The Cannes Film Festival would have drawn to a close this last weekend with a fanfare of coveted Palme d’or gold, with chances and reputations brighter. It always celebrates gorgeous films from across the whole world. Films that nobody will see at many cinemas but ours and few others. Some are worth missing, but most are the best measure of the quality, fine and poor, of film-making for cinema out of all the award circuses to follow.
However, it’s not closing to those fanfares this year. It is difficult to close a box that hasn’t been opened, even fattening with golden leaves of palm.

As, the other big glam fest finale with its Riviera neighbour. The Monaco Grand Prix is also silenced from its spectacular, chest deafening, death-defying, fuel-on-speed celebration at this same May weekend year after year. Poor old Monte Carlo. How will it survive.

Poignantly, Cannes lives for and from its festivals only. Since 1946 other tourism is peripheral, local, Parisienne at best. International Fairs and Festivals are its industry, from the music business to insurance fairs, with all huge world-product launches between, with many corporate deals brokered here throughout the year.
It is only a fabulous playground because those who were left saw it as its one chance of survival after its liberation from the Nazis in 1945.

Hence, a pox on’t. A pox on this whole global shutdown business - see how I avoided ‘bollocks’ here. Time to risk living life - when it’s too late, it is too late. So too, its possible worse inheritance, that magic box of distancing, masked, clean living, full of dirty tricks - yet to be opened - for our own and the ‘greater’ good - of course...

But this new soft clear air (no pox’t government could have foreseen, but watch them take the credit) with its spirited winds and bright skies, has been as extraordinary as it is life-affirming for all sharing creatures... trees hills and streams.
(Apart from them bats... See, told yer m'lord - that Christopher Lee - it were ‘im all along.)

So - instead here are a few frivolous pictures from my own air-polluting trips, joyously self-polluted with every delicious vampire bite and curdling sip, to this most fabulous of all privileged film festivals in the world. ... See MoreSee Less

4 days ago

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