Directed by Brazil’s Fernando Meirelles, of "City of God" fame, the movie is an adaptation of Nobel Prize-winning writer Jose Saramago’s novel of the same name, and tells the apocalyptic story of a plague of blindness sweeping the world.

Joining Meirelles in the main competition is another Brazilian entry, "Line of Passage," by Walter Salles, and two Argentine productions -- Pablo Trapero’s prison drama "Leonera" and thriller "The Headless Woman" by Lucrecia Martel. They are up against Clint Eastwood’s "Changeling," starring Angelina Jolie, and Steven Soderbergh’s "Che," a two-part epic on Argentine revolutionary Che Guevara, with Benicio del Toro in the title role. The other two US entries are James Gray’s "Two Lovers" and Charlie Kaufman’s "Synecdoche, New York" with Philip Seymour Hoffman.

Turkey is being represented in the main competition by Cannes frequenter Nuri Bilge Ceylan’s latest feature, "Üç Maymun" (The Three Monkeys). The film, starring Yavuz Bingöl and Hatice Aslan in its title roles, depicts a family’s struggle to stay together despite being torn to pieces when small weaknesses turn into huge lies.

The biggest show in town this year is likely to be the latest installment of the Indiana Jones series, again starring Harrison Ford as the whip-wielding archaeologist in "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull" by Steven Spielberg. Also out of competition, Woody Allen presents "Vicky Cristina Barcelona," starring Penelope Cruz, Scarlett Johansson and Javier Bardem. Pop star Madonna, Argentine soccer hero Diego Maradona and US boxer Mike Tyson are also expected in Cannes, making it a star-heavy year for the world’s biggest film festival. The event winds up on May 25 with an awards ceremony, where the coveted Palme d’Or is handed out.

Today's Zaman