Anti-Bush film wins Cannes prize

Director Michael Moore's controversial anti-Bush documentary Fahrenheit 9/11 has won the prestigious Palme d'Or best film award at the Cannes festival.

It was the first documentary to win the top prize since Jacques Cousteau's The Silent World in 1956. The film received a 15-minute standing ovation when it was screened on Monday. Fahrenheit 9/11 explores the Iraq war and alleges connections between President George Bush and leading Saudi families, including the Bin Ladens. "What have you done? I'm completely overwhelmed by this," Moore said in his acceptance speech. "The last time I was on an award stage in Hollywood, all hell broke loose," he added with a laugh. Positive The film was originally set to be released in the US through Disney subsidiary Miramax, before Disney blocked it. It is now expected to be released through a third party. The critical reaction to the film has generally been positive, with praise coming from The Washington Post, Time Magazine and British newspapers including the Independent and the Telegraph. However, others have been more critical of the film. The Hollywood Reporter said Moore was "pioneering a reality film as an election device." And trade paper Variety described it as "rather less incendiary than expected" and said it was "a blatant cinematic 2004 campaign pamphlet". Fahrenheit 9/11 was competing against 18 other films for the Palme d'Or. Story from BBC NEWS: http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/entertainment/3739325.stm Published: 2004/05/22 18:40:31 GMT © BBC MMIV