Malkovich and Arcel win Venice acting awards as Gaza film stuns

John Malkovich won the Venice Film Festival’s best-actor award for playing an aging CIA agent in Martin McDonagh’s dark comedy “Wild Horse Nine,” while Mathilde Arcel was named best actress for “Woman Unknown,” in which she portrays a housemaid haunted by a wartime relationship with a German soldier. The festival’s competition featured several films addressing war, political violence, corruption and inequality. Among the leading contenders for the Golden Lion was “NAZA,” a documentary by Yuval Abraham and Rachel Szor based on testimony from Israeli whistleblowers about alleged AI-assisted targeting and attacks in Gaza; it received a record 25-minute standing ovation and the highest critics’ rating reported by Screen magazine. “NAZA” competed against films including Lee Chang-dong’s “Possible Love” and “Wild Horse Nine,” while the festival also showcased works such as Danny Boyle’s “Ink” and “Primetime,” starring Robert Pattinson.