Many of the year’s most anticipated films finally saw the light of day in Venice, but only one could take the coveted Golden Lion home. Yorgos Lanthimos’ surrealist black comedy Poor Things is the biggest winner of this year’s Venice Film Festival after being honored with the Golden Lion.
Poor Things had its world premiere in Venice on September 1, and it will most likely hit the fall festival circuit before being theatrically released by Searchlight Pictures on December 8. The film was met with rave reviews in Venice before picking up the festival’s most prestigious accolade, with Emma Stone’s performance being singled out as one of its highlights.
Poor Things had tough competition in Michael Mann’s Ferrari, David Fincher’s The Killer, and Sofia Copolla’s Priscilla, among others, but it was eventually crowned as the Golden Lion winner. Lanthimos collected the award and dedicated it to the leading lady Emma Stone, saying “this film is her in front and behind the camera.”
In addition to Poor Things, the list of winners also included Evil Does Not Exist (Silver Lion Grand Jury Prize) and Green Border (Special Jury Prize). Peter Sarsgaard and Cailee Spaeny won the Volpi Cup for their acting performances in Memory and Priscilla, respectively, while Matteo Garrone collected the Silver Lion for the best director with Io Capitano.
FULL LIST OF WINNERS AT THE 2023 VENICE INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL:
Golden Lion
Poor Things, Yorgos Lanthimos
Silver Lion Grand Jury Prize
Evil Does Not Exist, Ryusuke Hamaguchi
Silver Lion Best Director
Matteo Garrone, Io Capitano
Special Jury Prize
Green Border, Agnieszka Holland
Best Screenplay
Pablo Larrain and Guillermo Calderón, El Conde
Best Actress
Cailee Spaeny, Priscilla
Best Actor
Peter Sarsgaard, Memory
Marcello Mastroianni Award for Best New Young Actor or Actress
Seydou Sarr, Io Capitano
HORIZONS
Best Film
Explanation For Everything, Gábor Reisz
Best Director
Mika Gustafson, Paradise Is Burning
Special Jury Prize
Una Sterminata Domenica, Alain Parroni
Best Actress
Margarita Rosa De Francisco, El Paraiso
Best Actor
Tergel Bold-Erdene, City of Wind
Best Screenplay
El Paraiso, Enrico Maria Artale
Best Short Film
A Short Trip, Erenik Beqiri
Lion of the Future – Luigi De Laurentiis Award for a Debut Film
Love Is A Gun, Lee Hong-Chi
HORIZONS EXTRA
Audience Award
FELICITÀ (HAPPINESS), Micaela Ramazzotti
VENICE CLASSICS
Best Documentary
Thank You Very Much, Alex Braverman
Best Restored Film
OHIKKOSHI (MOVING), Shinji Somai
VENICE IMMERSIVE
Grand Jury Prize
Songs For A Passerby, Celine Daemen
Special Jury Prize
Flow, Adriaan Lokman
Immersive Achievement Prize
Emperor, Marion Burger, Ilan Cohen
