Cannes Film Festival

Cannes: from 'Nouvelle Vague' to 'Mission: Impossible', the 10 most anticipated films

An overview of the most important titles coming to the Croisette: among them also the Italian 'Fuori' by Mario Martone

by Stefano Biolchini and Andrea Chimento

13 May 2025

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The curtain is about to rise on the 78th Cannes Film Festival, scheduled from 13 to 24 May.

Cannes, i 10 film più attesi
Photogallery10 foto

As per tradition, there are many particularly eagerly awaited titles, but we have tried to select ten of them to mark with great care in the notebooks of every self-respecting cinephile.

Nouvelle Vague

The title alone would be enough... but behind the camera is a great director like Richard Linklater to make the expectations for this film, in competition for the Palme d'Or, even higher. At the centre is the making of Jean-Luc Godard's 1960 'Breathless', the manifesto of the nouvelle vague and the true entry of the language of cinema into modernity. This year Linklater has already signed one of the most important films of the Berlin Film Festival ('Blue Moon'): will he repeat himself on the Croisette?

It Was Just an Accident

After the very powerful 'Bears Don't Exist', Jafar Panahi signs a new film that is set to cause discussion. One of the main dissident authors of Iranian cinema today (who also ended up in prison) directs a film shrouded in mystery, but in which we are certain there will be a new, umpteenth demonstration of the use of the camera as a real political weapon, capable of testifying to the urgency of storytelling of a director who is increasingly fundamental in contemporary cinema. It is in competition.

A Magnificent Life

Among the Special Screenings of the Cannes Film Festival is the highly anticipated new animated feature by Sylvain Chomet, director of true gems of the genre such as 'Appointment in Belleville' and 'The Illusionist'. At the centre is the figure of Marcel Pagnol, a very important director and artist, who will be paid homage by Chomet in a work that promises to be poetic and touching.

The Mastermind

Kelly Reichardt is an auteur who never leaves one indifferent, thanks to films in which one can always recognise her personal touch, gloriously independent and strongly characterised by a minimalist staging full of profound meanings. This time she tries her hand at a crime movie set in the 1970s, starring Josh O'Connor and Alana Haim, a couple that promises sparks in competition at Cannes.

Fuori

Out

Mario Martone tells the story of the writer Goliarda Sapienza, mixing her time in prison with life away from the prison in which she ended up. Valeria Golino, who had already directed 'L'arte della gioia' (based on the writer's masterpiece), plays the protagonist and Elodie and Matilda De Angelis are also in the cast. Martone rarely misses a film and expectations are high for the only Italian in competition.

Eddington

After having directed a pure horror film like "Hereditary", a folk-horror like "Midsommar" and a totally surreal feature like "Beau ha paura", American Ari Aster returns behind the camera for what appears to be a curious and anomalous pseudo-western with dark comedy veins. At the centre is the period linked to the Covid-19 pandemic and a personal clash between two characters played by Pedro Pascal and Joaquin Phoenix. Curiosity is high...

La trama fenicia

The Phoenician Plot

In recent years, Wes Anderson has become an increasingly theoretical and cerebral director, as films such as 'The French Dispatch' and 'Asteroid City' have shown us. This new feature film, presented in competition and focusing on the relationship between a father and daughter, does not seem to deviate too much. The cast is very rich, with the likes of Benicio del Toro, Scarlett Johansson, Tom Hanks and Michael Cera.

Alpha

In 2021, Julia Ducournau had shocked the Croisette with 'Titane', a body-horror that even went on to win the Palme d'Or. Four years later, the French director returns to the competition with this film focusing on a troubled teenager and her relationship with her mother figure. Could this be one of the scandalous films of this year's Cannes Film Festival?

Magellan

What can come of it if one of the greatest living filmmakers chooses an excellent actor to give life to a portrayal of Magellan? The answer will be in this film by the brilliant Filipino director Lav Diaz, who has chosen Gael Garcia Bernal to play the historic explorer. The film is in the Cannes Première section, but it is really hard to think of a more eagerly awaited title than this exploring the entire poster.

Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning

Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning

The most glamorous event of the Cannes Film Festival 2025 is the out-of-competition screening of the grand finale of one of the most beloved action sagas in film history. The eighth and final title in the 'Mission: Impossible' series, this film is shaping up to be one of the most spectacular titles of the year and the presence of Tom Cruise is, in this sense, a guarantee.