VENICE -- Darren Aronofksy's drama "The Wrestler," starring Mickey Rourke as Randy (the Ram) Robinson, a washed out pro-wrestler in comeback mode -- both on and off the screen, it turns out -- has pinned down the Venice Film Festival's Golden Lion, providing the Lido with a grand finale.
"I think the reason people are reacting to this film is that there is a great talent revealing his soul," said Aronofsky.
"Darren Aronofsky came here a couple of years ago and fell on his ass," Rourke recounted in the Lido's packed Sala Grande theatre, referring to the helmer's "The Fountain," which premiered in Venice in 2006 and subsequently flopped.
"I am glad he had the balls to come back,” Rourke added.
The Silver Lion for best director went to Russia's Aleksey German Jr. for Kazakhstan-set "Paper Soldier," centering around the Soviet space program in the 1960s.
The Coppa Volpi for best actor went to Italy's Silvio Orlando for his role in Pupi Avati’s "Il Papa di Giovanna." The best actress nod was scooped by Dominique Blanc for "L'Autre" by Gallic auteurs Patrick Mario Bernard and Pierre Trividic.
PRIZES OF THE 65TH VENICE FILM FESTIVAL
INTERNATIONAL COMPETITION JURY
GOLDEN LION "The Wrestler,” (Darren Aronofsky, US)
SILVER LION “Paper Soldier” (Aleksey German Jr., Russia)
GRAND JURY PRIZE "Teza," (Haile Gerima, Ethiopia-Germany-France)
ACTOR Silvio Orlando (“Il Papa di Giovanna,” Italy)
ACTRESS Dominique Blanc ("L’Autre," France)
BEST SCREENPLAY Haile Gerima (“Teza,” Ethiopia-Germany-France)
TECHNICAL CONTRIBUTION (Cinematography) Alisher Khamidhodjev, Maxim Drozdov (“Paper Soldier,” Russia)
MARCELLO MASTROIANNI PRIZE FOR YOUNG PERFORMER Jennifer Lawrence (“The Burning Plain,” US)
SPECIAL LION FOR BODY OF WORK Werner Schroeter (Germany)
OTHER JURIES
LUIGI DE LAURENTIIS LION OF THE FUTURE “Pranzo di Ferragosto,” (Gianni Di Gregorio, Italy)
VENICE HORIZONS “Melancholia” (Lav Diaz, Philippines)
VENICE HORIZONS DUCUMENTARY “Below Sea Level,” (Aleksey Fedortchenko, Russia)
VENICE HORIZONS SPECIAL MENTION “Un Lac,” (Philippe Grandrieux, France)
VENICE HORIZONS SECOND SPECIAL MENTION “Women,” (Huang Wenhai, China-Switzerland)
Label Europa Cinemas – Venice Days 2008 Prize ““Machan,” (Uberto Pasolini, Sri Lanka-Germany-Italy)
FIPRESCI (INTL. CRITIC'S ASSN) COMPETITION PRIZE "Gabbla” (“Inland”) (Tariq Teguia, Algeria)
FIPRESCI HORIZONS AND CRITICS’ WEEK PRIZE “Goodbye Solo” (Ramin Bahrani, US)
SHORTS
Corto Cortissimo Prize “Tierra Y Pan,” (Carlos Armella, Mexico)
Corto Cortissimo Special Mention “The Dinner,” (Karchi Perlmann, Hungary)
UIP Prize for Best European Short “The Altruists,” Koen Dejaegher (Belgium)
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