You can add Pablo Larrain’s new film, “Spencer,” to what I keep hearing will be an absolutely astonishing 2021 Venice Film Festival. The entire lineup is set to be announced next week.
With Denis Villeneuve’s “Dune” and Jane Campion’s “The Power of Dog” also Venice-bound, it all begs us to ask the question; will Venice outshine Cannes this year? This is having some in the industry buzzing, but don’t be fooled, Cannes is still the Mecca of cinema. If you’re looking for Oscar-buzz then, yeah, maybe Venice wins out, but, in terms of pure world cinema quality, Cannes always gets the top spot.
But Venice this year …
If you're not festival-ed out yet, the Venice lineup is just over a week away. I am continuing on with my Venice predictions, updated below, and it is looking like it will be a mighty fine edition filled with big names. Just look at some of the titles destined for the Lido this year:
"Blonde" - Andrew Dominik
”Madres Paraleles” - Pedro Almodovar
"The Power of the Dog" - Jane Campion
"Triangle of Sadness" - Ruben Ostlund
"The Card Counter" - Paul Schrader
”Last Night in Soho” - Edgar Wright
"The Hand of God" - Paolo Sorrentino
"Spencer" - Pablo Larrain
”Fire” - Claire Denis
"Driftwood" - Michel Franco
"Il buco" - Michelangelo Frammartino
“Another World” - Stephane Brizé
"Mona Lisa and the Blood Moon" - Ana Lily Amirpour
”Official Competition” - Gaston Duprat, Mariano Cohn
”Freaks Out” - Gabrielle Mainetti
“Mali Twist” - Robert Guédiguian
“Veneciafrenia” - Alex la Iglesias
“Lost Illusions” - Xavier Gianolli
“Henrico’s Farm” - Lav Diaz