2018 Cannes International Film Festival

Day two: the weather held, Critics' Week began, and a political statement erupted on the red carpet around the Russian film Leto. A sidebar of drama roiled the Croisette - the seemingly never-ending dispute over the rights of Terry Gilliam's The Man Who Killed Don Quixote, scheduled to close the festival on May 19.

Two days, two capes? Could it be the superhero effect? Up-dos dominate. Asymmetry emerges and men kinda, play it safe.

The weather was perfect Riviera spring, the photographers were at the ready, bizarre creatures roamed the Croisette (some of them promoting a new kids' movie) and the Palais des Festivals hosted its first press conference and its first gala screening. The 71st  Cannes Film Festival is officially open.

And we're off…. Hours before the opening ceremony and the screening of Asghar Farhadi’s Spanish language Todos lo saben, starring the high voltage husband-and-wife team of Javier Bardem and Penélope Cruz, the Competition Jury press conference signaled the 71st Cannes Film Festival is officially underway.

Early trend on the first day of the 71st Cannes Film Festival: hair was anything but boring. Knots, buns, braids, curls and controlled non-control epitomized by the amazing Isabelle Adjani.

The 71st Cannes Film Festival begins under the pressure from assorted and interesting forces: the #MeToo and #TimesUp movements, which put women’s rights front and center in the entertainment industry; the clash between French distributors and streaming platforms, especially Netflix; and the growing disenchantment from major studios and independents with the cost, the length, the timing and the peculiarities of the festival. At a last-minute, unscheduled press conference on the eve of the festival, Cannes artistic director Thierry Fremaux handed out #MeToo flyers to participants, announced a hotline – a phone number an email address – to allow attendees to reach out and denounce instances of harassment.