NOW THAT THE San Francisco International Film Festival has drawn to a close, Bay Area film devotees can eye the lineup of official selections for this month's Cannes Film Festival a little more carefully – and, in some cases, longingly. The U.S. representatives, though, are a motley crew. Michael Moore's election-ready Bush and bin Laden portrait, Fahrenheit 9/11, was a sure thing, since Bowling for Columbine's award-winning spree started at Cannes in 2002, when the movie was unanimously given a 55th-anniversary prize. But Shrek 2 and The Ladykillers? Shrek 2 is – along with Oshii Mamoru's Innocence – the first animated film since 1953 to vie for the Palme d'Or, but aside from wondering whether Tom Hanks will be doing Burl Ives impressions when he strolls down the red carpet, the dismal latter choice offers nothing to speculate about.

The mystery entry in this year's event has to be Wong Kar-wai's 2046, a years-in-the-making project that proves that the longer the wait, the greater the worry. (Was Wong still shooting only a few weeks ago? Did he have a falling out with actor Takuya Kimura?) There are two films from South Korea among the 18 – down from last year's 20 – chosen for competition. Park Chan-wook's Old Boy is joined by Woman Is the Future of Man, the latest by Hong Sang-soo, whose previous film, Turning Gate, was – in terms of sensibility, if not locale – the best French film in years. This year France is represented by Olivier Assayas, whose Clean, starring his ex Maggie Cheung and Béatrice Dalle as members of a rock band, just might be trashier than Demonlover.

Walter Salles's Sundance favorite, The Motorcycle Diaries, and some other titles (Hirokazu Kore-eda's Nobody Knows and Lucrecia Martel's La niña santa, the only work by a female director) have garnered advance praise. But because the jury includes Tsui Hark and is headed by motormouthed Quentin Tarantino, it's tempting to forecast awards for 2046 and Old Boy. The vengeance tale by Park (Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance; Joint Security Area) has found an unlikely champion in Harry Knowles, and directorial prowess aside, how different is the rotund fanboy in Texas from the tall one who will be leading the jury in Cannes? Two years after his Blissfully Yours emerged victorious from the Un Certain Regard section, Apichatpong "Joe" Weerasethakul returns with Tropical Malady, the first film from Thailand chosen to compete for the Palme d'Or. Considering its subject matter, which is built around "the passionate relationship between two men," one hopes jury members such as Tilda Swinton will balance out the Tarantino testosterone.