We Need to Talk About Kevin (Spacey)
More often than one might like, the French film industry fetes American men who have been credibly accused of sex crimes. One of this year’s men in question is Kevin Spacey, the subject of multiple accusations of sexual assault and sexual harassment, including by actor Anthony Rapp, who alleged that Spacey made drunken sexual advances toward him when Rapp was 14 and Spacey was 27. On Tuesday night, the actor received a “special lifetime achievement award” at a Cannes gala hosted by the Better World Fund, whose mission statement references “the power of entertainment to ignite effective change, and raise global awareness on women’s rights and child protection,” except, I guess, if Kevin Spacey wants to come and do a speech. The speech and award, according to Variety, is a shameless publicity stunt for a movie that Spacey is trying to sell at the festival.
For some reason, the Better World Fund invited me to this dinner, an indicator of just how split reality has become. The vibes inside of Carlton Beach Club were extremely Russian Oligarch; I did not recognize anyone in attendance, in neither the celebrity sense nor the existential sense. I stood at a table full of Bulgarian women in couture who visibly frowned at me as we waited for dinner to begin. At one point a woman literally sat on top of me on a chair because she did not notice I was already sitting in it.
Spacey didn’t speak for three-plus hours, and when I asked a rep what exactly he was being awarded for, she said it was “a surprise.” The program later revealed he was receiving the “engagement award” for “people who have engaged, inspired, and mobilized for a cause.” An emcee opened the event by explaining that it was being thrown to “honor people who are victims of violence, who are suffering inequality in this world.” Nobody paid any attention to any of this, nor to a speech from filmmaker Mira Nair; the room was so loud that the host scolded the audience multiple times.
“Let me take a moment to present my sincere gratitude to Kevin Spacey who represents the powerful intersection between art and influence. Your talent and generosity have shaped not just the world of cinema but also in a meaningful way, the journey of the Better World Fund,” said the organization’s founder and president, Manuel Collas De La Roche, early in the night. “Being on stage with you tonight, I can’t help but feel like a president under the gaze of Frank Underwood.”
By 9:30 pm, the attendees had been served no food or appetizers save for one single slice of plain rye bread, which, you will have to trust me, is unbelievably weird for France. I asked for butter and they brought me a cold prepackaged pad. “This is comically shambolic,” said someone at my table. Everyone picked at their government-allotted piece of plain bread during a pre-speech private auction, wherein people bought a cigar humidor for $7,000, “centuries-old cognac” for $8,200, and a “5-day master detox for two” in Switzerland for $18,000. Spacey walked onstage at one point to tell the audience to stop talking. A guitar signed by Kevin Costner went for $3,000 and another signed by Sting went for $28,000.
At roughly 11:30 local time, Spacey finally took the stage. He opened by congratulating the founder of the Better World Fund “for the decision to invite me here tonight to accept this award.” He spoke ramblingly about Kirk Douglas and Dalton Trumbo, and the concept of being blacklisted, and thanked his manager at length before quoting Elton John’s “I’m Still Standing.” He toasted to “positive vibes” and left the stage.
Elsewhere at the festival, Ezra Miller darted down the red carpet at the premiere of Lynne Ramsay’s Die My Love; Armie Hammer attempted to sell a film; Shia LaBeouf openly abused his acting students in a documentary; and the world, where famous men can act with total impunity, kept turning.