Al Pacino premieres 'Wilde Salome'

Entertainment

Al Pacino premieres 'Wilde Salome'

Close

The 'Godfather' actor was presented with the Jaeger LeCoultre award by Jessica Chastain.

06 September,2011 08:59 am

Al Pacino had at least two things to celebrate at the 68th Venice Film Festival. On Sunday, September 4, his film Wilde Salome was debuted to positive reviews and he was honored with Jaeger LeCoultre Glory to the Filmmaker Award.Donning an unbuttoned shirt, the 71-year-old actor/filmmaker came hand in hand with his girlfriend Lucila Sola to the world premiere of his directed-movie which took place on the fifth day of the festival. His Salome co-star Jessica Chastain joined him on the red carpet, looking elegant in a sweeping train dress.Speaking to reporters ahead of the special screening, he said that The Tree of Life star Chastain inspired him to make Salome. There is Jessica Chastain, who I really believe is the reason I made the movie, he enthused. As soon as I met her, and saw her, I thought: This is the person to play Salome and I must get her to play it before the world picks up on her - which it has done - and turns her into the next big star.On the same day, Al Pacino was presented with the Filmmaker Award. During his acceptance speech, the Tony Montana of Scarface claimed he was confused when making the movie which interweaves behind-the-scenes footage from a current Los Angeles staging of Oscar Wildes Salome with fictional elements. I didnt know where this was going, he gushed.The Academy Award winner even did not know how to accurately describe the movie. I like to say its a documentary because its not a film, but then its not a documentary either, he shared. I wanted to make a kind of collage. ... I wanted to reflect some of what Oscar Wilde was and went through, but not intensely like a documentary would do, which is much more complex.