It could have been a party for Lukas Dhont and ‘Close’, but it turned out differently at the European Film Awards in Iceland. ‘Triangle of sadness’ by Swedish director Ruben Östlund (‘The square’) was the leitmotif of the ceremony on Saturday evening. The satire won, among other things, the award for best film
Ruben Östlund hadn’t come to Reykjavik to go home empty-handed, and certainly not to make a fuss. “Tonight is the night of the ‘Triangle of Sadness’!” said the Swedish director as he collected his screenplay award at the 35th European Film Awards. Before that evening, he had already won the award for best director. Östlund felt little sympathy for Dhont and the other candidates, who came away empty-handed. “You will win one day in the future.” Ali Abbasi, the Swedish-Iranian creator of ‘Holy spider’ should have had a good laugh. But the “Near” team looked visibly dejected.
• Interview | Ruben Östlund: “I don’t want to pretend to make arthouse cinema”
Of course it is understandable. Dhont had gone to Iceland in a preferred role. With his second film ‘Close’ he was nominated again for best film after ‘Girl’. This time he also had the chance to win for his direction and the screenplay, which he had once again written together with Angelo Tijssens. Young blond Eden Dambrine was nominated for her starring role. He made his acting debut with the film, just like it was Victor Polster’s first time four years ago with ‘Girl’.
Predictable
But when Östlund received the director’s award earlier in the evening, it could already be predicted that he would also receive the best film award later on. It was since 2011 that the same film was not awarded in those categories. And so it went at the end of what was a sometimes overly protracted ceremony and laced with too much humor.
In addition to the direction, screenplay and the film itself, the lead actor of ‘Triangle of sadness’ Zlatko Buric also received an award. He plays a Russian oligarch aboard a cruise ship in the dark comedy. The film won the Palme d’Or at Cannes in May, and history repeated itself: Östlund won the Palme d’Or again in 2017, then for ‘The square’, and six months later he also won the European Film Awards in most important categories.
• Review | ‘Close’ is an ode to the intimacy of true friendship
The Best Actress award went to Vicky Krieps for her portrayal of Sissi in ‘Corsage’, a bold take on the character set to hit theaters on December 21st. Krieps was not present in Iceland, she was sitting in front of the webcam somewhere in a hotel room, hidden under a hooded sweatshirt – you can win a European Film Award even in an outfit like that. Léa Seydoux and Penélope Cruz hadn’t even made that effort, although they were also nominated. In doing so, they underlined the inability of an Academy to give more glamor to its awards. If the big names stay away, they’ll probably think it’s just a trivial event.
Yet it is not an uninteresting project, let alone irrelevant. Many films between the contenders and winners are European co-productions. They illustrate that the best stories are told by joining forces and uniting talents, across national borders.
Belgian co-production
‘Close’ could not redeem any of its nominations, but there was still a small profit for our country to celebrate. The animated film ‘Interdit aux chiens et aux italiens’ by the French Alain Ughetto is a co-production of five European countries, including our country.
The main winners:
Best Film: ‘Triangle of Sadness’
Best Director: Ruben Östlund (‘Triangle of Sadness’)
Best actor: Zlatko Buric (‘Triangle of sadness’)
Best Actress: Vicky Krieps (‘Corsage’)
Best Screenplay: Ruben Östlund (“Triangle of Sadness”)
Beste komedie: ‘The Good Boss’
Best Discovery: Laura Samini for ‘Small Body’
Best Documentary: ‘Mariupolis 2’ by Mantas Kvedaravicius
