The screening of the film, selected for Un Certain Regard, was greeted by long minutes of applause and the visible emotion of the film crew, including actress Vicky Krieps and director Emily Atef.
Modest in the image of her film, the Franco-German director has repeatedly said she is "happy" to finally be able to show it.
"A year ago, we were still in Norway to shoot it," she said, without going back to the sudden death of the actor, who died in January following a skiing accident.
"More than ever" focuses on a close-knit couple put to the test by illness: condemned by a serious lung problem, Hélène hesitates to seek treatment before refusing the transplant which could be her way of salvation.
On a whim, she goes alone to Norway, near a fjord, after talking with a stranger who keeps a blog on which he talks about his illness (cancer).
An incomprehensible decision for Matthieu (Gaspard Ulliel), Hélène's husband, who cannot come to terms with this idea of his departure, let alone the idea of his death.
Can we choose our death?
Do we owe anything to those who remain?
By refusing treatment, is Hélène choosing her destiny or is she giving up on life?
The film asks these difficult questions with great modesty, favoring the beauty of the landscapes, superb light and the sensuality emanating from its performers.
In this remote corner of Norway, where half of the film takes place, Hélène reconnects with nature and learns to accept the sequence of events.
“My hope is that what people take the most from the film is this feeling of nature, to feel that in nature it is the place where you find everything and you feel the most connected with everything. , that everything is one," Vicky Krieps told AFP on Friday.
The Luxembourg actress, revealed in "Phantom Thread" alongside Daniel Day-Lewis, is in Cannes to also defend "Corsage" (out of competition), where she slips into the skin of Empress Sissi.
© 2022 AFP