Venice Winners: Pedro Almodóvar’s ‘The Room Next Door’ Wins The Golden Lion; Also Wins For Nicole Kidman, Brady Corbet, ‘I’m Still Here’ & More
Pedro Almodóvar’s The Room Next Door has won the Venice Film Festival’s Golden Lion main prize.
Jury president Isabelle Huppert and her jury were on hand to bestow the Golden Lion along with the other main prizes. Scroll down to see the list of laureates.
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Tilda Swinton and Julianne Moore star in Almodóvar’s euthanasia drama, which marked the acclaimed filmmaker’s English-language debut.
The movie follows Ingrid (Moore) and Martha (Swinton) who were close friends in their youth, when they worked together at the same magazine. After years of being out of touch, they meet again in an extreme and bittersweet situation. Check out our review here.
Among other prize-winners on the night were Vermiglio by Maura Delpero, Brady Corbet for The Brutalist, and Nicole Kidman for Babygirl whose filmmaker Halina Reijn accepted the award on behalf of Kidman who she explained could not be there in person due to the passing of her mother in recent days.
Kidman said in a statement: “I’m in shock and I have to go to my family, but this award is for her. She shaped me, she guided me and she made me.”
The evening began on a political note with two Horizzonti-winning filmmakers expressing support for Palestine and condemning “Israel’s genocide” to applause from the audience.
The last 12 days at the world’s oldest film festival have been beyond glamorous — in stark contrast to last year’s edition which unspooled under the cloud of the SAG-AFTRA strike, preventing many stars from coming out in support of their movies. Not so this time around as famous faces came ashore by the boatload. They included Michael Keaton, Jenna Ortega, Cate Blanchett, Angelina Jolie, Nicole Kidman, Adrien Brody, Jude Law, Nicholas Hoult, George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Daniel Craig, Julianne Moore, Tilda Swinton, Joaquin Phoenix and Lady Gaga.
Not all of them had films in the competition which was rife with strong titles and performances. Receiving particularly strong notices were Brady Corbet’s third feature here in Venice, The Brutalist, starring Brody, Walter Salles’ I’m Still Here and Dea Kulumbegashvili’s April. Luca Guadagnino’s Queer attracted praise for Craig in particular; Pablo Larrain’s Maria Callas biopic Maria saw a buzzy lead turn from Jolie; Almodóvar’s The Room Next Door earned a mega 18-minute ovation following its premiere; and Halina Rejin’s Babygirl featured a committed performance by Kidman.
It was five years ago this weekend that Todd Phillips’ Joker sashayed away with the Golden Lion; this year he returned with sequel Joker: Folie à Deux which didn’t appear to overwhelm audiences in the same manner, though Phoenix was roundly praised again for his take on Arthur Fleck.
Here are all the winners at the 2024 Venice Film Festival:
Golden Lion
The Room Next Door
Pedro Almodóvar
Silver Lion Grand Jury Prize
Vermiglio
Maura Delpero
Silver Lion Best Director
The Brutalist
Brady Corbet
Special Jury Prize
April, Dea Kulumbegashvili
Best Screenplay
I’m Still Here
Murilo Hauser and Heitor Lorega
Best Actress
Nicole Kidman
Babygirl
Best Actor
Vincent Lindon
The Quiet Son
Marcello Mastroianni Award for Best New Young Actor or Actress
Paul Kircher
And Their Children After Them
HORIZONS
Best Film
The New Year That Never Came
Bogdan Muresanu
Best Director
Sarah Friedland
Familiar Touch
Special Jury Prize
One of Those Days When Hemme Dies
Murat Firatoglu
Best Actress
Kathleen Chalfant
Familiar Touch
Best Actor
Francesco Ghegi
Family
Best Screenplay
Happy Holidays
Scandar Copti
Lion of the Future – Luigi De Laurentiis Award for a Debut Film
Familiar Touch
Sarah Friedland
Best Short FilmW
ho Loves The Sun
Arshia Shakiba
HORIZONS EXTRA
Audience Award
The Witness (Shahed)
VENICE CLASSICS WINNERS
Best Restored Film
Ecce Bombo
Nanni Moretti
Best Documentary On Cinema
Chain Reactions
VENICE IMMERSIVE WINNERS
Venice Immersive Achievement Award
Impulse: Playing With Reality
Venice Immersive Special Jury Prize
Oto’s Planet
Venice Immersive Grand Prize
Ito Meikyū
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