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Cannes 2013: ‘Touch of Sin’ a corrosive depiction of Chinese society

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Actress Mona Walravens, left, director Abdellatif Kechiche and actress Lea Seydoux, winner of the Palme d’Or for “La Vie D’adele” (“Blue Is the Warmest Color”), attend the Palme D’Or Winners dinner.  (Ian Gavan / Getty Images)
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Actress Bérénice Bejo, awarded with the Prix d’Interpretation Feminine (best actress), and director Asghar Farhadi attend.  (Ian Gavan / Getty Images)
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Director Anthony Chen, winner of the Camera d’Or for best first film, attends.  (Ian Gavan / Getty Images)
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Director Jia Zhangke, winner of Prix du Scenario (best screenplay), for “Tian Zhu Ding” (“A Touch of Sin”) attends.  (Ian Gavan / Getty Images)
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Actor Oscar Isaac, left, with actress Kim Novak and Studiocanal CEO Olivier Courson, receives the Grand Prix for the film “Inside Llewyn Davis” on behalf of directors Joel and Ethan Coen.  (Alberto Pizzoli / AFP/Getty Images)
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Amat Escalante, winner for directing “Heli,” attends.  (Ian Gavan / Getty Images)
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Jury members Naomi Kawase, left, Cristian Mungiu, Ang Lee, Daniel Auteuil, Steven Spielberg, Lynne Ramsay, Vidya Balan, Nicole Kidman and Christoph Waltz attend the winners dinner.  (Ian Gavan / Getty Images)
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South African actor Conrad Kemp, U.S. actor Forest Whitaker, French director Jerome Salle, British actor Orlando Bloom and guests arrive for the screening of “Zulu” and the closing ceremony.  (Guillaume Horcajuelo / EPA)
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Uma Thurman arrives for the screening of “Zulu” and the closing ceremony.  (Guillaume Horcajuelo / EPA)
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Actors Jeremy Renner and Marion Cotillard attend “The Immigrant” premiere.  (Pascal Le Segretain / Getty Images)
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Joseph Jackson attends the “Michael Kohlhaas” premiere.  (Ian Gavan / Getty Images)
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French actress and mistress of ceremonies at the Cannes Film Festival Audrey Tautou at the “Venus in Fur” premiere.  (Loic Venance / AFP / Getty Images)
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Australian actress and member of the feature film jury Nicole Kidman arrives for the screening of “Venus in Fur.”  (Loic Venance / AFP / Getty Images)
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Miss Universe 2010 Ximena Navarrete attends the “Venus in Fur” premiere.  (Michael Buckner / Getty Images)
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French director Alain Guiraudie, front center, receives the directing prize for his movie “L’Inconnu du Lac (Stranger by the Lake).”  (Sebastien Nogier / EPA)
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U.S. director Ryan Coogler, center, receives the Prize of the Future for “Fruitvale Station” from jury member Thomas Vinterberg, left, and actor Forest Whitaker at the Un Certain Regard closing ceremony.  (Sebastien Nogier / EPA)
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French actor Mathieu Amalric, left center, actress Emmanuelle Seigner and director Roman Polanski leave the screening of the film “Venus in Fur.”   (Alberto Pizzoli / AFPGetty Images)
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Actress Tilda Swinton attends the “Only Lovers Left Alive” premiere.  (Gareth Cattermole / Getty Images)
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Actress Stacy Keibler attends amfAR’s 20th annual Cinema Against AIDS.  (Samir Hussein / Getty Images)
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Janet Jackson attends amfAR’s 20th annual Cinema Against AIDS.   (Samir Hussein / Getty Images)
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Model Heidi Klum.  (Samir Hussein / Getty Images)
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Lara Lieto and actor Adrien Brody.   (Samir Hussein / Getty Images)
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Actress Goldie Hawn attends the charity auction at the Cinema Against AIDS amfAR gala.  (Ian Langsdon / EPA)
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Jessica Chastain poses for photographers at the Cinema Against AIDS amfAR gala.  (Ian Langsdon / EPA)
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Heiress and model Paris Hilton.  (Alberto Pizzoli / AFP / Getty Images)
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Actor Dylan McDermott.  (Vittorio Zunino Celotto /Getty Images)
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French-Spanish actress Astrid Berges-Frisbey attends the “Only God Forgives” premiere.   (Anne-Christine Poujoulat / AFP / Getty Images)
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Actress Elsa Zylberstein walks the red carpet at Cannes.  (Andreas Rentz / Getty Images)
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Director Maji-da Abdi attends the “Only God Forgives” premiere.  (Ian Gavan / Getty Images)
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Actress Elodie Bouchez poses for photographers at the Cannes Film Festival.  (Ian Gavan / Getty Images)
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Actress Audrey Fleurot at the “Only God Forgives” premiere.   (Ian Gavan / Getty Images)
