A hopeful tale of a family rebuilding after tragedy closed this year's rather dour edition of the Cannes Film Festival on an optimistic note Sunday. “The Tree” tells the story of a young girl convinced the spirit of her dead father lives on in a sprawling fig tree. Its gentle tone and life-affirming message contrast with the gloominess of many of the 19 movies competing in an official selection dominated this year by violent and depressing movies. As the festival's closing film, “The Tree” is not in the running for the top prize, the Palme d'Or. The movie stars French-British actress Charlotte Gainsbourg as Dawn, an overwhelmed widow and mother of four, and 8-year-old first-timer Morgana Davies as Simone, the grief-struck girl. Her husband's sudden death sends Dawn into a tailspin, as she retreats into the bedroom, sleeping all day and leaving her children to fend for themselves. Simone seeks comfort in nature, spending time in the sprawling tree that overhangs the family house. Three past winners of the top prize at the Cannes Film Festival - Ken Loach, Mike Leigh and Abbas Kiarostami - are in the running for the same award again as 19 films compete at the world's premier cinema showcase. Critics have been generally unimpressed with the lineup Cannes presented at the 12-day festival along the French Riviera, with a handful of films stirring some buzz but most of the entries premiering to lukewarm receptions. On Saturday “Ha Ha Ha,” a film by South Korean director Hong Sang-soo, won the top prize at the Cannes film festival sidebar competition, Un Certain Regard. Un Certain Regard gave its jury prize to “Octubre,” a first feature by Peruvian brothers Daniel and Diego Vega. The best acting prize went to the three actresses who play women who travel to a remote town to do welfare work among the local poor in the Argentinian film “Los Labios,” by Ivan Fund and Santiago Loza.
