Venice fest to honor ‘Exorcist’ director William Friedkin

ROME: Oscar-winning film director William Friedkin, famed for his 1973 thriller The Exorcist, will receive the Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement at the 70th Venice film festival this year, organizers said yesterday.
Friedkin, who scooped his Academy Award for 1971 film The French Connection and also directed Killer Joe (2011), will be handed the honor during the festival for the fundamental role he has played in shaping US cinema.
The 77-year-old has “contributed in a prominent way — the revolutionary impact of which has not always been recognized — to the profound renewal of American cinema regarded as the New Hollywood, the festival’s artistic director Alberto Barbera said. Friedkin said he was proud to receive the award from the world’s oldest film festival, which runs from Aug. 28 to Sept. 7.
“Venice, especially during the film festival, is a spiritual home to me. The Golden Lion is something I never expected but a.m. proud to accept it with gratitude and love,” he said.
The festival will also screen a restored version of his 1977 thriller Sorcerer, which Friedkin said was “the most personal film” he has directed in his long career.