Cannes puts the accent on glamour

Despite a national train strike and fears of SARS and terrorism, the 56th annual Cannes Film Festival began Wednesday night in typical high-glamour fashion with the showing at the Palais of “Fanfan la Tulipe,” a remake of the 1952 film about 18th century romantic swashbuckler starring Penelope Cruz and Vincent Perez. As usual, the festival participants are a mix of younger stars (Cruz), legends (Gina Lollobrigida), and the purely glamorous (supermodel Noemi Lenoir). The festival runs though May 25 and includes an out-of-competition showing of “Matrix Reloaded.”