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British actress Kristin Scott Thomas arrives for the screening of “Only God Forgives.’ ”  (Guillaume Horcajuelo / EPA)
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Milla Jovovich attends the “Blood Ties” premiere.  (Pascal Le Segretain / Getty Images)
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Marion Cotillard at the “Blood Ties” premiere.  (Pascal Le Segretain / Getty Images)
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Rosario Dawson at the “As I Lay Dying” premiere.  (Stuart C. Wilson / Getty Images)
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Zoe Saldana on the red carpet at the “Blood Ties” premiere.  (Pascal Le Segretain / Getty Images)
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Selita Ebanks attends the “Blood Ties” premiere.  (Pascal Le Segretain / Getty Images)
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Ahna O’Reilly, left, and Octavia Spencer attend the Art of Elysium, Rabbit Bandini and Leon Max event for Ahna O’Reilly.  (Michael Buckner / Getty Images)
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Rooney Mara and IWC Chief Executive Georges Kern at the exclusive “For the Love of Cinema” event.  (Samir Hussein / Getty Images)
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Actor Eric Dane at the “For the Love Of Cinema” event hosted by Swiss luxury watch manufacturer IWC Schaffhausen.  (Samir Hussein / Getty Images)
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Karoline Huber, brand director IWC Middle East, and Jimmy Jean-Louis earn their strips at “For the Love of Cinema” event.  (Samir Hussein / Getty Images)
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Melonie Diaz attends the Art of Elysium, Rabbit Bandini and Leon Max event for Ahna O’Reilly.  (Michael Buckner / Getty Images)
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Dutch-Palestinian film director Hany Abu-Assad, second from left, and the cast of his film “Omar” are in good spirits for the screening “Borgman.”  (Anne-Christine Poujoulat / AFP/Getty Images)
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Actress Sara Hjort Ditlevsen arrives for the screening of the film “Borgman.”  (Lionel Cironneau / Associated Press)
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Actor and director James Franco arrives for the screening of “Borgman.”  (Guillaume Horacajuelo / EPA)
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Dutch producer Marc van Warmerdam, Dutch director Alex van Warmerdam, Dutch actress Annet Malherbe, Dutch actress Hadewych Minis, Danish actress Sara Hjort Ditlevsen, Flemish actor Jeroen Perceval and guests arrive for the screening of “Borgman.”  (Guillaume Horacajuelo / EPA)
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Actress Bai Ling attends the premiere of “Borgman.”  (Vittorio Zunino Celotto / Getty Images)
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Actors Oscar Isaac and Justin Timberlake and director Joel Coen leave after attending the screening of their film “Inside Llewyn Davis.”  (Anne-Christine Poujoulat / AFP/Getty Images)
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Actress Jane Fonda poses on May 19, 2013 as she arrives for the screening of “Inside Llewyn Davis.”  (Anne-Christine Poujoulat / AFP/Getty Images)
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Indian actress Aishwarya Rai arrives for the screening of the film “Inside Llewyn Davis.”  (Alberto Pizzoli / AFP/Getty Images)
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Director and President of the Feature Film Jury Steven Spielberg and his wife actress Kate Capshaw arrive for the premiere of “Inside Llewyn Davis.”  (Anne-Christine Poujoulat / AFP/Getty Images)
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Jury member Nicole Kidman and Keith Urban attend the “Inside Llewyn Davis” premiere.  (Vittorio Zunino Celotto / Getty Images)
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Actress Kirsten Dunst poses as she arrives for the screening of “Inside Llewyn Davis.”  (Anne-Christine Poujoulat / AFP/Getty Images)
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Actress Jessica Biel arrives for the screening of “Inside Llewyn Davis.”  (Alberto Pizzoli / AFP/Getty Images)
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Model Olga Sorokina arrives for the screening of “Inside Llewyn Davis.”   (Guillaume Horacajuelo / EPA)
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Actors Garrett Hedlund (L) and John Goodman arrive for the screening of “Inside Llewyn Davis.”  (Loic Venance / AFP/Getty Images)
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Indian actress and jury member Vidya Balan arrives for the screening of “Inside Llewyn Davis.”  (Guillaume Horacajuelo / EPA)
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Actress Carey Mulligan poses for photographers during a photo call for the film “Inside Llewyn Davis.”  (Lionel Cironneau / Associated Press)
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From left, actors Garrett Hedlund, Justin Timberlake, Carey Mulligan and Oscar Isaac pose for photographers during a photo call for the film “Inside Llewyn Davis.”  (Joel Ryan / Invision / Associated Press)
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Eva Longoria walks the red carpet at the 66th Cannes Film Festival.  (Anne-Christine Poujoulat / AFP / Getty Images)
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A guest wears a dress of biscuit trays.  (Loic Venance / AFP / Getty Images)
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Actors Meng Li, left, Jiang Wu and Tao Zhao attend the premiere of “Tian Zhu Ding.”   (Andreas Rentz / Getty Images)
