CANNES, France — At 70, the innovative director Jean-Luc Godard can still stir up a storm.
A founder of the French new wave movement in the 1960s, Godard returned to Cannes this week to present “Eloge de l’Amour,” which is competing for the top prize.
There were complaints before the film even reached the screen.
Festival officials organized just one press screening of the eagerly awaited film in one of the smaller theaters in the festival complex on Tuesday.
Many journalists were unable to get in and some of those who jostled their way into the theater were forced to sit on the floor.
In the film, Godard explores the four key moments of love — meeting, physical passion, arguments and making up.
But he also pokes fun at Hollywood studios — a favorite target for the feisty director.
The experimental movie features American film executives who travel to France to buy the rights to a story about the French Resistance during World War II.
“The real question is to know whether an American super-production has the right to get hold of other people’s legends,” the film’s production notes say.
Godard expanded on his view in the notes.
“In Hollywood, there is no longer any production. There is only distribution, which is based on exploitation and television distribution,” he said.
At one point, a French character in the film says, “The Americans have no history. That is why they come here to steal ours.”
The film is a mixture of black-and-white segments and sequences shot in vivid color. Other themes explored include the war in Kosovo, globalization and former French President Charles de Gaulle.
Godard’s last film in competition in Cannes was “New Wave” in 1990. This is the Swiss director’s fifth time in competition but he has never won the Palme d’Or.
He seemed to have little sympathy Tuesday for the journalists and critics shut out of his screening.
“Perhaps, journalists should pay to see my film,” he said.
