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Na Hong-jin’s Hope Debuts at Cannes to a Divided Reception

Lauded opening-hour spectacle, visible VFX flaws and major pre-festival sales have made the film a contested Cannes highlight.

Overview

  • Hope premiered in the Cannes Competition late in the festival and earned a prolonged standing ovation even as critics split over the film.
  • Reviewers widely praised the film’s first hour as relentless, large-scale action that ranks with recent top-tier genre set pieces.
  • Multiple critics flagged a number of distracting CGI shots that they say look rushed for the festival but could be fixed in postproduction.
  • The movie uses Western actors in brief CGI roles, a choice some reviewers called stunt casting that pulled viewers out of the world-building.
  • Distribution deals are in place with NEON handling North America and MUBI covering parts of Europe and Latin America, with NEON reportedly eyeing a fall 2026 North American window.