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Chinese actress Zhang Yuqi.  (Valery Hache / AFP / Getty Images)
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Carina Lau and Tony Leung at the “Tian Zhu Ding” premiere.  (Andreas Rentz / Getty Images)
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Actor Baoqiang Wang and his wife, Ma Rong, share a kiss.  (Andreas Rentz / Getty Images)
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Olga Sorokina attends the premiere of “Le Passe” (The Past).   (Pascal Le Segretain / Getty Images)
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Doutzen Kroes poses for photographers.  (Pascal Le Segretain / Getty Images)
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Model Jessica Miller  (Andreas Rentz / Getty Images)
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French actress Sara Forestier  (Sebastien Nogier / EPA)
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Jury member, Gwenole Bruneau (FICAM), Chloe Rolland (Syndicat de la Critique), French director Regis Wargnier, French director Agnes Varda, Eric Guirado (SRF), French cinematographer Michel Abramowicz and Spanish director Isabel Coixet during the photocall of the “Camera d’Or” Jury.  (Guillaume Horcajuelo / EPA)
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French actors Tahar Rahim, Elyes Aguis and Jeanne Jestin and Argentinian-born French actress Bérénice Bejo during a photocall for the film “The Past.”  (Anne-Christine Poujoulat / AFP/Getty Images)
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David Hasselhoff and his partner British model Hayley Roberts pose as they arrive for the screening of the film “Young and Beautiful.”  (Valery Hache / AFP/Getty Images)
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“The Bling Ring” actors Claire Julien, left, Taissa Farmiga, Katie Chang, Israel Broussard, Emma Watson and director Sofia Coppola at the screening of the film.  (Valery Hache / AFP / Getty Images)
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Indian actress Sonam Kapoor at a screening for “Young & Beautiful” (“Jeune & Jolie”).   (Anne-Christine Poujoulat / AFP / Getty Images)
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Indian actress Freida Pinto adjusts her gown.  (Alberto Pizzoli / AFP / Getty Images)
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Actress Fan Bingbing.  (Lionel Cironneau / AP)
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French actress Ludivine Sagnier arrives at the “Young & Beautiful” (“Jeune & Jolie”) screening.  (Ian Langsdon / EPA)
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Octavia Spencer, left, Michael B. Jordan, Ryan Coogler and Melonie Diaz attend the “Fruitvale Station” photocall.  (Andreas Rentz / Getty Images)
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Actor Jackie Chan kicks up his heels at the “Skiptrace” photocall.  (Stuart C. Wilson / Getty Images)
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“The Great Gatsby” stars Leonardo DiCaprio and Carey Mulligan at the movie’s screening.   (Gareth Cattermole / Getty Images)
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Jury member and actress Nicole Kidman on stage during the opening ceremony of the 66th annual Cannes Film Festival.   (Ian Langsdon / EPA )
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Leonardo DiCaprio kisses mistress of ceremonies Audrey Tautou.  (Ian Langsdon / EPA )
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French singer Lorie arrives at “The Great Gatsby” screening.  (Sebastien Nogier / EPA)
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Singer Solange Knowles arrives at the festival’s opening ceremony.  (Guillaume Horcajuelo / EPA)
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Actors Christoph Waltz and Vidya Balan arrive at the “Great Gatsby” screening.  (Guillaume Horcajuelo / EPA)
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Taiwanese director and feature film jury member Ang Lee greets the audience.  (AFP / Getty Images)
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Actress Freida Pinto attends the Cannes opening ceremony.  (Pascal Le Segretain / Getty Images)
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Chinese actress Zhang Ziyi.  (Guillaume Horcajuelo / EPA)
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Spanish actress Paz Vega at “The Great Gatsby.”  (Guillaume Horcajuelo / EPA)
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“The Great Gatsby” director Baz Luhrmann attends the opening ceremony.  (Pascal Le Segretain / Getty Images)
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“The Great Gatsby’s” Isla Fisher at the film’s premiere.  (Pascal Le Segretain / Getty Images)
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“Gatsby” costars Leonardo DiCaprio, Carey Mulligan and Tobey Maguire attend the Cannes opening ceremony and “Great Gatsby” screening.   (Pascal Le Segretain / Getty Images)
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Indian actor Amitabh Bachchan at the “Great Gatsby” event.  (Alberto Pizzoli / AFP/Getty Images)
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Leonardo DiCaprio at a “Great Gatsby” event.  (Alberto Pizzoli / AFPGetty Images)
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Actor Tobey Maguire, who portrays Nick in “The Great Gatsby.”  (Pascal Le Segretain / Getty Images)
By Kenneth Turan
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CANNES, France -- Films dealing with societal corruption may be nothing new for Western audiences. But in China, where the government keeps a tight grip on what appears on movie screens, that is hardly the case.

