Cannes: For Hollywood star Matt Damon, watching his new drama Stillwater with an audience at its Cannes Film Festival gala screening proved a surprisingly emotional experience, following the restrictions of the pandemic. But, while COVID-19 has changed his outlook on life, the star says the death of his father, Kent Damon, in 2017, has had the biggest impact on the way he works.
"The last few years I've had a lot happen. And, you know, I lost my dad and I've been kind of reevaluating everything," the star explains."This movie, like, I really I felt so good about the work that I just I said to my wife recently that that's just the feeling I want from now on. I don't want any other feeling from my work but this one, because it's is very, it's very at peace, you know? I mean, when you're building something, you're never at peace, right? You're always thinking about it, but when when I'm done with it, I want to be, I want to be relaxed, you know."
WATCH | Matt Damon on being back at Cannes with Stillwater: 'I was a little overwhelmed'
In Stillwater, Damon plays Bill, a father from Oklahoma who travels to Marseille, France to visit his daughter (Abigail Breslin) where she is in prison for murder. Set and filmed in Marseille, Bill also faces cultural barriers and a complex legal system, far away from the world he knows.
Damon is helped by Call My Agent ("Dix pour cent") actor Camille Cottin and newcomer Lilou Siauvaud – who plays Cottin's daughter.
Director Tom McCarthy, an Oscar winner for Spotlight, is presenting Stillwater out of competition at Cannes Film Festival, which runs until Saturday 17 July.
