The 81st Venice Film Festival is set to dazzle cinema lovers with a spectacular lineup of high-profile films and a star-studded cast. Announced by artistic director Alberto Barbera and the new president of the Venice Biennale, Pietrangelo Buttafuoco, this year’s festival promises to be a rich mix of genres, established names and potential discoveries.
The main attraction of this festival is the music of Todd Phillips. Joker 2: Folie a DoMusical sequel to the 2019 hit JokerThe film, starring Lady Gaga and Joaquin Phoenix, is in the running for the top prize. Another major contender is Luca Guadagnino’s film. WeirdAdaptation of William S. Burroughs’ novel, starring Daniel Craig as a heroin-addicted American expatriate in Mexico. Drew Starkey co-stars as the object of his obsession.
The festival opened with Tim Burton. Beetlejuice BeetlejuiceThe sequel to his 1988 classic, starring Michael Keaton, Winona Ryder and Monica Bellucci. Out of competition highlights include Jon Watts’ action comedy The WolfsStarring George Clooney and Brad Pitt, and Harmony Korine’s thriller Infant aggression,
Pedro Almodóvar’s first English-language film, An adjoining roomStarring Julianne Moore and Tilda Swinton and is expected to make a significant impact. The film builds on Almodovar’s success Parallel MothersIn which Penelope Cruz won the Best Actress award at Venice.
Pablo LarraÃn returns MariaBiopic of opera singer Maria Callas, starring Angelina Jolie. Known for her compelling portrayals of historical figures, LarraÃn’s previous works include Wigs And Jackie It also premiered in Venice.
Brady Corbett The Brutalist It chronicles the life of Holocaust survivor and architect Laszlo Toth, played by Adrien Brody. The film’s cast includes Felicity Jones, Joe Alwyn and Guy Pearce. Corbet’s previous films Childhood of a leader And Vox Lux Also exhibited in Venice.
Justin Kurzel Order It stars Jude Law and Nicholas Hoult in a story about a white supremacist organization in the 1980s, while Helena Reijnen is the voice of Baby girlAn erotic thriller starring Nicole Kidman, Antonio Banderas and Harris Dickinson adds to the variety of the competition.
Alfonso Cuarón’s Apple TV+ series DisclaimerStarring Cate Blanchett and Kevin Kline and Joe Wright son of m. centuryAbout Benito Mussolini, one of the festival’s TV presentations.
This year’s international jury will be headed by French veteran star Isabelle Huppert, who will also be joined by James Gray, Andrew Haigh, Agnieszka Holland, Kleber Mendonça Filho, Abderrahmane Sissako, Giuseppe Tornatore, Julia von Heinz and Zhang Ziyi.
Here is the complete list for this year:
Competition
An adjoining roomPedro Almodovar (Spain)
the campo di battagliaGianni Amelio (Italy)
After the birth of the childLudovic Boukherma, Zoran Boukherma (France)
The BrutalistBrady Corbett (UK)
cool sonDelphine Coulin, Muriel Coulin (France)
VermiglioMaura Delpero (Italy, France, Belgium)
Sicilian LettersFabio Grassadonia, Antonio Piazza (Italy, France)
WeirdLuca Guadagnino (Italy, USA)
LoveDag Johan Haugerud (Norway)
aprilDea Kulumbegashvili (Georgia, France, Italy)
OrderJustin Kurzel (Canada)
MariaPablo Larrain (Italy, Germany)
Trois AmisEmmanuelle Mouret (France)
Kill the JockeyLuis Ortega (Argentina, Spain)
Joker: Folie a DoTodd Phillips (USA)
Baby girlHelena Region (USA)
I’m still hereWalter Sales (Brazil, France)
Diva FuturaGiulia Louise Steigerwalt (Italy)
CropAthina Rachel Tsangari (U.K., Germany, Greece, France, U.S.)
