Cannes Opens With a Thud
Variety • • entertainment
Key Points:
- The Cannes Film Festival's opening-night films have historically been underwhelming, often disappointing audiences rather than exciting them for the event.
- "The Electric Kiss" ("La Vénus Électrique"), the 2024 opener directed by Pierre Salvadori, is considered by some critics as possibly the worst opener in a decade, criticized for its stultifying pacing and lack of genuine charm.
- The film is a period-piece romantic triangle set in 1920s Paris, involving a carnival performer pretending to be a psychic to inspire a grieving artist, but it fails to engage due to a flat plot and uninspired performances.
- Despite attempts to blend farce, romance, and a meditation on love and art, "The Electric Kiss" is seen as overly calculated and self-indulgent, lacking the magic and playfulness of classic Hollywood influences it tries to emulate.
- The movie's failure to captivate suggests it may not resonate with audiences or critics, continuing the trend of disappointing Cannes opening selections.