Romanian director Cristian Mungiu’s film ‘Fjord’, which allegorically portrays a world divided by politics, ideology, generation, and race due to the spread of fundamentalism, has been selected as the Palme d’Or winner at this year’s Cannes Film Festival. Director Na Hong-jin’s film ‘Hope’, which emerged as a ‘dark horse’ following critical acclaim after its first screening, unfortunately failed to win a main prize.
The 79th Cannes Film Festival announced its winners on the evening of the 23rd (local time) at the Lumiere Theatre in the Palais des Festivals. Jury President Park Chan-wook praised ‘Fjord’ for its win, stating, “This film has artistically and majestically implemented a way to understand diverse perspectives.”
‘Fjord’ tells the story of husband Georgiu and wife Lisbet as they move to a remote village in Norway. As parents of five, they quickly integrate into the community, but as devout believers, they refuse to compromise on their children’s religious upbringing. Their conservative values and educational views eventually attract the attention of local authorities. After bruises are found on their daughter Elia’s arm and back, they are branded as ‘child abusers.’
The children are separated from their parents, and the family is torn apart as even an infant is moved to a shelter. The film goes beyond the issue of corporal punishment to explore the conviction where ‘neither side considers themselves violent.’ The clash between faith and tradition, which seeks to control a child’s beliefs and body, and the state, which dismantles a family in the name of human rights and protection, creates ‘two violences.’ This structure mirrors the reality of our world, where diverse perspectives are often abandoned.
Director Cristian Mungiu shared his thoughts on stage, saying, “This film is a declaration of opposition to all forms of fundamentalism.”
This is the second time Director Mungiu has won the Palme d’Or; he previously won in 2007 for the controversial film ‘4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days,’ which dealt with abortion. With the win for ‘Fjord,’ North American distributor NEON has achieved a record of ‘hitting the Palme d’Or’ for seven consecutive years. Starting with ‘Parasite’ in 2019, NEON distributed ‘Titane,’ ‘Triangle of Sadness,’ ‘Anatomy of a Fall,’ ‘Anora,’ and ‘Just a Murder,’ sweeping the award for six straight years. NEON had already acquired the North American distribution rights for ‘Fjord’ in May of last year.
The Grand Prix, the second-highest honor, went to Andrey Zvyagintsev’s ‘Minotaurus.’ While appearing to be a ‘crime of passion involving an affair,’ it is a provocative work that questions the moral bankruptcy of Russia. The story follows Gleb, who kills his wife Galina’s lover, Anton, and feels no regret or guilt even after covering up the murder. Notably, Gleb is ordered to recruit conscripts for the Russia-Ukraine war, showing a character who worries more about company losses than human death. Gleb is a man who is ethically paralyzed. Borrowing from the Greek myth of the Minotaur to depict a real-world monster that demands human sacrifices, the film has been consistently praised as a masterpiece.
The Jury Prize went to Valeska Grisebach’s ‘The Adventure I’ve Dreamed Of,’ and the Best Director award was shared by Pawel Pawlikowski for ‘Fatherland’ and Javier Ambrose and Javier Calvo for ‘La Bola Negra.’ The Best Screenplay award went to Emmanuelle Mare’s ‘Notre Salut.’ Additionally, the Best Actress award was shared by Virginie Efira and Dao Okamoto for Ryusuke Hamaguchi’s ‘All of a Sudden,’ and the Best Actor award was shared by Emmanuel Machia and Valentin Campagne for Lucas Dont’s ‘Coward.’
Director Na Hong-jin’s ‘Hope,’ which had built high expectations as the ‘dark horse of Cannes 2026,’ ended up without an award. Although the majority of foreign media and critics gave it positive reviews, it failed to win. There was some controversy before the ceremony as a ‘callback list’—implying ‘you are on the winner’s list, so you must attend the ceremony’—circulated locally and online. Usually, directors and actors in the running delay their departure until the day of the ceremony, waiting for a ‘call,’ and the organizers give a private heads-up on the morning of the event. However, the list spread on SNS and foreign media almost perfectly matched the actual winners, revealing the results before the ceremony even began. ‘Hope’ was not included on this list.
