'Euthanasia-themed The Room Next Door wins Venice Golden Lion Award'

Director Almod?var: "Euthanasia is a Basic Human Right"
Best Actress Kidman Misses Ceremony Due to Mother's Passing

Pedro Almod?var's first English-language feature film, The Room Next Door, won the top prize at the 81st Venice International Film Festival.

Director Pedro Almod?var, Winner of the Golden Lion at the Venice International Film Festival

On the 7th (local time), at the awards ceremony held on Lido Island in Venice, Italy, The Room Next Door, directed by Almod?var and starring Julianne Moore and Tilda Swinton, received the Golden Lion award.

The film, which deals with life and death, euthanasia, and female friendship, reportedly received an 18-minute standing ovation when it premiered at the Venice Film Festival, according to foreign media.

According to AFP, the 74-year-old director Almod?var said in his acceptance speech, "I believe that saying goodbye to this world cleanly and with dignity is a fundamental human right," adding, "Euthanasia is not a political issue but a human issue."

The Silver Lion award went to the Italian film Vermiglio, directed by Maura Delpero. This Italy-France-Belgium co-production depicts events set in the Italian Alps during the last year of World War II.

The Best Actress award was given to Nicole Kidman for her bold performance in the erotic drama Babygirl, which tells the story of a female entrepreneur who begins an affair with a young intern.

Kidman was unable to attend the ceremony due to the sudden passing of her mother.

According to AFP, Kidman conveyed through director Halina Reijn, who read her acceptance speech on her behalf, that she had to urgently leave for her family after receiving the news of her mother Janelle M. Kidman's death in Venice, stating, "This award is for her."

The Best Actor award was won by French actor Vincent Rottiers for his role as a single father struggling with his teenage son who is drawn into far-right extremism in The Quiet Son, directed by French sisters Delphine and Muriel Coulin.

The jury president for the competition section of the Venice Film Festival, which opened on the 28th of last month and concluded on this day, was French actress Isabelle Huppert.