Which is why “A Touch of Sin,” written and directed by the veteran Jia Zhang-Ke, created a major stir when it appeared here in the competition.

Officially debuting Friday but screened for the media Thursday, “A Touch of Sin” is a corrosive depiction of the New China, an everything-for-sale society still figuring out how to cope with the dehumanizing effects of unbridled capitalism.

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CHEAT SHEET: Cannes Film Festival 2013

In order to best portray an entire country growing faster than its socio-political structures can handle, a place where nothing speaks louder than money, filmmaker Jia has put together an omnibus film of four separate but linked stories, including one about a sex worker in a ultra-high-end brothel.

The kicker is that all of them are based on real events that the filmmaker says in the press notes “are well-known to people throughout China.”

The stories involve a miner who takes things into his own hands after a village leader keeps for himself profits from a state-owned coal mine; a migrant worker who comes to understand the power of owning a gun in a might-makes-right society; a receptionist at a sauna who snaps in an especially bloody way when a client assaults her; and a young worker whose despair at not finding a life leads to suicide.

FULL COVERAGE: Film festivals

Though some China watchers at the festival doubted that the film would be cleared for showing on the mainland, filmmaker Jia is clearly passionate about what he has done.

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“Many people face personal crises because of the uneven spread of wealth across the country and the vast disparities between the rich and the poor,” he writes. “Individual people can be stripped of their dignity at any time.”

ALSO:

Arab nations ban ‘The Attack’

Cannes still the movie industry’s place to be

Hollywood studios pack in titles at Cannes Film Festival

kenneth.turan@latimes.com

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Kenneth Turan

Kenneth Turan is the former film critic for the Los Angeles Times.

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