Protests at Venice Film Festival – level 3

Protests at Venice Film Festival

11-09-2023 07:00

Woody Allen faced protests and controversy at the Venice Film Festival as he presented his 50th film ‘Coup De Chance’.

Demonstrators chanted ‘no rape culture’ and clashed with security. Allen, who has been shunned by Hollywood since the #MeToo movement emerged, arrived with his wife Soon-Yi Previn, who is the adopted daughter of his ex-partner, Mia Farrow. The allegations against Allen involve molesting Previn in the 1990s, which he claims were fabricated by Farrow. The festival faced criticism for including both Allen and Roman Polanski, another controversial figure. Allen expressed support for #MeToo but also criticized it as silly in some cases. His film that’s entirely in French received mixed reactions. Meanwhile, Polanski’s film ‘The Palace’ was heavily criticized.

The festival also screened Sofia Coppola’s biopic of Elvis Presley’s wife Priscilla which garnered strong reviews but raised uncomfortable questions about Elvis’s relationship with a teenage girl.

Difficult words: shunned (ignored or rejected), molest (to sexually assault or abuse), garner (to gather or collect).

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What is the public's opinion of the festival's decision to screen Allen and Polanski's films and why has it been so controversial?

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