Cannes, France (CU)_ The 75th Cannes Film Festival began with a focus on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and a live satellite video message from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who urged the new generation of filmmakers to fight dictators in the same manner that Charlie Chaplin lampooned Adolf Hitler.
Following tributes and musical acts, Zelenskyy was streamed live to the professionally attired crowd assembled for the premiere of “Final Cut,” a zombie comedy film by Michel Hazanavicius. Zelenskyy, clad in his trademark olive green shirt, received a sound standing ovation and delivered a long speech about the relationship between cinema and reality.
The president of Ukraine urged filmmakers to speak out against the war and not to remain silent as hundreds of civilians are dying in Ukraine, which is the biggest war in Europe after World War II, and to demonstrate that cinema always supports freedom. He compared Ukraine’s current situation to films like “Apocalypse Now” and “The Great Dictator” by Francis Ford Coppola and Charlie Chaplin, respectively.
Zelenskyy cited Chaplin’s closing monologue from “The Great Dictator,” which was published in 1940, during the early stages of World War II. He said, “The hate of men will pass, and dictators die, and the power they took from the people will return to the people.” Zelenskyy added, “We need a new Chaplin who will demonstrate that the cinema of our time is not silent”.
The war will be a constant presence at this year’s Cannes Film Festival, which has banned Russians with links to the government from attending. Several films by notable Ukrainian directors will be screened, including “The Natural History of Destruction” by Sergei Loznitsa. Hanna Bilobrova will also exhibit footage captured by the late Lithuanian filmmaker Mantas Kvedaravicius before his April death in Mariupol.
