The eighth day of the Cannes Film Festival continued to be busy with more world premieres. The market also saw two competition films acquired.

The premiere of the day was Paolo Sorrentino's "Youth." The film, starring Michael Caine and Harvey Keitel, elicited boos from critics and audiences and became the second film of the festival to be jeered. Many critics were divided by the film and compared it to Sorrentino's last film, "The Great Beauty." However, "The Great Beauty" also had a noticeably mixed reaction at Cannes and later went on to win the Oscar for Best Foreign Film.

"Youth," however, obtained rave reviews for Caine and Keitel and most pundits are already predicting Oscars for the two veteran actors. With Fox Searchlight distributing the film, it is likely this movie will be a big player in awards season this fall.

Jia Zhangke's latest film "Mountains May Depart" finally premiered, the first of three Asian films screened at the Festival. The movie scored generally good reviews with some critics noting it was flawed but in the end solid. It's the fourth film Zhangke presents in competition at Cannes. He previously showed "A Touch of Sin" back in 2013 and that film went on to win the Best Screenplay award. Zhangke looks destined to get another win this year especially after drawing solid reviews.

The festival is starting to wind down as only a few more films have to premiere. Among those films are "Macbeth" with Michael Fassbender and Marion Cotillard, Jacques Audiard's "Dheepan," and Michael Franco's "Chronic." Up to this point, only two films have stood out and are top contenders for the Palme d'Or: "Carol" and "Son of Saul."

Market

Alchemy had a great day as it acquired two competition films. The company first acquired Nanni Moretti's "Mia Madre." That film premiered to mixed reviews and it stars John Tuturro. The film is a follow-up to Moretti's last film "We Have a Pope."

Alchemy also took the rights for "The Lobster." Directed by Yorgos Lanthimos, the film stars Ben Whishaw, Colin Farrell and Rachel Weisz. The movie opened in competition to positive reviews. The film is a follow-up to Lanthimos' Oscar nominated film "Dogtooth" and it marks his first English language film.

The Tribeca film "The Wannabe" starring Patricia Arquette landed distribution. eOne took U.S. rights to the film which obtained positive reviews when it world-premiered. Martin Scorsese was the executive producer on the film.

Roadside Attractions acquired U.S. rights for the Katie Holmes drama "Mania Days." The movie premiered at the SXSW Film Festival and was directed by Paul Dalio. The movie is the second acquisition for Roadside Attractions, which picked up the competition feature "The Sea of Trees."

Saban Films scored another big acquisition as it took rights to John Travolta's "I am Wrath." The film was directed by Chuck Russell, who is best known for his work on "The Mask" and "Scorpion King."

The festival concludes on May 24 after the awards ceremony on May 23.

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