French abortion drama 'Happening' tops Venice Film Festival

The French abortion drama “Happening” has won the Golden Lion at the 78th International Film Festival, while Paolo Sorrentino’s “The Hand of God” won runner up

Audrey Diwan’s 1960s abortion drama “L’Evenement” (“Happening”) won the Golden Lion at the 78th Venice International Film Festival, while the runner up honor went to Paolo Sorrentino’s semi-autobiographical “The Hand of God.” Diwan's film about a French college student who finds herself with an unwanted pregnancy was the unanimous choice from the prestigious jury that included recent Oscar winners Bong Joon Ho and Chloé Zhao. The competition this year was robust, including well-received films like Jane Campion’s “The Power of the Dog,” Pedro Almodóvar’s “Parallel Mothers,” Maggie Gyllenhaal’s “The Lost Daughter” and “The Hand of God.” Twenty-one films were vying for the prize, which has become a promising early indicator of a film’s Oscars prospects. “I did this movie with anger. I did the movie with desire also. I did it with my belly, my guts, my heart, my head,” Diwan said Saturday. “I wanted ‘Happening’ to be an experience.”