2013 Cannes Critics' Week (Semaine de la Critique) Line Up Announced

Cannes 2013: ‘Ain’t Them Bodies Saints’ To Play as Part of Critics’ Week Selection

April 22, 2013

By Brad Brevet

I have been adding titles that will play the 2013 Cannes Film Festival to the database periodically since they were first announced last week as well as updating the complete line-up as more and more titles have been added.

Last week it was announced Ari Folman‘s The Congress would serve as the opening night film for the Directors’ Fortnight selection and today the fest organizers announced the complete Critics’ Week (Semaine de la Critique) line-up, which will open on May 16 with Katell QuillÃ©vÃ©rÃ©‘s Suzanne and a selection largely made up of names I’m not personally familiar with.

The most notable name is Sundance stand-out Ain’t Them Bodies Saints from director David Lowery. Personally I expected this film to be among the Un Certain Regard selection after the love it received at Sundance, but its inclusion is a welcome one as Rooney Mara‘s performance is one that’s been much talked about as well as Ben Foster‘s.

The film centers on Bob Muldoon (Casey Affleck) and Ruth Guthrie (Mara), an impassioned young outlaw couple on an extended crime spree, are finally apprehended by lawmen after a shootout in the Texas hills. Although Ruth wounds a local officer, Bob takes the blame. But four years later, Bob escapes from prison and sets out to find Ruth and their daughter, born during his incarceration.

IFC picked the film up for distribution and will release it on August 16.

Finally, Kim Novak will be in attendance at the screening of a restored version of Alfred Hitchcock‘s Vertigo, which will be shown as part of Cannes Classics. She will also remain as a presenter at the awards ceremony to close the fest.

I have included the complete Critics’ Week line-up below and you can find all the films announced for the festival so far right here.