The Venice Film Festival launched on Wednesday with a thrilling start featuring the premiere of Tim Burton’s highly anticipated Beetlejuice sequel and an array of star-studded appearances, bringing vibrant energy to the sunlit Lido.
Among the celebrities expected to grace Italy’s iconic festival, known as La Mostra, are Lady Gaga, George Clooney, Daniel Craig, Julianne Moore, and Brad Pitt. Arriving by water taxi across the Venetian lagoon, these stars are set to inject Hollywood glamour into the festival after a subdued edition last year due to the Hollywood strike.
The festival opened with the out-of-competition world premiere of Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, featuring Michael Keaton reprising his role as the mischievous ghoul, alongside Winona Ryder, Catherine O’Hara, and Monica Bellucci.
On Thursday, attention will shift to Angelina Jolie’s portrayal of Maria Callas in Maria, Pablo Larrain’s biopic about the legendary opera singer’s tumultuous life. This film is one of 21 international entries competing for the coveted Golden Lion, which will be awarded on September 7.
The festival also highlights several eagerly awaited films. Joker: Folie à Deux, the sequel to Todd Phillips’ 2019 Venice-winning Joker, brings back Joaquin Phoenix as the troubled clown and introduces Lady Gaga as Harley Quinn.
Daniel Craig stars in Queer, an adaptation of William Burroughs’ novel set in 1940s Mexico City, while Jude Law features in The Order, directed by Justin Kurzel, as an FBI agent investigating white supremacy.
Pedro Almodóvar returns with The Room Next Door, his first full-length English-language film, featuring Julianne Moore and Tilda Swinton. Nicole Kidman and Antonio Banderas star in Halina Reijn’s erotic thriller Babygirl, and Brady Corbet’s The Brutalist includes Adrien Brody in its cast.
Despite the focus on major studio films, the festival also showcases experimental works and timely subjects, including documentaries on the Ukraine war.
Films like Songs of Slow Burning Earth by Olha Zhurba and Russians at War by Anastasia Trofimova explore the conflict from unique perspectives. Amos Gitai’s Why War and Goran Hugo Olsson’s Israel Palestine on Swedish Television 1958-1989 also contribute to this thematic exploration.
The festival continues with an exciting lineup, including a special honor on opening night for Sigourney Weaver, who will receive the honorary Golden Lion for lifetime achievement.
