Latinos Make a Big Noise at Cannes

Brad sent his apologies because he and Angelina were still waiting for the baby, but other big guns were wheeled out to praise a movie that yesterday swept the Cannes audience off its feet.

Alejandro González Iñárritu's Babel was shown for the first time and demonstrated the strength of Latin American movie-making. It became favourite in many eyes to win the top prize in the competition, the Palme D'Or - and possibly Oscars next year.

Oscar-winner Cate Blanchett and Mexican heartthrob Gael Garcia Bernal joined other members of the cast to talk about Babel, which is told in the same inter-linked storytelling style to the director's previous films, Amores Perros and 21 Grams.

For Blanchett it was not the most immediately appealing role - she spends most of the time dying in a pool of blood. During filming the crew put meat juice on her fake wound to attract flies from an empty water bottle. But she hailed the film a "masterpiece". Pitt had been due to attend but sent an email apology because of his and Angelina Jolie's imminent arrival in Namibia.

The film involves linked stories in Tokyo, Morocco and the US-Mexican border. In Japan a father cannot get through to his rebellious, deaf teenage daughter. In Morocco, Pitt is torn apart trying to save his wife (Blanchett), shot by a young boy. In the US a nanny feels compelled to take her charges from their comfortable home in San Diego to her son's wedding over the border.

In Cannes there were representatives from all three casts, including two young Moroccan boys who play central roles but had no previous acting experience. "We all just met," Bernal told journalists. "I guess we've talked to you more than we have to each other."

Iñárritu said he chose Morocco because when he was younger he spent 15 days there with $100. "I had beautiful powerful memories." He added: "I fell in love with Japanese culture and civilisation, the mysteries, the contradiction between the futuristic and traditional."

Babel is one of two Mexican films in competition - Guillermo del Toro's El Labertino del Fauno shows on Friday - and along with the work of Alfonso Cuaron and Carlos Reygadas, Latin American filmmaking is on a high.

Blanchett also confirmed that she is to appear as Bob Dylan in Todd Haynes' unconventional biopic, I'm Not There, which begins shooting in July. Others playing the singer at different times in his career include Richard Gere, Heath Ledger, Christian Bale and Ben Wishaw.

Babel joins Pedro Almodóvar's Volver as a frontrunner for the top prize, though many have high hopes for Sofia Coppola's Marie Antoinette which screens today. France is awash with posters for the film that is said to give Louis XVI's queen Diana-like qualities.

On Tuesday there was also much praise for French director Bruno Dumont's ultra-depressing Flandres, which tells the story of young French soldiers who leave their bleak lives to fight a war in an unnamed Arabic-speaking country. While the soldiers commit atrocities, the already messed-up girlfriend back home becomes an emotional wreck. Chuckles are rare and the sex scenes enough to put people off bedroom activity for life.

· Xan Brooks reports from Cannes on the Guardian's new weekly arts and entertainment show