CANNES: Actor Sidney Poitier officially opened the 59th Cannes Film Festival here on Wednesday as the cast of ‘The Da Vinci Code’ led a galaxy of stars bringing glitz and glamour to the French Riviera.

“As I stand here in this atmosphere where the genius of so many of the world’s great cinema auteurs still lingers, I am honoured in the extreme and privileged beyond words to welcome the present generation .. who will surely come with a genius of their own,” the 79-year-old actor told the opening ceremony.

Thousands of people had gathered behind carefully guarded barriers craning for a glimpse of the stars, including the members of the Cannes jury headed this year by Hong Kong director Wong Kar Wai, wearing his trademark sunglasses.

Hanks raised a laugh as he jokingly gestured to the crowd to accompany them into the Palais des Festivals as, after posing for hundreds of cameras, they finally disappeared off the steps.

Other celebrities on the red carpet were Italian actress Monica Bellucci, in a shimmering classic long black dress, Britain’s Helena Bonham-Carter and her husband Tim Burton, Tim Roth and Michelle Yeo.—AFP