U.S. film wins top Locarno prize

LOCARNO, Switzerland, Aug. 14 (UPI) -- The U.S. film "Nine Lives" directed by Rodrigo Garcia has won the Golden Leopard Award at Switzerland's Locarno film festival.

The film about turning points in the lives of nine women has an ensemble cast including Glenn Close, Holly Hunter, Molly Parker, Emily Mortimer, Robin Wright Penn and Sissy Spacek.

In awarding "Nine Lives" the top prize Saturday night, jury head and cinematographer Vittorio Storaro called the directing "extraordinary," the BBC reported Sunday.

"Un Couple Parfait" by Japan's Nobuhiro Suwa won a special award and Silver Leopards were given to "Fratricide" by Turkish director Yilmaz Arslan; "Three Grad Kaelter (Three Degrees Colder)" by Germany's Florian Hoffmeister; and "Ma Hameh Khoubim (We Are All Fine)" by Iranian director Bizhan Mirbaqeri.

The women of "Nine Lives" all shared the best female performance award.