Cannes Boss Thierry Frémaux Calls Jim Jarmusch’s Criticism “Pointless and Unfair”

It was last April that word got out that Jim Jarmusch’s “Father Mother Sister Brother” had not been offered a competition slot by the Cannes Film Festival. Rather, they were only willing to screen it out of competition.

The news came as a surprise, since Jarmusch typically enjoys something of a free pass at Cannes, and the prior month Variety had even reported that the film was one of the few titles locked in for competition.

Many months later, Jarmusch told IndieWire that Cannes’ decision had rubbed him the wrong way, and that the treatment he received from them was “not appropriate.”

Jarmusch, clearly angered, went on to take a shot at Cannes, and its audience, claiming he received “real love” when he finally premiered the film at Venice, and better than the “2,000 French hairdressers from L’Oréal in Cannes.” He concluded: “now, I kind of never want to go to Cannes again.”

Now, Cannes boss Thierry Frémaux is finally being asked by Variety about Jarmusch’s comments, and he’s taking the high road here, refusing to stoop down to his level:

Yes, nothing new there. When a filmmaker protests, it’s always because his film wasn’t where he wanted it to be. It’s normal for him to be disappointed. But to go so far as to dismiss the past… Making a snide comment about the Cannes audience, which has always welcomed him warmly, was pointless and unfair.

Before the rejection, Jarmusch had premiere seven of his last eight films at Cannes. It looks like he will now prefer going to Venice in the foreseeable future.

Listen, it’s not hard to see why Cannes might have passed on “Father, Mother, Sister, Brother”: this is Jarmusch stripped down beyond the bare bones, a film composed of pauses and absences, moments waiting for resolution and finding none. It was his most “experimental” film, if you want to call it that, but also sweetly rewarding — not his best, but far from his worst.