There’s a nice brisk wind today on the Riviera, the sun is shining, and cameras are flashing. After yesterday’s official opening ceremony, everyone here in Cannes is eager for the next 10 days of film. Starting us off we have the opening film of the Director’s Fortnight, Butterfly Jam; the first of the films In Competition, Nagi Notes; and lastly, the opening film of Un Certain Regard, one of my most-anticipated of the festival, Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma.
Butterfly Jam ★★
Directed by Kantemir Balagov / Directors Fortnight
Opening the Directors Fortnight this year, Kantemir Balagov’s sophomore feature is an interesting take on insecure masculinity. The push and pull of a Circassian father, Azik (Barry Keoghan), and son, Pyteh (Talha Akdogan) in Newark, New Jersey. The questioning of masculinity is at the heart of this film. What makes one weak? What does weak mean and reveal? While these topics are potentially engaging and thought-provoking, the film doesn’t take the exploration deep enough. Brought down by a rather clunky screenplay that doesn’t allow the performances to shine through.
Script issues aside, there are nevertheless some standout aspects to appreciate. Talha Akdogan makes a wonderful debut performance. Tender in the right moments, using his adolescent masculine angst to elevate the film in the right moments.
Cinematographer Jomo Fay adds a layer of shine to Butterfly Jam and the color palette of pinks and purples pop in a lovely and cohesive manner, contrasting nicely with the hostile masculine nature of the characters.
Overall, Butterfly Jam is a film that alludes to some intriguing notions, but fails to explore them in a meaningful and compelling way, but it is kept afloat by charming cinematography and some compelling performances just itching to break free.
Nagi Notes ★★★★1/2
Directed by Koji Fukada / In Competition / Queer Palm official selection
Nagi Notes is first film in competition to premiere at the 79th Cannes Film Festival and it is an absolute delight. A calm rural Japanese slice of life film with queer characters at the heart of it. After her divorce, Yuri (Shizuka Ishibashi) visits an old artist friend Yoriko (Takako Matsu) in the town of Nagi. During her stay she draws a close bond with the residents of the town.
The biggest strength of Nagi Notes is how well the actors engage with script. Long conversations are played out without any hesitation or discomfort. The actors give life and tender care to the words and their meanings, imbuing the film with an authentic, melancholic yet beautiful tone. A subdued quietness allows the film to breathe and the audience to absorb the emotions and ambience.
Shizuka Ishibashi and Takako Matsu have an organic chemistry that radiates. Touching and sincere, Nagi Notes feels like a rare queer hug that left me grinning.
Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma ★★★★★
Directed by Jane Schoenbrun / Un Certain Regard / Queer Palm official selection
Schoenbrun has done it again. Opening the 79th Un Certain Regard category, Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma is a love letter to all the horror film academics who have dedicated their lives to exploring gender, horror, and sexuality. Camp Miasma does not exclude the causal horror fan, while delving deep into our intoxicating parasocial relationship with the art form.
Hannah Einbinder, Gillian Anderson, and Jack Haven all bring their A game, making this paradoxical slasher come alive. While the film’s music, cinematography, and editing breathe spectacle and transcendence. Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma is the sexual, bloody, queerly introspective slasher we have been clamoring for years.
By Andrew Pankey
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