Almodóvar and Zvyagintsev Compete for Palme d'Or at Cannes

Tuesday at the Cannes Film Festival featured two high-profile entries in competition for the Palme d'Or: Pedro Almodóvar's "Amarga Navidad" (international title "Bitter Christmas") and Andrey Zvyagintsev's "Minotaur." Almodóvar's film, starring Barbara Lennie, follows an advertising executive grieving her mother's death and the director writing her story. It is set for Italian release on May 21. Zvyagintsev's "Minotaur" is a political thriller set in Russia in 2022 during the invasion of Ukraine, centering on Gleb, a corporate executive who loses key clients and collaborators and discovers his wife's infidelity. Out of competition, Andy García presented "Diamond," a passion project he directed, produced, and stars in, co-starring Vicky Krieps. The film also features Dustin Hoffman, Brendan Fraser, and Bill Murray, who were absent from Cannes.