Abdellatif Kechiche’s lesbian romance “Blue Is the Warmest Color: The Life of Adele” has won the Palme d’Or, the top honor of the Cannes Film Festival.
The jury, headed by Steven Spielberg, took the unusual move of awarding the Palme not just to Kechiche, but also to the film’s two stars: Adele Exarchopoulos and Lea Seydoux. The three clutched each other as they accepted the award, one of cinema’s greatest honors.
“The film had a beautiful French youth that I discovered during the long time filming the movie,” said Kechiche at the festival closing ceremony Sunday. “It taught me a lot about the spirit of freedom.”
Exarchopoulos stars in the film as a 15-year-old girl whose life is changed when she falls in love with an older woman, played by Seydoux. The three-hour film caught headlines for its lengthy, graphic sex scenes, but bewitched festivalgoers with its intimate coming-of-age story.
“The film is a great love story that made us all feel privileged to be invited to see this story of deep love and deep heartbreak,” Spielberg told reporters. “The director didn’t put any constraints on the narrative.”
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