Maiwenn presents her "Polisse" film on day three of Cannes festival

 May 14, 2011 - 14:37 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net - Female directors, famously shut out of the Cannes film festival's main competition in 2010, dominated the opening of this year's event with dark tales of murder, prostitution, rape and suicide.

Three of four women vying for the coveted Palme d'Or for best picture in Cannes screened their movies to the press in the first two days, and, while dividing critics and varying widely in style, they shared a disturbing vision of the world.

French actress and film maker Maiwenn was the latest woman in competition this year to present her film "Polisse" on May 13, a hard-hitting drama about a close-knit team of police officers in the Child Protection Unit (CPU), Reuters reported.

"Polisse," based on true stories, offers a disturbing glimpse into child pornography, incest, sexual abuse and abandonment, and examines how the police struggle and ultimately fail to separate their personal and professional lives.

"Habemus Papam" film by Italian director Nanni Moretti drew laughter and healthy applause from critics on day three of the Cannes film festival, where the official selection of movies has so far leaned in the direction of dark realism and social commentary.

Farcical and humane, Habemus Papam (We Have a Pope) casts wide open the door of the notoriously secretive Holy See, as red-robed cardinals converge in a locked chamber to elect a pope under the expectant gaze of millions of Catholics. When the votes are counted and white smoke billows from the Vatican's dome, the pope-elect played by French actor Michel Piccoli, 85, is led to a balcony to address the faithful -- only to freeze up before his momentous task, paralyzed by anxiety.

"The image that struck me the most was that of a newly elected pope a few meters from the (Vatican's) balcony, unable to advance," Piccoli told journalists after the screening.