By Craig Simpson
Halle Berry has been forced to ditch her red carpet dress plans after a Cannes ban on both sheer and billowing dresses.
The best actress Oscar-winner for 2001’s Monster’s Ball will have to follow the same sartorial regulations as everyone else.
Nudity has been prohibited at the Cannes Film Festival following the recent vogue for sheer “naked dresses”, and overly “voluminous” gowns have also been banned.
From left: 78th Cannes Film Festival jury president Juliette Binoche with jury members Alba Rohrwacher, Leïla Slimani, Halle Berry and Hong Sang-soo.Credit: Getty Images
The policy, intended to stop elaborate trains clogging up the aisles of film festival cinemas, prevented Berry, 58, from wearing her planned dress.
Speaking at the Palais du Festival in Cannes as one of the event’s jury panel, she said: “I had an amazing dress by [Gaurav] Gupta to wear tonight but I cannot wear it because the train is too big.
“Of course, I’m going to follow the rules, so I had to pivot.”
The timing suggests Berry had been unaware of the rule change before it was revealed, a day before the festival’s opening ceremony.
In the end she wore a black-and-white striped gown with a modest train. She was greeted by whistles and chants from a small group of protesters agitating for more stable contracts for film festival workers.
Julia Garner’s red carpet look featured a modest train.Credit: Getty Images
The nudity ban comes after a number of celebrities opting for extremely sheer dresses on red carpets, including Berry herself, who wore a gown with sheer panels to the Met Gala last week.
Despite her own recent fashion choices, Berry said: “The nudity part I do think is probably also a good rule.”
Dress codes have become a talking point for the festival, which in 2015 stated that women had to wear high heels on the red carpet.
This year’s festival began in the shadow of the conviction of French film star Gerard Depardieu, who was found guilty of sexually assaulting two women.
Speaking as the head of the festival’s competition jury, actor Juliette Binoche said that he was “not a monster” but “a man”. She added that it was necessary to “think very carefully” about how much power is given to men within the film industry.
The 61-year-old actor refused to be drawn on her views on the Israel-Gaza conflict. However, she urged the audience to think of the hostages taken by Hamas and also those who “live in fear” in Gaza.
She then shared her sadness at the death of Palestinian photojournalist Fatima Hassouna, who was killed in an Israeli air strike on April 16, and shared her hopes that Cannes could do its bit to promote peace. Hassouna is the subject of a film, Put Your Soul on Your Hand and Walk, being screened at an independent film festival that runs parallel to Cannes.
The ceremony also featured Leonardo DiCaprio, who took to the stage to present Robert De Niro with an honorary Palme d’Or.
Accepting the award, De Niro, a vocal opponent of US President Donald Trump, denounced “America’s philistine president” and condemned talk of tariffs on the film industry.
The Telegraph, London
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