He has just presented his new film ‘Crimes of the Future’ in Cannes, in which he returns to the new flesh of titles such as ‘Videodrome’ or ‘eXistenZ’ | “I am his willing slave,” says Viggo Mortensen of the filmmaker after what is already his fourth collaboration
“Viggo is my type of actor,” David Cronenberg said bluntly at the press conference in which he presented his latest and highly anticipated film, ‘Crimes of the Future’, in the official section of the Cannes Festival; a film with which the author returns to the cinema of the new flesh, a term he coined in ‘Videodrome’ (1983) and which encompassed one of the futuristic director’s obsessions: the one who understood that human bodies have an expiration date and that they must merge with technology or machines to create a new living creature adapted to modern times. Mortensen, for his part, whose starring role marks his fourth collaboration with the Canadian filmmaker, has explained that he is “a willing slave” to the filmmaker, adding with a laugh that he was “beaten into submission long ago”.
The director of such emblematic titles ‘Eastern Promises’ is annoyed when the moderator suggested that the violence of his new film was “poetic”. “I didn’t want it to be poetic. It’s pretty brutal, the consequences are pretty brutal and, I have to say, it’s subjective,” he objected. Inspired by the global pandemic, the godfather of carnal horror quickly came up with his own answer: “The whole body is very real to me. The things that affect the human body are very basic, primitive and essential,” he said. The body as a reality without pain is the fantasy that the Canadian filmmaker presents on stage. Cronenberg fills in with Cronenberg in ‘Crimes of the Future’ and returns to body horror, terror, mystery and science fiction in films like ‘The Fly’ (1986), ‘Inseparable’ (1988) or ‘eXistenZ’ (1999). In the dystopian world of the movie, imagine a future where surgery has become the new sex. Viggo Mortensen and Léa Seydoux bring to life two performance artists whose art consists of manipulating and mutating their internal organs. Based on a script he wrote two decades ago, the film once again shows a director immersed in concepts such as sex, meditation, intelligence and the course of man on the planet. “I hope to commit some film crimes before ending my career,” Cronenberg noted, laughing at, in his words, “being older than the Cannes festival.”
Cronenberg is joined, in addition to Mortensen, by other stars of the film: Léa Seydoux, Kristen Stewart and Scott Speedman. Stewart plays an investigator for the National Organ Registry, who obsessively follows the movements of Mortensen’s character. Speaking of Cronenberg’s extreme visual style, the actress has dismissed critics of the director who say his films are often difficult to watch. “Every bruise in his movies amazes me. I’ve never disliked her work,” said Stewart, noting that Cronenberg’s films express to her “a deep-seated desire to stay alive.” Stewart has added that she was very confused when she was finally cast in the film. “We actors spend a lot of time wondering what we’re doing and what the hell we’re doing. But last night I saw the movie and it was clear to me: I want to be in the hands of artists who tell good stories. Although Cronenberg has said While the film wasn’t overtly political, he admitted it resonated with the times, given the debate over the possible rollback of abortion rights in the United States. “In a non-obvious way, it’s about who owns whose body. We believe everyone in the United States is completely insane and cannot believe elected officials say the things they say,” the author lamented. Surprisingly, Cronenberg has admitted that he has “unfinished business with the future”. “This is a film in which humanity is learning to adapt to its synthetic environment. Evolution leads people to a metamorphosis, which changes their biological structure,” he concluded.
The Belgian brothers Jean-Pierre Dardenne and Luc have premiered in the official part of the French competition the film ‘Tori en Lokita’, a declaration of intent against capitalism as spectacular as the ‘Triangle of sorrow’ they presented in the same section. the Nordic director Ruben Östlund. The Dardennes take us to poverty, to a place where only two immigrant children live; Tori (Pablo Schils) and Lokita (Joely Mbundu). Belgium, a first world country, is becoming a third world country for these guys from Cameroon who pretend to be brothers. His struggle for survival stems from his personality: Tori is 11 years old, tough and resourceful, while Lokita, 16, is a young woman who has lived longer than she would have liked. A dazzling drama in the purest Dardenne style that gives a break to the films shown during the first part of the festival. The desperate struggle for money has become the latent theme of much of the films presented in this 75th edition, although we all continue to enjoy the intense film by the genius Park Chan-Wook and his ‘Decision to Leave’, a new cinema classic.
Source: La Verdad
I’m Wayne Wickman, a professional journalist and author for Today Times Live. My specialty is covering global news and current events, offering readers a unique perspective on the world’s most pressing issues. I’m passionate about storytelling and helping people stay informed on the goings-on of our planet.