Youth – HomecomingWang Bing (France, Luxembourg, Netherlands)
Stranger EyesYeo Siew Hua (Singapore, Taipei, France, USA)
Out of competition – Fantasy
Beetlejuice BeetlejuiceTim Burton (US, UK) – opening film
Loreto AmericanoPupi Avati (Italy) – closing film
il tempo che si voleFrancesca Comencini (Italy, France)
PhantosmiaLav Diaz (Philippines)
MaldororFabrice du Welz (Belgium, France)
Broken RageTakeshi Kitano (Japan)
Infant aggressionHarmony Korine (USA)
CloudKurosawa Kiyoshi (Japan)
FinalizationClaude Lelouch (France)
The WolfsJohn Watts (USA)
From the Capitoline to the SecondMarco Bellocchio (Italy)
Allegory CitadineAlice Rohrwacher, JR (France)
Out of competition – Series
DisclaimerAlfonso Cuaron (UK, US)
New YearRodrigo Sorogoyen del Amo, Sandra Romero, David Martin de los Santos (Spain)
families like oursThomas Vinterberg (Denmark, France, Sweden, Czech Republic, Norway, Germany)
M: Son of the CenturyJoe Wright (Italy, France)
Out of Competition – Nonfiction
Apocalypse in the tropicsPetra Costa (Brazil)
Bestiarii, Erbari, LapidariiMassimo D’Anolfi, Martina Parenti (Italy, Switzerland)
Why war?Amos Gitai (Israel, France)
2073Asif Kapadia (UK)
One to One: John and YokoKevin McDonald, Sam Rhys Edwards (UK)
separatedErrol Morris (USA, Mexico)
Israel Palestine on Swedish TV 1958-1989Goran Hugo Olsson (Sweden, Finland, Denmark)
Russians at WarAnastasia Trofimova (France, Canada)
Twst/what we said todayAndrei Ujica (France, Romania)
slow burning earth songsOlha Zhurba (Ukraine, Denmark, Sweden)
RiefenstahlAndres Weil (Germany)
Out of Competition – Special Screening
The Leopard. The Poeta Dell’Infinito (Part 1 and 2), Sergio Rubini (Italy)
Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World (2003), Peter Weir (USA)
beauty is not a sinNicolas Winding Refn (Italy, Denmark)
Horizon
NonostanteValerio Mastandrea (Italy) – Opening Film
quiet lifeAlexandros Avranas (France, Germany, Sweden, Greece, Estonia, Finland)
mon indivisibleAnne-Sophie Bailly (France)
AichaMehdi Barsaoui (Tunisia, France, Italy, Saudi Arabia, Qatar)
Happy HolidaysSkander Copti (Germany, Italy, Qatar)
FamilyFrancesco Costabile (Italy)
one of those days when hemme diesMurat Firatoglu (Türkiye)
Familiar TouchSarah Friedland (USA)
MarcoJon Garrano, Aitor Arregi (Spain)
KarissaJason Jacobs, Devon Delmar (South Africa)
wishing On A StarPeter Kerekes – Documentary – (Italy, Croatia, Austria, Slovakia, Czech Republic)
Mistress Dispeller – Documentary – Elizabeth Lo (China)
The new year that never cameBogdan Muresanu (Romania, Serbia)
Pooja, SirDeepak Rauniyar (Nepal, USA, Norway)
of dogs and humansDani Rosenberg (Israel, Italy)
SidewalksAlex Ross Perry (USA)
happy endingNeo Sora (Japan, US)
AnnexationKarin Tardieu (France, Belgium)
DysiyanovGiovanni Tortorici (Italy, UK)
Horizon Extra
5 SeptemberTim Fehlbaum (Germany)
VittoriaAlessandro Cassignoli, Casey Kaufman (Italy)
Le MohicanFrédéric Farucci (France)
Seeking Shelter for Mr. RamboKhaled Mansour (Egypt, Saudi Arabia)
The Storia del Frank and the Della NinaPaola Randi (Italy, Switzerland)
WitnessNader Saiwar (Germany, Austria)
after the partyVojtech Strakati (Czech Republic)
Edge of NightTürker Suer (Germany, Türkiye)
King IvoryJohn Swabb (USA)
The 81st edition of the Venice Film Festival will run from August 28 to September 7.
