Cannes criticised for high heels rule as women wearing flats turned away

The Cannes Film Festival has come under fire for its policy of only allowing women dressed in high heels to walk on the red carpet for its formal premieres.

The rule came to light after Screen International reported that several middle-aged women - some with medical conditions - were turned away from the Sunday premiere of Cate Blanchett's new film Carol for wearing flats.

Women thrown off Cannes red carpet at Carol premiere for wearing flat shoes saysScreen. So much for the year of women pic.twitter.com/5bpdu5QDWp

— Jack Malvern (@jackmalvern) May 19, 2015