Venice opens with 'Ink,' a rollicking tale of tabloid power

The Venice Film Festival opened on Wednesday with the world premiere of Danny Boyle's "Ink," a rollicking portrait of the rise of the British tabloid the Sun and its founder Rupert Murdoch, according to the New York Times. The film, which stars Guy Pearce as Murdoch, examines how tabloid journalism reshaped British public life in the late 20th century, a story that resonates far beyond Fleet Street.

The Guardian reported that Murdoch himself is "very happy" to be portrayed by Pearce, according to the actor, who said the press baron's daughter Elisabeth told him her father was pleased — though he had not yet seen the film. The anecdote underscores the strange intimacy between the media mogul and the festival that has long celebrated cinema's power to scrutinise power.

The opening selection marks a deliberate choice by festival organisers to engage with questions of media ethics and political influence at a moment when journalism's role in democracy is under renewed scrutiny across Europe. Boyle's trademark energetic style, the Times noted, turns the story of the Sun's ascendancy into an entertaining, if unsettling, spectacle.

The festival's opening salvo arrives as Italy's own media landscape faces its own reckonings, with the government of Giorgia Meloni — which on Friday becomes the longest-lasting in postwar history, according to The Local Italy — having drawn international attention for its relations with the press. The choice of a film about a foreign press baron may seem distant from the lagoon, but Venice has long been a stage where global conversations about power and representation play out.

Maggie Gyllenhaal, chair of this year's jury, used the opening press conference to address a systemic problem in the film industry: only two of the films in competition for the Golden Lion were directed by women, a statistic she attributed to structural sexism rather than individual failings, the Guardian reported. Her comments refocused attention on the festival's own record of inclusion, a debate that has followed Venice for years.

The festival also unveiled its 10th anniversary edition of Venice Immersive, featuring an extended-reality documentary on David Bowie with hundreds of unseen images of the star, alongside virtual worlds exploring wildfires and wolves, the Guardian reported. The programme reflects the festival's ambition to remain at the forefront of cinematic innovation, even as its core competition grapples with longstanding questions of representation.

For Venice, the festival is both a cultural beacon and an economic engine, drawing critics, buyers and tourists to the city each September. The opening of "Ink" sets a tone of provocation and reflection, inviting audiences to consider how media empires are built — and at what cost — a theme with obvious parallels in an era of concentrated digital platforms and shifting journalistic norms.