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Coppola, Kidman Get Top Honors At Cannes Film Festival

CANNES, France (AP) -- Sofia Coppola has won the Cannes Film Festival best director prize for "The Beguiled," her remake of Don Siegel's 1971 Civil War drama.

The jury also presented a special prize to celebrate the festival's 70th anniversary, to actress Nicole Kidman.

Kidman wasn't at the French Rivera ceremony, but sent a video message from Nashville, saying she was "absolutely devastated" to miss the show.

Jury member Will Smith made the best of the situation, pretending to be Kidman.

He fake-cried and said in halting French, "merci beaucoup madames et monsieurs."

Will Smith
Jury member Will Smith attends the "Ismael's Ghosts (Les Fantomes d'Ismael)" screening and Opening Gala during the 70th annual Cannes Film Festival. (Photo by Andreas Rentz/Getty Images)

The jury awarded its coveted Palme d'Or award to Ruben Ostlund's "The Square." Ostlund previously won the Jury Prize in the 2014 festival's Un Certain Regard section for "Force Majeure."

The French AIDS drama "120 Beats Per Minute" won the Grand Prize from the jury. The Grand Prize recognizes a strong film that missed out on the top prize, the Palme d'Or.

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