The Cannes Film Festival is back in the hands of comfy old friends with a line-up that includes such familiar filmmakers as Woody Allen, David Cronenberg, Gus Van Sant, Wim Wenders, Lars von Trier and Atom Egoyan.

Bertolucci's wonderful new film, based on the Gilbert Adair novel, The Holy Innocents, shows what the cinema as an artform is all about: stylish, observant, witty, loving, good-looking, rich in texture.