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Summary Nicole Kidman's red carpet date travelled for 35 hours to join her in Cannes.
The actresss husband — musician Keith Urban — made the trip from Sydney, wheres hes been filming The Voice, to escort her up the famous Palais stairs.And Kidman says his effort meant everything to her.As long as hes there, hes my rock, everythings fine. I feel a little out to sea if hes not there.Not that she didnt know what she was doing.Its the stars fifth time in Cannes, so shes used to the huge photocalls, press conferences and international interviews that take place in the French palm tree scattered coastal resort.This time Kidman has two movies showing — The Paperboy, which is competing for the Palme dOr, and, outside of competition, HBO movie Hemmingway & Gellhorn.Her red carpet moment was for the former, directed by Lee Daniels, where she stars alongside Zac Efron and Matthew McConaughey.A steamy Southern noir, its about a journalist who returns to his Florida roots to investigate a murder.The Paperboy received mixed reactions at press screenings before the premiere — so the cast were delighted when the audience took to their feet to clap for 15 minutes after seeing it.But while a teary Efron described the ovation as one of the most profound moments of his life, Kidman remained dry-eyedWe got an amazing standing ovation, which was great.This is my fifth time so Ive had many, many, many different reactions, she said. Thats the longest standing O Ive ever gotten at Cannes.Daniels and the rest of the cast, however, were overwhelmed.Lee was crying, but I wasnt crying. I cry at my kids, I cry with my family, I dont really cry outside of that — thats the stuff that brings me to tears Kidman said.All of this other stuff, the glitter, and those sort of things, Im more sort of immune to at this stage. Its probably because Ive been doing it for so long.She also credits this sense of perspective — one that puts showbiz further down her list of priorities — with keeping her relationship on an even keel, even if it does involve a lot of international travel.Keith and I have been at this for a long time. We know where it all stands, so theres kind of a practicality in a sense, she explained.While that doesnt sound very romantic, Kidman says travelling around is essential in keeping their relationship alive and enjoyable.We can have a really cool life together because thats what matters. In terms of romance, for us, thats so much more important than any of this, she says, gesturing to the lights and the cameras pointing at her.The 65th Cannes Film Festival runs to Sunday 27th when the jury sits down to choose its prizewinners.
