Cannes 2021: ‘Annette’ and Spike Lee’s jury kick off 74th edition of film festival

But Lee’s presence was hard to ignore. His face as Mars Blackmon from his 1986 feature film debut “She’s Gotta Have It” (which premiered at Cannes) adorns this year’s poster at the festival central hub, the Palais des Festivals. Lee is the first Black person to ever lead Cannes’ prestigious jury. In his first comments, in response to a question from Chaz Ebert, widow of Roger Ebert, Lee spoke about how little has changed since 1989’s “Do the Right Thing” — which made a controversial debut at Cannes.

“When you see brother Eric Garner, when you see king George Floyd murdered, lynched, I think of Ray (Radio) Raheem,” Lee said, referring to the “Do the Right Thing” character. After 30-plus years, you’d “think and hope,’’ Lee said, “that Black people would have stopped being hunted down like animals.”

Much of the talk on Tuesday at Cannes centered on injustice and survival. That the festival was even happening, after last year’s edition was canceled, was a surprise to some. Maggie Gyllenhaal, who’ll see the 24 films in competition for the Palme as a member of the jury over the next 12 days, said it will be her first time in a movie theater in 15 months. When “Parasite” actor Song Kang Ho was invited to be a juror, he said, “I thought: Will there really be a festival?”

“The fact that we’re here today, it’s really a miracle,” said Song.

Still, much of the usual pomp is toned down this year. There’s a relative dearth of promotion up and down Cannes’ oceanfront promenade, the Croisette, and Hollywood has less of a role than in years past. Brazilian director Kleber Mendonça Filho (”Bacurau”), a juror, added that in some parts of the world, cinema is under siege. In President Jair Bolsonaro’s Brazil, he said, the national cinematheque has been closed and its staff dismantled.

“This is a very clear demonstration of contempt for cinema and for culture,” said Filho, who noted the tragedy of Brazil reaching 500,000 dead from COVID-19 when, he said, many thousands could have been saved by a stronger governmental response.

That conversation was prompted in part by a Georgian journalist who asked jury members about resistance. Russia invaded the former Soviet republic in 2008.

“The world is run by gangsters,” said Lee, listing former U.S. President Donald Trump, Bolsonaro and Russian President Vladimir Putin.

In that context, the regular topics of concern at Cannes were perhaps dwarfed. But the jurors made passionate cases for the future of movies — and a more inclusive future. This year’s competition lineup includes a Cannes-high four female filmmakers, but they still make up a fraction of the 24 filmmakers vying for the Palme.

“I think when women are listening to themselves and really expressing themselves, even inside, about a very, very male culture, we make movies differently. We tell stories differently,” said Gyllenhaal. She recalled watching Jane Campion’s “The Piano” (the lone film directed by a woman to ever win the Palme) as formative and unfiltered. “It just went in straight.”

Pedro Almodovar, left, presents Jodi Foster with an honorary Palme d’Or at the opening ceremony of the 74th international film festival, Cannes
 
| Photo Credit: Vianney Le Caer