Here’s another highly positive reaction for Woody Allen’s “Coup de Chance.” The buzz has been very good for this one, so far.
Keith McNally snuck into a private screening of Allen’s 50th film, this one all in French, starring French actors, and he was blown away by it.
“Coup de Chance” was screened at the EFM market in Berlin just a month ago and one buyer emailed me, echoing McNally’s sentiments, that it was “his best film in years”.
Allen’s recent fare hasn’t been that bad either. Save for “Rifkin’s Festival” and “Magic in the Moonlight,” there’s been a lot to admire in his output of the last ten years: “Blue Jasmine,” “Wonder Wheel,” “Rainy Day in New York” “Irrational Man” and “Cafe Society,” all worthy additions to his canon.
Ok, so Allen might have a winner here. Where does the film land now? The obvious answer, given that it is set to be Allen’s first French-language movie, set in Paris, would be a Cannes premiere. A month ago, I had confirmed that the film was indeed submitted for Cannes.
It also helps that, two days ago, Cannes boss Thierry Fremaux did not deny the potential presence of Allen’s film on the Croisette. He nixed the idea of having Polanski’s “The Palace,” but not Allen. If I were a betting man, I’d wager that “Coup de Chance” is going to Cannes.
Allen’s film has been described, by the man himself, as a spiritual successor to “Match Point.” It’s his 50th film, a contemporary romantic thriller “charting the story of two young people whose bond leads to marital infidelity and ultimately crime.”
Another lure to push Fremaux in selecting the film is the cast Allen has assembled. A who’s who of Cesar-nominated and winning actors, such as Lou de Laage, Melvil Poupaud, Valerie Lemercier, Niels Schneider, Elsa Zylberstein, Bárbara Goenaga, Grégory Gadebois, Anne Loiret, Sara Martins, Guillaume de Tonquédec and Arnaud Viard.
Edward Berger seems to have settled on what comes next. His Lance Armstrong biopic, starring Austin Butler, is now holding casting calls, with production eyed for January.