CriterionCast

IFC Films Picks Up A Few Titles At Cannes This Year, Any Criterion Hopefuls?

Apparently, no distributor made the Croisette their playground this year quite like Criterion buddies, IFC.

The distributor, who have a much talked about DVD distribution deal with The Criterion Collection, picked up a cavalcade of films coming out of this year’s Cannes Film Festival, and I must say, it’s a bit of a mixed bag.

I was able to attend this year’s Cannes Film Festival for Gordon And The Whale, and thankfully, I also had the chance to see one of the films the studio had the chance to pick up, Bertrand Bonello’s THE HOUSE OF TOLERANCE.   IFC picked the film up for their Sundance Selects brand, and while the film has all the makings of a potential Criterion release (beautifully shot, lyrical, challenging narrative), the film is ultimately more of a mess than it is a worthwhile film.   That said, buzz surrounding the film at Cannes was less than stellar, so I don’t expect much to be made of this one come release time.

The film follows ‘a group of sex workers at a Paris brothel at the beginning of the 20th Century.’

In other Cannes news, the distributor also picked up the Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne film, THE KID WITH THE BIKE, the Grand Prix award winner, and the Jury Prize winner, POLISS.   IFC will also be releasing the Aussie crime drama, SNOWTOWN, through their Midnight lineup. All three films played to great buzz, particularly THE KID, which to me, appears to be the likeliest contender for a Criterion Collection release.   SNOWTOWN drew a ton of buzz, but it would be an almost ANTICHRIST like challenging release for the mighty CC, with POLISS being a possible, but unlikely contender.

What film are you most looking forward to?

Source: IFC

 

Joshua Brunsting

Josh is a critic, a member of the Online Film Critics Society, a wrestling nerd, a hip-hop head, a father, a cinephile and a man looking to make his stamp on the world, one word at a time.