Venice Film Festival Winners: Golden Lion Goes To ‘All The Beauty And The Bloodshed’; Luca Guadagnino Best Director, Martin McDonagh Best Screenplay; Cate Blanchett, Colin Farrell Take Acting Prizes

Nancy Tartaglione
·4 min read
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UPDATE: The Venice Film Festival has now handed out its awards, and for the second time ever crowned a documentary as the Golden Lion, while also spreading the love around.

Oscar winner Laura Poitras’ All the Beauty and the Bloodshed walked away with the top honor tonight. It follows Gianfranco Rosi’s Sacro Gra (2013) as a non-fiction Lion winner. The film is a portrait of Nan Goldin, the 68-year-old photographer who was prescribed Oxycontin, quickly became addicted to it, found recovery through a replacement drug and then threw her energies into calling the Sackler family to account. In Deadline’s review Stephanie Bunbury wrote that what the film “makes clear is that this is all of a piece with the photographs of drag queens, prostitutes and parties, the angry records of AIDS sufferers, the portraits that show glamour and tenderness where others might see the grotesque.”

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Meanwhile, Luca Guadagnino scored Best Director with his coming of age cum zombie story Bones and All, which also scored a Best Newcomer prize for Taylor Russell.

In the main acting categories, it was essentially set in stone for Cate Blanchett the second Tar premiere on the Lido. Courterparting in the Best Actor slot, Colin Farrell charmed audiences, and the jury, going on to take the Best Actor Volpi Cup for Martin McDonagh’s The Banshees of Inisherin. McDonagh also scored Best Screenplay — a prize he repeats after 2017’s Three Billboards Outside Ebbing Missouri.

The runner-up Silver Lion Grand Jury Prize was awarded to Alice Diop’s Saint Omer, which also took the award for a debut film (read Deadline’s review here). Scroll down for the full list of winners.

. - Credit: Getty Images
. - Credit: Getty Images

Getty Images

PREVIOUS, 9:55 AM PT: The 79th Venice Film Festival officially draws to a close this evening, with prizewinners about to be announced inside the Sala Grande. The main jury, presided over by Julianne Moore, will present the Golden Lion along with a host of other awards before the hour is out (scroll below for the list which is being updated live).

It was a packed 10 days on the Lido with star power — and strong opinion — in abundance, even if there didn’t appear to be a major breakout as we’ve seen in recent years. Among the best reviewed films was Martin McDonagh’s The Banshees of Inisherin starring Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson. From Searchlight, it heralded McDonagh’s return to Venice after 2017’s Three Billboards Outside Ebbing Missouri took the Best Screenplay prize before going on to myriad wins elsewhere and two Oscars.

Luca Guadagnino’s Bones and All (MGM), starring Taylor Russell and Timothée Chalamet, and Laura Poitras’ All the Beauty and the Bloodshed (Participant/HBO) made a mark. Netflix pics were a mixed bag with many praising Romain Gavras’ kinetic French-language Athena while Alejandro G Inarritu’s Bardo divided some. Andrew Dominik’s long-gestating Blonde finally had its debut with Deadline’s review widely positive.

Other notable titles include Alice Diop’s Saint Omer, Santiago Mitre’s Agentina 1985 and Jafar Panahi’s No Bears.

On the acting front, Cate Blanchett was lauded for her lead turn in Todd Field’s Tar from Focus while Brendan Fraser scored plaudits for Darren Aronofsky’s The Whale (A24).

Still, as with any festival, Venice can offer up surprises when it confers trophies. What’s certain is that any film that takes honors here means it’s not the last we’ll be hearing about it through awards season.

We’ll know more in just a little while so check back for updates.

VENICE 79
Golden Lion
All the Beauty and the Bloodshed, dir: Laura Poitras

Silver Lion Grand Jury Prize
Saint Omer; dir: Alice Diop

Silver Lion Best Director
Luca Guadagnino, Bones and All

Special Jury Prize
No Bears, dir: Jafar Panahi

Best Screenplay
Martin McDonagh, The Banshees of Inisherin

Best Actress
Cate Blanchett, Tar

Best Actor
Colin Farrell, The Banshees of Inisherin

Marcello Mastroianni Award for for Best New Young Actor or Actress
Taylor Russell, Bones And All

HORIZONS
Best Film
World War III; dir: Houman Seyidi

Best Director
Vera; dirs: Tizza Covi, Rainer Frimmel

Special Jury Prize
Bread and Salt; dir: Damian Kocur

Best Actress
Vera Gemma, Vera

Best Actor
Mohsen Tanabandeh, World War III

Best Screenplay
Fernando Guzzoni, Blanquita

Best Short Film
Snow In September; dir: Lkhagvadulam Purev-Ochir

Lion of the Future – Luigi De Laurentiis Award for a Debut Film
Saint Omer; dir: Alice Diop

HORIZONS EXTRA
Audience Award
Nezouh, dir: Soudade Kaadan

VENICE CLASSICS
Best Documentary
Fragments of Paradise; dir: KD Davison

Best Restored Film
Branded To Kill

VENICE IMMERSIVE
Best Experience
The Man Who Couldn’t Leave; dir: Chen Singing

Grand Jury Prize
From the Main Square; dir: Pedro Harres

Special Jury Prize
Eggscape; dir: German Heller

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