While Cannes continues to debate whether extended standing ovations are a real metric of success, audiences at Sentimental Value have already made up their minds: Joachim Trier’s film received 19 minutes of applause and entered the top three most warmly received premieres in the festival’s history. Only Pan's Labyrinth (22 minutes) and Fahrenheit 11/9 (20 minutes) earned more.
This year, the film—a story about family wounds, creativity, and an actor’s rebirth—arrived at its competition screening with a flawless reputation: 100% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes and not a single negative review. Much of that acclaim is due to Elle Fanning’s tender and heartfelt performance.
Alongside her, Trier reunited with Renate Reinsve, his star from The Worst Person in the World. Here, she plays Nora—an actress on the edge of a breakdown who refuses to act for her estranged father, once a great director (played by Stellan Skarsgard, Baron Harkonnen in Villeneuve’s Dune), who walked out on the family.
But soon, the spotlight shifts to a young American star (Fanning), and an emotional earthquake unfolds—affecting not only the characters but the audience as well.
Sentimental Value isn’t just a drama about forgiveness and lost time. It’s a film where a house with a cracked foundation mirrors a fractured family, and rehearsal scenes cut deeper than the climax of any tragedy. Fanning delivers her role with gentle irony and a disarming sincerity—critics are calling it one of the finest performances of her career.
As for the Palme d’Or? Very much within reach. And those 19 minutes of ovation? Still the standing record of Cannes 2025.
