In the shadow of the glitz and glamour of the official competition, Acid continues its fight for a free cinema, free from commercial logic. At the Cannes Film Festival for over 30 years, this parallel selection, which does not include a prize list, showcases films that are invisible elsewhere, offering a fresh and often political perspective. This year's selection includes Lucio Castro's beautiful - in every sense of the word - Drunken Noodles .
It follows the journey of a young art student, Adnan(Laith Khalifeh), who has arrived in New York to spend the summer. He takes up an internship at a gallery exhibiting the work of an atypical older artist he once met in his Long Island home. For this role, the Argentinian filmmaker drew inspiration fromartist Sal Salandra and his explicit embroidery work.
With Drunken Noodles, Lucio Castro delivers a sensual and dreamlike film — a cityscape filled with fleeting encounters, both artistic and erotic. Despite its themes, it never slips into mere arty reverie. Here, solitude and a slow pace are to be savored, gently carried along by a calm rhythm and a soft atmosphere, sparing in words but rich in emotion.
The filmmaker weaves his story backwards, through four sensory, corporeal segments, all equally vital. A crafted film, often delicate, often humorous, that offers moments of genuine grace — from the cruising through New York’s night streets, to the hallucinatory scene of a centaur in a jockstrap in the woods, and the circle of delivery couriers filmed like Ron Mueck’s paintings. It all culminates in a final scene at McCarren Park, dreamlike in a Cocteau style. Undoubtedly one of our favorite picks of this festival.
Drunken Noodles by Lucio Castro will be released in French cinemas on April 22, 2026.
Synopsis : Adnan, a young art student, heads to New York for the summer. He lands an internship at a gallery showcasing a uniquely talented, older artist he’s encountered before. As fragments of his past and present intertwine, a series of encounters—both artistic and sensual—begin to crack the veneer of his everyday life.
