Cannes gets under way with Anderson, Baron Cohen

The Associated Press, Tuesday, May 15, 2012, 11:06pm (PDT)

CANNES, France (AP) -- The 65th annual Cannes Film Festival was to get under way Wednesday with Wes Anderson's carefully composed whimsy and Sacha Baron Cohen's less confined theatrics.

Anderson's "Moonrise Kingdom" will open Cannes, where it will premiere amid the frenzy of the French festival. Anderson, as well as cast Bruce Willis, Edward Norton and possibly Bill Murray will make their way down Cannes' grand red carpet in the evening.

But before that, Baron Cohen was planning a stunt to promote his new film, "The Dictator." Exactly what the comedian has planned wasn't known, but he seemed sure to draw the attention of the world's media gathered on the French Riviera.

The Cannes Film Festival runs through May 27, with eagerly anticipated films from Walter Salles, David Cronenberg and Michael Haneke to follow.