Aronofsky's 'Black Swan' opens Venice Film Fest

Darren Aronofsky's upcoming thriller "Black Swan" has been selected to open the 67th Venice International Film Festival, which kicks off Sept. 1, 2010 and runs through September 11.

Natalie Portman plays an experienced ballerina who's having a hard time dealing with a rival dancer (Mila Kunis). As the story develops, Portman's character is not sure whether what she experiences is real.

Vincent Cassel, Barbara Hershey and Winona Ryder co-star in the film written by Mark Heyman, Andres Heinz and John McLaughlin. Aronofsky won the Golden Lion in Venice in 2008 for "The Wrestler."

'Lebanon' takes Golden Lion at Venice Festival

Samuel Maoz's war drama "Lebanon" took the top prize at the 66th Venice Film Festival Saturday as the film received the prestigious Golden Lion. The film is set during the 1982 Lebanon war and focuses on crew members out on a mission in a tank.

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Photos from Pixar celebration at Venice Film Festival

John Lasseter, Brad Bird, Pete Docter, Andrew Stanton and Lee Unkrich were all honored with the Golden Lion for lifetime achievement for their work with Pixar Sunday at the current edition of the Venice Film Festival, and you can check out some of the photos from the event above and after the jump.

This celebration marked the first time the festival handed out a collective Lion for the category. Lasseter's directing credits at Pixar include "Cars," "Toy Story," "Toy Story 2" and "A Bug's Life." Stanton's credits include "Finding Nemo" and "Wall-E."

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Nicolas Cage, Eva Mendes hit Venice Red Carpet for 'Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans'

Nicolas Cage, Eva Mendes and director Werner Herzog presented Herzog's new film "Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans" at the Venice Film Festival earlier this week, and after the jump (and above), you can see some photos from the event.

Below you will also find a new still from the remake. In the film, Cage will play a cop who investigates the murder of a group of illegal immigrants. In the original by Abel Ferrara, Harvey Keitel played a corrupt New York City cop investigating a young nun’s rape.

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Michael Moore's new film to compete in Venice

The Venice Film Festival today announced its complete lineup, and Michael Moore's upcoming documentary "Capitalism: A Love Story" will be one of the films competing for the festival's top prize.

In the film, Moore focuses on the impact corporate dominance and out-of-control profit motives have on the the world. It also centers on the global financial meltdown and the Senate's decision to approve a gigantic bailout.

Twenty-three films will screen in competition, including Werner Herzog's "Bad Lieutenant: Port of New Orleans," Todd Solondz's "Life During Wartime," John Hillcoat's "The Road" and Fatih Akin's "Sould Kitchen."

The out-of-competition category also includes some interesting picks, including Joe Dante's "The Hole," Steven Soderbergh's "The Informant!," Grant Heslov's "The Men Who Stare at Goats" and Abel Ferrara's "Napoli Napoli Napoli."

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Ang Lee will lead Venice Film Festival jury

Venice just can't get enough of Ang Lee.

The award-winning director will head the jury at this year's Venice Film Festival, which runs Sept. 2-12, 2009.

Lee is certainly no stranger to Venice. In 2007, he won the prestigious Golden Lion award for "Lust, Caution" (Se, jie), and in 2005, he won it for "Brokeback Mountain."

Wim Wenders presided over the jury at last year's edition.

Lee is also currently wrapping up "Taking Woodstock," which is set during the summer of 1969 and follows a man whose actions will eventually provoke the birth of the legendary concert.

Source: Associated Press