Cannes, 1991: The "Insane Atmosphere", from Minute 1

Those were the (absolutely insane) days. Every little move M made, it would make headlines. Everywhere she stepped her foot in, it would turn the whole damn place upside down. No wonder: world-stopping events like the Blond Ambition Tour and the Justify My Love video were a few months behind.

And now, another monumental feature: the Truth or Dare documentary. Now, it was time to show it to Europe - and no better place to do it than the Cannes Film Festival.

The euro-insane atmosphere was immediately set, the first minute she arrived at Nice airport, on May 12, 1991. The Los Angeles Times tells it all.

(I remember hearing about "The Cannes Incident" so well...)

«Cannes Dares to Be Seduced by Madonna.
Welcoming the pop star and filmmaker Akira Kurosawa on the same day, you can't say the film festival doesn't have range--or a sense of humor.

If the camera crews that followed pop singer Madonna on her Blonde Ambition tour had been with her Saturday afternoon, they would have gotten great footage for a sequel to her new documentary, "Truth or Dare." A source close to Madonna said that when she arrived in Nice, French customs officials, acting on a tip that she would have drugs with her, held the star up for an hour-and-a-half while she was searched.
"It's ridiculous because everybody knows Madonna doesn't do drugs," the source said. "She was really upset about it."
Welcome to the Cannes Film Festival, Madonna. We could have told you it's a zoo, but then we never knew you'd be here. The festival loves stars--adores them--but they usually save this kind of excitement for a movie star. In fact, Cannes veterans say they haven't seen anything like this since Brigitte Bardot's appearance in 1952.»

Los Angeles Times
May 13, 1991
Jack Mathews, Cannes report