Fortnight sidebar, Zhang Ziyi will lead the cast in another retelling of “Dangerous Liaisons” directed by Jin-ho Hur. This version relocates the events of Choderlos de Laclos’ novel to 1930s Shanghai where the glamorous libertine Mo Jieyu runs into womanizer Xie Yifan, an ex-boyfriend who’s never stopped loving her, and persuades him to play a treacherous game. She must seduce the innocent and naïve Du Fenyu and then dump her. But the game becomes increasingly dangerous as Xie falls in love with Du. Hearts will be broken, undoubtedly.
The Cannes Film Festival runs from May 16-27 and the Director’s Fortnight from May 17-27. Posters below. [Kinopoisk]