Every Cannes Palme d'Or Winner Since 1990, Ranked
Updated May 27, 2023 with the 2023 Palme d'Or winner, Anatomy of a Fall.
A best picture Oscar may be film's peak honor, but a Cannes Palme d'Or win isn't far behind. Though it didn't adopt its current name (which translates to "Golden Palm" in English) on a permanent basis until 1975, the top award at the globe's most prestigious film festival has been handed out in nearly every year since 1946, with occasional interruptions (most recently in 2020, when the festival was canceled during the COVID pandemic).
Is the latest Palme d'Or winner a favorite with critics as well? Not every Palme d'Or recipient is, as Cannes juries (typically composed of actors and directors, and different every year) don't always have the same tastes as reviewers. In the gallery on this page, we rank all of the Cannes winners since 1990. They are arranged from worst to best by Metascore, which reflects the consensus of professional critics for each film.
1997 co-winner (tied with The Eel)
The 50th Cannes Film Festival ended with a tie for the top award. One of those winning films brought legendary Iranian director Abbas Kiarostami his only Palme d'Or win in five tries. A slow-paced, minimalist drama that unfolds mostly in real time as a suicidal middle-aged man drives in search of someone who will bury him after he is dead, Taste of Cherry isn't for everyone, but many critics emerged deeply impressed with a "stunning" and "deeply philosophical" film.
“There's a strong elliptical quality to Kiarostami's style, which underlines the filmmaker's ability to maintain focus with considerable emotional force and depth and with great precision.” —Kevin Thomas, Los Angeles Times
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