Final Cut,” directed by Michel Hazanavicius on opening night. This year’s Cannes is also the biggest film event to be hosted since the start of the pandemic, bringing together the festival and market crowds. (The festival was cancelled in 2020; it pushed back to July last summer to deal with COVID-19 concerns.) The red carpet, which looked nearly mask-free as if COVID-19 was a distant memory, was flooded with French stars and industry figures, including “Final Cut’s actors Romain Duris and Bérénice Bejo, as well as jury president Vincent Lindon — a veteran French actor who recently starred in Julia Ducournau’s Palme d’Or winning “Titane.” Adding to the crowd were other jurors including Asghar Farhadi (“A Hero”), Joachim Trier (“The Worst Person in the World”), British actor-turned-director Rebecca Hall (“Passing”), American director Jeff Nichols (“Take Shelter”) and Swedish actor Noomi Rapace (“Lamb”).

Rounding out the A-list set was Oscar-winner Julianne Moore, Eva Longoria and “No Time to Die” star Lashana Lynch. Inside the Palais, few patrons wore a mask in the humid theater or lobby — with an exception of a smattering (but not all) of the ushers.

Making matters worse, as far as germs go, the water pressure inside the bathrooms was so low about 20 minutes before the ceremony began, it was hard for patrons to properly wash their hands.It’s been a running theme at Cannes so far that the maskless have far outnumbered the masked, from local eateries to the press room where the Cannes jury held court earlier in the afternoon to a room of journalists who breathed air freely.

Festival officials note that the laissez-faire approach to safety precautions are in line with those of France, where cases are declining.

COVID-19 or Not, Cannes 2022 Kicks Off With Glamour, a French Zombie Movie and Few Masks

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