The 81st edition of the Venice Film
Festival will open on Wednesday, August 28, with Tim Burton's
Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice the long awaited sequel to the
director's cult 1988 fantasy horror comedy.
The director will be accompanied by his partner, actress Monica
Bellucci, and the protagonist Michael Keaton, the title's
charismatic exorcist, Winona Ryder, Willem Defoe and Jenna
Ortega.
The follow-up is Out of Competition at the world's oldest film
fest.
This year's edition packed with Hollywood stars, which wraps up
on September 7, will also present Sigourney Weaver with a Golden
Lion for lifetime achievement.
Even stars without a film to be presented at the festival, like
Richard Gere, will be in the lagoon city to attend events
including the amfAR charity at the Nicelli airport on September1
or Oprah Winfrey, who will be Diane Von Furstenberg's guest at
the Arsenale on August 29.
Venice will also host leading Italian actors and directors
including Valerio Mastandrea, Barbara Ronchi, Luca Marinelli,
Alessandro Borghi, Nanni Moretti, Elio Germano, Toni Servillo,
Fabrizio Gifuni, Alba Rohrwacher, Pierfrancesco Favino and
Francesco Di Leva, to cite a few.
In particular, the Italian movies in competition are Gianni
Amelio's Battlefield; Maura Delpero's Vermiglio; Iddu by Fabio
Grassadonia and Antonio Piazza with Toni Servillo and Elio
Germano; Luca Guadagnino's Queer starring Daniel Craig; and
Giulia Steigerwalt's Diva Futura.
Among the most highly anticipated stars to be at this year's
festival are Lady Gaga and Joaquin Phoenix (September 4), and
the duo George Clooney - Brad Pitt for Wolfs (Sunday, September
1) with Pitt's ex-wife Angelina Jolie starring in Pablo
Larrain's Maria (on August 29) on the last days of Maria
Callas's exile in Paris.
More stars to feature at the film extravaganza include Julianne
Moore and Tilda Swinton for Pedro Almodovar (on September 2),
Cate Blanchett and Kevin Kline for Disclaimer, the TV series by
Alfonso Cuaron (August 29-30), Nicole Kidman for Babygirl by
Halina Reijn (on August 30) with Antonio Banderas and a
previously unseen Daniel Craig for Luca Guadagnino's Queer
(September 3).
Camille Cottin will star in Trois Amies on August 30 while
August 31 will feature the screening of The Order, a film in
competition with Jude Law and Tye Sheridan.
Along with the couple Clooney-Pitt, Adrien Brody will also be in
Venice on September 1 for The Brutalis by Brady Corbet and
Vincent Lindon on September 4 for The Quiet Son.
The ceremony to present the prizes awarded by the jury chaired
by Isabelle Hupper will wrap up with Orto americano by Pupi
Avati, Out of Competition and Horizon: An Americal saga chapter
1 and 2 with Kevin Costner and Sienna Miller.
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