The last Coffee with Venezia da Vivere before the closing ceremony: predictions on the winners based on the judgments of the Italian and international press, as preparations are made for the screening of the final film Chien 51 by Cédric Jimenez with Gilles Lellouche and Valeria Bruni Tedeschi
#Venezia82 comes to a close with predictions for the Golden Lion and the final screening of the sci-fi thriller Chien 51 directed by Cédric Jimenez and based on the 2022 novel Cane 51 by Laurent Gaudé. While the jury led by Alexander Payne prepares to award the most coveted prizes in world cinema, The Voice of Hind Rajab seems the absolute favorite, having won over the public, as well as the Italian and international press.
This evening in the Sala Grande of the Palazzo del Cinema, we will finally learn who has won the Golden Lion of the 2025 edition.
Awards already presented
In addition to the Golden Lions for Lifetime Achievement awarded to Kim Novak and Werner Herzog, the Campari Passion for Film award to Gus Van Sant, and the Cartier Glory to the Filmmaker award to Julian Schnabel, the winners of the collateral awards were announced yesterday.
The Director’s Award of the Giornate degli Autori was awarded to the film Inside Amir by Iranian director Amir Azizi, while Bearcave by Stergios Dinopoulos and Krysianna B. Papadakis received the Europa Cinemas Label. Memory by Vladlena Sandu and A Sad and Beautiful World by Cyril Aris shared the Audience Award.
Director David Pablos, for the film En el camino presented in the Orizzonti section, was honored with the Queer Lion Award, now in its nineteenth edition.
Two films shared the majority of the collateral awards: Silent Friend by Ildikó Enyedi (Interfilm Award, FIPRESCI International Critics Prize, CinemaSarà 2025 Award, Green Drop Award) and The Voice of Hind Rajab by Kaouther Ben Hania (CICT-UNESCO “Enrico Fulchignoni” Award, UNIMED Award, Leoncino d’oro Award, ARCA Cinema Giovani Award).
Predictions: who will win the Golden Lion?
There is a single film that seems to have reached a consensus: the audience in the theater, the Italian press, and the international press. It is The Voice of Hind Rajab by Kaouther Ben Hania. Everyone here at the Lido considers it a certain winner; we will find out tonight if the jury led by American director and screenwriter Alexander Payne will award this film the Golden Lion or another major recognition.
The other films that could compete for the victory and other awards appear to be Silent Friend by Ildikó Enyedi and A House of Dynamite by Kathryn Bigelow, followed by Frankenstein by Guillermo del Toro, No Other Choice (Eojjeol suga eopda) by Park Chan-wook and La Grazia by Paolo Sorrentino.
Venezia da Vivere Predictions
Among the correspondents of Venezia da Vivere, the films most favored for the Golden Lion are The Voice of Hind Rajab and Silent Friend, followed by Frankenstein and No Other Choice. If we also consider the Silver Lion for Best Director and the Special Jury Prize, the list of potential winners expands to Yorgos Lanthimos and his Bugonia, François Ozon and his L’étranger, La Grazia by Sorrentino, Father Mother Sister Brother by Jim Jarmusch and Sotto le Nuvole by Gianfranco Rosi.
It is difficult this year to offer a prediction on the actors who will lift the Volpi Cup tonight in the Sala Grande. For Best Actor, chances could go to Jude Law, for his portrayal of Vladimir Putin in The Wizard of the Kremlin by Olivier Assayas, Dwayne Johnson (The Rock) for The Smashing Machine, but also Lee Byung Hun, Oscar Isaac or Benjamin Voisin. Among the Italians, the only one who seems to have any possibility is Toni Servillo. Among the actresses, the most favored could be Amanda Seyfried for Il testamento di Ann Lee, although surprises and outsiders cannot be ruled out.
Mads Mikkelsen and Orizzonti
Mads Mikkelsen will not be able to win for his performance in The Last Viking, because the film by Anders Thomas Jensen was presented out of competition, even though his portrayal of Mamphred/John seemed to stand out above all others and his character is the one that left the greatest mark on us.
In the Orizzonti section, a film that deserves recognition is the courageous Komedie Elahi (Divine Comedy) by Iranian director Ali Asgari, and the actors who perform in it are also excellent. Un anno di scuola and Lost Land also left their mark and are among our team’s favorites. Best Actress could be Noomi Rapace (Mother) but also the Italian Lucrezia Guglielmino (Il rapimento di Arabella). Among the actors, Hossein Soleimani, Milan Ondrik (Otec), David Pablos (En el camino) and Willem Dafoe.
There are many emerging actors, often children, present in this edition of the festival, who will be eligible for the Marcello Mastroianni Award for an emerging actor or actress. The one who struck us most was the young Bojtorjan Barabas for the film Orphan (in competition).
Lights and Shadows
There are many films that have remained in our hearts, beyond the competition, to which we would award our Golden Lions: Calle Malaga with Carmen Maura, which will represent Morocco in the Oscar selection, Past Future Continuous by Morteza Ahmadvand and Firouzeh Khosrovani, which will be distributed in Italy under the title Gli uccelli del monte Qaf, Inside Amir by Amir Azizi, winner of the Giornate degli Autori, the aforementioned The Last Viking, and the documentary Ferdinando Scianna – il fotografo dell’ombra by Roberto Andò.
While one could expect a good dose of “madness” from Guillermo del Toro and his Frankenstein, three films particularly struck us: unpredictable, original, and surprising. They are Bugonia by Yorgos Lanthimos, Un film fatto per Bene by Franco Maresco (in competition) and Un Cabo suelto by Daniel Hendler (Venezia Spotlight).
One thing we noticed more than in previous editions is that the duration of films is becoming increasingly long, particularly for documentaries, making even interesting works tiring to follow, and with the intense pace of the festival, where one sees 5-6 films a day, even soporific. For our team, even illustrious works fell into this category: Ghost Elephants by Herzog, Kim Novak’s Vertigo and Sotto le nuvole by Rosi.
The Lion for Elegance
A few lines are not enough to describe all the outfits admired on the Red Carpet this year. A round of applause for savoir-faire and elegance goes to the young Australian Jacob Elordi, who, in addition to sporting a classic and charming suit, spent a long time meeting fans crowded on the red carpet, signing autographs and granting selfies.
Elegant were Emily Blunt, Emanuela Fanelli, in Armani Privé, and Cate Blanchett, refined and sophisticated, despite the long skirt decorated with feathers, which not everyone could wear without appearing excessive.
We certainly saw excesses, first and foremost Jason Momoa in a powder pink suit with Birkenstock sandals in the same tone.
Article by Pietro Gallina (VeneziaCinema).
Photos by Settimo Cannatella.
