Despite rumors, Abel Ferrara’s Welcome to New York, the fictionalized depiction of the Dominique Strauss-Kahn sexual assault case, didn’t get an official Cannes screening this year.
Despite the graphic sex scenes, the film is a largely balanced portrait, depicting the former head of the IMF as an egotistical sex addict and would-be rapist but not a monster. It leaves no doubt, however, to his guilt and even suggests he got off by means of bribery.
In a press conference following the screening, Depardieu called the film “a Shakespearean tragedy” that was “all about money, sex and power” and “the puppets who play games with money.”
The film’s producer Vincent Maraval, said he had not yet heard any reaction from the Strauss-Khan family.
“I don’t think they’ve seen the film yet, so I expect they will be paying us 7 Euros to download the film and watch it,” he said.