Movies: Cannes Film Festival: Terrence Malick wins Palme for 'The Tree of Life'

BBC News - Entertainment and Arts (May22,2k011)

Malick's drama 

The Tree of Life 

triumphs in Cannes

US director Terrence Malick's drama The Tree of Life has won the Palme d'Or prize for best picture at the Cannes film festival. 

The film, starring Brad Pitt and Sean Penn, is about a family in Texas in the 1950s, but is also a meditation on the meaning of life.

The film had divided critics at the prestigious festival, the BBC's arts correspondent Vincent Dowd says.

He says some consider it pretentious and others profound.

Best actor gong went to French performer Jean Dujardin for the silent film The Artist.

Best actress was won by US actress Kirsten Dunst for her role in Melancholia.

The last-named movie is directed by Lars von Trier who was expelled from the festival for making statements sympathetic to Hitler at a press conference there, while at the same time his latest movie was allowed to continue in the competition.  (see previous post today).

-- Movieman