Danish director May El-Toukhy’s Woman Unknown has won the Golden Lion for Best Film at the 83rd Venice Film Festival.
The post-World War Two psychological thriller was directed by one of just two female directors in the running for the Golden Lion this year.
Set in Denmark in the summer of 1945, the picture stars Mathilde Arcel as nanny and housemaid Marie who is on the cusp of marrying her wealthy, older, widowed employer.
Amid the jubilation, there is a darker side to the liberation as women who fraternized with German soldiers are tracked down and publicly shamed. Marie’s past threatens to catch up with her.
“The film tells the story of invisible women,” said El-Toukhy on receiving the prize. “Women who go unseen and unheard. My thanks go to my amazing cast for the passion you poured into portraying these characters.”
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Earlier in the evening, Arcel won Best Actress for her performance in the film.
In other main competition prizes, Lee Chang-Dong scooped the Grand Jury Prize; bombshell Israeli documentary Naza, which drew a record-breaking 25-minute ovation won the Special Jury Prize, and Ilya Khrzhanovsky clinched Best Director for Dau.
Hotly-tipped John Malkovich won Best Actor for his performance in Wild Horse Nine, which will further fuel Oscar hopes. The actor, who is currently on set, was unable to make it to the ceremony so sent a video message instead.
In the Orizzonti section, Best Film went to Ann Sirot and Raphaël Balboni’s Diana in the Loop about a young woman who decides to avenge the rape of her mother, which took place three years before the young woman was born.
Other notable prizes in the sidebar included Best Actress for Laleh Marzban for her brave hijab-less performance in Iranian drama Falling House as a young woman whose dreams of pursuing a modeling career outside of Iran are thwarted by a tyrannical prison guard father.
She dedicated the prize to all the women of Iran declaring in Farsi that the country was going through one of the most painful and difficult times of its history.
“I want to mention the people of my homeland, Iran, who are living under the greatest pressure ever. I would like to dedicate this award to the women of my country, who have paid the highest price for even the smallest form of freedom. Today more than ever, they continue to carry forward their dreams, their courage, and their hope,” she said.
Italian actor Riccardo Scamarcio won Best Actor for his performance in The House of the Monkey as the devoted father of a disabled son who becomes increasingly close to his teenage nephew seeing in him the son he always wished for. The film also won Best Screenplay for director Tommaso Landucci and cowriter Damiano Femfert.
Scarmarcio dedicated his prize to all the fathers in the world as well as UK producer Jeremy Thomas whose death at the age of 77 was announced earlier in the day.
The Lion of the Future – Luigi De Laurentiis Award for a Debut Film went to Cameroonian-French director Auguste Bernard Kouemo Yanghu’s House of the Wind exploring the impact of migration to Europe. The drama revolves around 80-year-old Josette who lives alone in Yaoundé, Cameroon, who forms an unexpected bond with a young woman from the neighborhood.
Tonight’s ceremony, hosted by Italian actors Greta Scarano and Nicolas Maupas, ends a politically charged 83rd edition with a record-breaking ovation for bombshell Israeli documentary Naza and a warm response to Penélope Cruz and Javier Bardem in Bunker among the many highlights.
Other memorable moments included Lifetime Achievement Golden Lion Awards for George Clooney and Ellen Burstyn.
Maggie Gyllenhaal and her jury will mete out eight prizes including the Golden Lion for best film. The winners of the Orizzonti sidebar, Venice Classics and Immersive competition, the Lion of the Future – Luigi De Laurentiis Award for a Debut Film, will also be announced this evening.
Keep checking in for updates.
VENEZIA 83 COMPETITION
Golden Lion
Woman Unknown
May El-Toukhy
Silver Lion Grand Jury Prize
Possible Love
Dir. Lee Chang-Dong
Silver Lion Best Director
Ilya Khrzhanovsky for Dau
Special Jury Prize
Naza
Dirs. Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor
Best Screenplay
A Good Little Soldier
Stéphane Brizé, Coralie Amédéo, Olivier Gorce
Best Actor
John Malkovich
Wild Horse Nine
Best Actress
Mathilde Arcel (Woman Unknown)
Marcello Mastroianni Award for Best New Young Actor or Actress
Malou Khebizi (A Place to Heal)
Lion of the Future – Luigi De Laurentiis Award for a Debut Film
House of the Wind
Dir. Auguste Bernard Kouemo Yanghu
VENICE SPOTLIGHT
Armani Beauty Audience Award
I Matter
Dir. Alina Şerban
HORIZONS
Best Film
Diane in the Loop
Dirs. Ann Sirot, Raphaël Balboni
Best Director
Jacqueline Lentzou (A day in the life of Jo: Chapter Phaedra)
Special Jury Prize
House of the Wind
Dir. Auguste Bernard Kouemo Yanghu
Best Actor
Riccardo Scamarcio (The Children of the Monkey)
Best Actress
Laleh Marzban (Falling House)
Best Screenplay
The Children of the Monkey
Cowriters. Tommaso Landucci, Damiano Femfert
Best Short Film
Quelques instants de bonheur
Dir. Shaden Safieddine Tazi
VENICE CLASSICS
Best Restored Film
Long Night In ’43
Dir. Florestano Vancini
VENICE IMMERSIVE
Grand Prize
The Pigeon Ring
Dirs: Yuqi Zhang, Shixin Tao
Special Jury Prize
Out of the Ashes
Dirs: Rory Mitchell and Nonny de la Peña
Achievement Prize
Pirate at Sea
Dir: Peter Flaherty
