CANNES, France - expansive drama of the American Director Terrence Malick "the tree of life" won the top honor at the Cannes Festival, Sunday, while Kirsten Dunst won the award for best actress for the apocalyptic saga "Melancholy."
The price of gold was accepted Sunday by two producers of "Tree of life", Dede Gardner and Bill Pohlad, for the press-shy notoriously Malick, who jumped all public events at the prestigious Cannes film festival.
"I know it would be very pleased with this," Pohlad said.
"Why is he here?". I do not say that it is a question easy to answer, but he is personally a very humble guy and a very shy guy, "Pohlad said after the award of the prize. "It is just very sincerely work to speak for itself."
Gardner said when he came to the prospect of a Cannes Award, Malick had been "very mild." "He said:"if we were lucky that, I would like to thank my parents and my wife Becky"."
"The tree of life," which opens Friday at United States, stars Brad Pitt, Sean Penn and Jessica Chastain in a history distant family life which is played against a cosmic background, including the Visual glorious of the creation of the universe and the age of the dinosaurs.
Dunst won for his role in the history of the end of the world "Melancholy", whose Director, Lars von Trier's Denmark, was banned at the Festival after remarks sympathetic to Adolf Hitler at a press conference.
"Wow, what a week it was," said Dunst, who plays a deeply depressed woman coping with manies family as a rogue planet is down on a possible collision with the Earth course.
"It is an honour which is a unique thing for an actress," said Dunst, who thanked the organizers of the festival to allow "Melancholy" to remain in the competition after remarks Nazi von Trier and offered warm words for its Director. "I want to thank Lars for giving me the opportunity to be so brave."
Von Trier was not allowed to attend the ceremony on Sunday.
Jean Dujardin claimed the award for best actor for the silent film "The artist", in which he plays a star of Hollywood of the 1920s whose career crumbles as talking images become the standard. In keeping with his singing, nature Lookout, Dujardin was a little tap when he came to the stage of Cannes.
Dujardin said that he wanted to share his prize with partner Bérénice Bejo, got up and blew kisses him on the stage. The film was directed by the husband of Bejo, French filmmaker Michel Hazanavicius, who has made Dujardin in "oss 117" parodies of espionage.
"I hope to make other silent films with you," Dujardin said Hazanavicius.
Several well received films, among them Spanish thriller of horror film director Pedro Almodovar "The skin I Live In" and "We need to talk about Kevin by British filmmaker Lynne Ramsay" go home empty-handed.
Malick, who made that five films in a career of almost 40 years, previously won the lead in 1979 for "Days of Heaven" on his last trip to Cannes. "The tree of life" was shot three years ago and the festival organizers had hoped premiere at Cannes last year, but he was not ready in time.
Prizes were awarded by a jury of nine members, led by Robert De Niro, which included actors Uma Thurman and Jude Law.
"The tree of life" is the first American film to win top honors at the Cannes Film Festival since back-to-back recipient in 2003 (Gus Van Sant "elephant") and 2004 (Michael Moore "Fahrenheit 9/11").
Niro said reporters choosing the top winner was difficult because of the extent and the "great qualities" among the 20 competing titles, but that "the tree of life" fit the Bill in the end.
"He had the size, importance, intention, everything you want to call, which seemed to adjust the price," says of Niro. "" "". Most of us felt that the movie was fantastic. ?
Second place grand prize was shared by brothers Belgian Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne, twice winners of the Palme d'Or, for their youth troubled drama "The Kid with a bike" and the Turkish Director Nuri Bilge Ceylan for his meditative saga "Once Upon a Time in Anatolia."
The jury of the third place prize went to the drama of the French actress-turned-Director Ma?wenn child protection "Polish."
Despite a reception pices of criticism, "Melancholy von sort" found favour with Cannes jurors.
"As I am concerned, it is one of the best films." "I think it's a great film", the French Director Olivier Assayas, a juror said.
Von Trier has caused a storm of fire at the film press conference when he delivered remarks rambling on its German heritage in which he said he understood and sympathize with Hitler.
He also made the taunts on the Jews, comments that brought condemnation of Jews and the Holocaust groups and prompted organizers of Cannes to boot him, a sanction without precedent for a filmmaker who won the Palme d'Or in 2000 with "Dancer in the Dark".
Another Danish filmmaker, Nicolas Winding Refn, won price lead to "Drive," its thriller of action featuring Ryan Gosling as an in a hold-up poorly turned Hollywood stunt driver. Refn gushes thanks for Gosling, which allowed producers to choose which Director he wanted.
"He really wanted to make the film and he really wanted to do with me," said Refn.
The award for best screenplay went to Israeli filmmaker Joseph Cedar for "Reference", his account of Talmudic University rivals father and son.
Actress Elena Anaya, right, director Pedro Almodovar kisses on the cheek as they arrive for screening of the skin, I live, the 64th film festival in Cannes, South of the France Thursday, May 19, 2011. (AP Photo/Joel Ryan) Close