Jim Jarmusch's film 'Father Mother Sister Brother' secures the Golden Lion award at the Venice Film Festival
The 2025 Venice Film Festival was a poignant event, with Kaouther Ben Hania's film, "The Voice of Hind Rajab," making a significant impact. The moving narrative, based on the tragic death of a five-year-old Palestinian girl during the Gaza war, received a record-breaking 24-minute standing ovation at its premiere.
"The Voice of Hind Rajab" uses the real audio of a young girl's desperate pleas for help as her car comes under Israeli gunfire. This powerful film serves as a testament to the atrocity committed against Hind, although cinema cannot bring her back. As Ben Hania poignantly stated, "Cinema cannot bring Hind back or erase the atrocity committed against her, but it can preserve her voice."
The film is divided into chapters set in New Jersey, Dublin, and Paris, offering a global perspective on the impact of conflict. Despite being a contender for the top prize, it did not win. Among the films that left Venice empty-handed were a trio of Netflix pictures.
The Venice festival marks the start of the awards season, and films premiering here have collected over 90 Oscar nominations and won almost 20 in the past four years. Other notable films at the festival included Jim Jarmusch's "Father Mother Sister Brother," for which he won the Golden Lion. Benny Safdie took home the best director nod for "The Smashing Machine."
Gianfranco Rosi won the special jury award for his black-and-white documentary "Below the Clouds" about life in Naples. Xin Zhilei won best actress for her role in "The Sun Rises On Us All," while Toni Servillo won best actor for his role in "La Grazia."
The main jury was chaired by US director Alexander Payne, with fellow filmmakers SteΜphane BrizeΜ, Maura Delpero, Cristian Mungiu, and Mohammad Rasoulof, alongside actresses Fernanda Torres and Zhao Tao.
"The Voice of Hind Rajab" features an ensemble cast including Tom Waits, Adam Driver, Mayim Bialik, Charlotte Rampling, Cate Blanchett, Vicky Krieps, Indya Moore, and Luka Sabbat. As the film's director solemnly stated, "Her voice will continue to echo until accountability is real, until justice is served."
