Jennifer Lawrence spoke up for Palestine at a San Sebastian Film Festival press conference on Friday, saying what’s happening in Gaza is “no less than a genocide.”
The Oscar winner, who is on hand at the festival to screen her new film “Die My Love” and receive the prestigious Donostia Award, was asked several times to comment on the war in Gaza during the presser. Though festival moderators attempted to stop the questions, Lawrence eloquently gave her opinion on the matter toward the end of the conference.
“I’m terrified and it’s mortifying. What’s happening is no less than a genocide and it’s unacceptable,” she said when asked about Palestine. “I’m terrified for my children, for all of our children.”
She then spoke about American politics, saying that it makes her “so sad” that the current “disrespect and discourse” is going to be the status quo for children growing up in the U.S. today.
“I mean, the kids who are voting right now at 18, it’s going to be totally normal to them that politics has no integrity. Politicians lie, there is no empathy,” she said. “And everybody needs to remember that when you ignore what’s happening on one side of the world, it won’t be long until it’s on your side as well.”
However, Lawrence also reminded the room of journalists that the onus shouldn’t be on artists to fix the world’s political problems. “I wish that there was something I could say, something that I could do to fix this extremely complex and disgraceful situation. It breaks my heart,” she said. “But the reality is, our fear in speaking too much or answering too many of these questions is that my words will just be used to add more fire and rhetoric to something that is in the hands of our elected officials.”
She continued: “I just want people to stay focused on who is responsible and the things that they can do and when they need to show up and vote, and not let the actors and the artists who are trying to express freedom of art, freedom of speech take the heat for the individuals that are actually responsible.”
Earlier in the conference, Lawrence acknowledged that America’s “freedom of speech and freedom of expression is under attack,” making film festivals an even more sacred space.
“We can see each other’s stories and connect and learn from each other, and more importantly realize that we are all connected and we all matter and deserve empathy and freedom,” she said.
“Die My Love” will premiere at San Sebastian on Friday night. It follows Grace (Lawrence), a new mother whose deteriorating mental health sends her relationship with Jackson (Robert Pattinson) into unsettling territory. The film premiered at Cannes Film Festival in May, earning a six-minute standing ovation and praise for Lawrence’s fearless performance. During the fest, the film was purchased by Mubi in a huge $24 million deal.
In Variety‘s review of “Die My Love,” chief film critic Owen Gleiberman wrote that Lawrence’s performance “feels so explosive but, at the same time, so emotionally reined in … You feel the power of her presence, the hellbent quality of her rage. When it comes to chewing out a blabby cashier, crawling around like an animal, trashing the bathroom and pouring soap products all over the floor, or bashing her head on a mirror, she’s an ace wastrel.”
Source link
