MOVIE NEWS – David Cronenberg’s predictions about how Cannes audiences would react to Crimes of the Future have been fully realised.

David Cronenberg‘s Crimes of the Future arrived in Cannes this week, and as the director predicted, quite a few people walked out of the screening not quite prepared for the new masterpiece of the “body horror” genre. Cronenberg has never been known for making light-hearted and light-hearted films, so it’s no surprise that the director’s latest film, his first in eight years, has elicited quite a response from the first audience.

Lead actress Kristen Stewart was quick to defend the film, saying that there was something “beautiful” behind all the gore.

Crimes of the Future is set in a world where body mutations and transformations are a form of entertainment. Vigo Mortensen stars as Saul Tenser, who, along with his partner Caprice (Lea Seydoux), performs organ surgery in front of a large audience. As you can probably imagine, this leads to some pretty bizarre and often grotesque scenes, and that kind of thing doesn’t always work for everyone at Cannes. However, speaking to NME, Stewart spoke out against those who called the film too gory. He said:

“It’s a lot to take on at first, I guess. But to me, the movie is so simply sweet. Yes, we’re barrelling towards certain death, for sure. But there’s a delicacy to the movie that, even in the gory stuff, I was really bewitched by it. Everyone talking about walking out and how intense it was. I was like, ‘It’s not intense! It’s really beautiful.'”

David Cronenberg was expecting precisely that reception

David Cronenberg’s career is littered with films that have disturbed audiences with weak stomachs, including total horrors like The Fly and oddities like Videodrome. That’s why Cronenberg knows what to expect when his films are put in front of people who are not prepared for what they are about to witness. Ahead of the film’s premiere at Cannes, David Cronenberg spoke to Deadline:

“There are some very strong scenes.”

“I mean, I’m sure that we will have walkouts within the first five minutes of the movie. I’m sure of that. Some people who have seen the film have said that they think the last 20 minutes will be very hard on people, and that there’ll be a lot of walkouts.”

While some of those who saw the film in Cannes have already voiced their opinions, the general public in the US will be able to form their own opinions when the film hits theatres on June 10. Given that the film has been mostly well-received by critics, with an 83% approval rating, it will be interesting to see how this relates to the audience and box office when the film is released next month.

Source: NME