A new drama from Asghar Farhadi, whose film A Separation won the foreign language Oscar in 2012, completes this year’s official Cannes competition. The Salesman also tells of a couple splitting up; in this case actors whose relationship falls apart as they tour with a production of Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman.
Two films are also added to the Un Certain Regard sidebar: Eshtebak (Clash), by Egypt’s Mohamed Diab and Hell or High Water, from David Mackenzie.
Mackenzie, who enjoyed great acclaim at Cannes for 2003’s Young Adam, returns with Hell or High Water, the story of a divorced father and his ex-con brother trying to save their family’s Texas farm. The film stars Jeff Bridges, Ben Foster and Chris Pine.
Meanwhile, Blood Father, a revenge thriller starring Mel Gibson as a former convict trying to steer his teenage daughter away from the company of drug dealers, will be a midnight screening. The film is directed by Jean-François Richet, whose two-part biopic of French gangster Jacques Mesrine was well-received.
Three further special screenings have also been scheduled: Congo-set thriller Wrong Elements, which marks the directorial debut of US film-maker Jonathan Littell, and work by two French directors: Grégoire Leprince-Ringuet’s La Foret de Quinconces and Karim Dridi’s Chouf.
Today’s announcement completes the official selection, but additions to the out of competition slate remain possible.
