Every year the Cannes International Film Festival spotlights a set of films that shape cinema conversations for the months that follow. Cannes 2019 was no different: Bong Joon-ho’s Parasite claimed the Palme d’Or and dominated headlines, but many other entries also emerged as important, memorable works. From intimate character studies to bold genre experiments, the festival showcased a diverse range of voices—established masters and rising talents alike. Below is a curated list of ten of the most exciting films to come out of Cannes 2019, each noted for its direction, performances, and the conversations it inspired.
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1. The Lighthouse
Director: Robert Eggers
Screenwriters: Max Eggers, Robert Eggers
Starring: Willem Dafoe, Robert Pattinson
Robert Eggers’ second feature presents a claustrophobic, black-and-white maritime psychodrama shot on 35mm in an academy ratio to evoke pre-1940 cinema. The film pairs Willem Dafoe and Robert Pattinson as two lighthouse keepers whose tense, increasingly fraught relationship fuels a gripping exploration of isolation, madness, and myth. The film’s striking visual choices and intense performances made it one of Cannes’s standout independent releases.
2. A Hidden Life
Director: Terrence Malick
Screenwriter: Terrence Malick
Starring: August Diehl, Valerie Pachner, Michael Nyqvist, Matthias Schoenaerts, Bruno Ganz
Terrence Malick returns with a contemplative, spiritually resonant period drama that revisits themes of conscience, sacrifice, and cinematic lyricism. The film follows a conscientious objector whose moral stand leads to profound personal consequences. Marked by Malick’s characteristic visual poetry and meditative pacing, this work was widely discussed as a return to the director’s most ambitious, emotionally complex filmmaking.
3. Matthias et Maxime (Matthias & Maxime)
Director & Screenwriter: Xavier Dolan
Starring: Harris Dickinson, Xavier Dolan, Anne Dorval, Gabriel D’Almeida Freitas, Catherine Brunet
Xavier Dolan’s return to intimate melodrama explores the evolving bond between two friends whose relationship becomes complicated after an unexpected shared experience. The film is driven by sharp dialogue and emotional undercurrents, showcasing Dolan’s ear for tension and his ability to portray twenty-something life with honesty and nuance. It marked a creative rebound after the director’s more polarizing English-language project.
4. Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood
Director & Screenwriter: Quentin Tarantino
Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio, Brad Pitt, Margot Robbie, Dakota Fanning, Al Pacino, Luke Perry, Damian Lewis, Emile Hirsch, Timothy Olyphant, Tim Roth, Michael Madsen, Lena Dunham
Quentin Tarantino’s homage to late-1960s Los Angeles blends dark comedy, star-driven performances, and genre pastiche. The film revisits a volatile moment in Hollywood history with Tarantino’s trademark energy—combining comedic set pieces with sudden, visceral shifts. Anchored by standout turns from Leonardo DiCaprio and Brad Pitt, it remains a provocative, conversation-starting entry in the director’s filmography.
5. Sorry We Missed You
Director: Ken Loach
Screenwriter: Paul Laverty
Starring: Kris Hitchen, Debbie Honeywood, Rhys Stone, Katie Proctor
Veteran director Ken Loach returns with a raw, socially conscious drama that examines the pressures facing working-class families under modern gig economies. Focused on the strains of precarious employment and the erosion of social protections, the film is unflinching in its depiction of economic hardship and the emotional toll it takes on communities and relationships.
6. Portrait de la jeune fille en feu (Portrait of a Lady on Fire)
Director & Screenwriter: Céline Sciamma
Starring: Noémie Merlant, Adèle Haenel, Luàna Bajrami, Valeria Golino
Céline Sciamma’s intimate period romance explores desire, creativity, and the gaze through the relationship between an artist and her subject. Quiet, deliberate, and emotionally rich, the film examines female artistic representation and the bonds forged through shared acts of seeing and creating. Its restrained storytelling and luminous performances earned it widespread acclaim and significant recognition at the festival.
7. Dolor y gloria (Pain and Glory)
Director & Screenwriter: Pedro Almodóvar
Starring: Antonio Banderas, Penélope Cruz, Leonardo Sbaraglia, Asier Etxeandia, Cecilia Roth
Pedro Almodóvar delivers an intimate, reflective drama about a filmmaker confronting illness, memory, and creative legacy. Anchored by a deeply personal central performance, the film reads like a summation of themes that have long interested Almodóvar—love, regret, and the relationship between life and art. Its nostalgic tone and emotional candor resonated strongly with festival audiences.
8. Atlantics
Director: Mati Diop
Screenwriters: Mati Diop, Olivier Demangel
Starring: Abdou Balde, Aminata Kane, Ibrahima Mbaye, Amadou Mbow
Mati Diop’s Atlantics blends social realism with supernatural elements to tell a story of migration, labor exploitation, and memory in Dakar. The film’s lyrical approach frames a haunting tale of workers who attempt to escape harsh conditions by sea, and it stands out for its layered commentary on class, post-colonial realities, and spiritual belief. Its festival success marked a notable milestone for the filmmaker.
9. Bacurau
Directors & Screenwriters: Kleber Mendonça Filho, Juliano Dornelles
Starring: Udo Kier, Sônia Braga, Chris Doubek, Barbara Colen, Jonny Mars, Karine Teles
Bacurau is a fierce, genre-mixing thriller that uses allegory and provocation to comment on contemporary political tensions. Set in a remote Brazilian town, the film unfolds as a deadly, escalating conflict that reads as both a satirical fable and a visceral action piece. Its bold tone and social critique made it one of Cannes’s most talked-about entries.
10. Gisaengchung (Parasite)
Director & Screenwriters: Bong Joon-ho; Bong Joon-ho, Kim Dae-hwan, Jin Won Han
Starring: Song Kang-ho, Lee Sun-kyun, Cho Yeo-Jeong
Bong Joon-ho’s Parasite won the Palme d’Or and became the defining film of Cannes 2019. Merging dark comedy, social critique, thriller elements, and shocking tonal shifts, the film follows a lower-income family as they infiltrate the lives of a wealthy household. Parasite’s precise storytelling, sharp observations about class inequality, and dramatic surprises have been widely praised and sparked extensive discussion across international audiences.
Which of these films are you most looking forward to seeing? Share your picks and thoughts below.