Gus Van Sant's Elephant won the Palme d'Or

Artistic director Thierry Fremaux told Screen International he thought 2003's festival, described by some critics as the "worst in living memory", suffered due to the success of the previous two years.

But he said he hoped people could form a more measured opinion of the films after a time rather than the extreme criticism some received after their screenings.

"It is not so surprising that we have a year of contrast. Two years of roses are followed by one year of thorns. Cannes is still at the summit [among film festivals]," Mr Fremaux said.

"We saw different reactions to films over a period of two to three days. What I ask is that people look at the films over time, with the benefit of a bit of distance."

Nicole Kidman and Paul Bettany star in Dogville

There was a general consensus among critics that many films entered into the prestigious Palme d'Or competition were not up to scratch.

The eventual winner was Gus Van Sant's Elephant, a film based on the Columbine high school shootings.

Nicole Kidman's Dogville, directed by Dane Lars von Trier, also received positive plaudits although it .

But Vincent Gallo's Brown Bunny, featuring a long explicit sex scene, was widely derided as being self-absorbed and pretentious, although Mr Fremaux said it was not chosen for its shock value.

'Transition'

"It is entirely in the festival tradition to deliver this kind of reaction and in a way it proves that cinema is a powerful medium and provokes reactions," he said.

Mr Fremaux admitted that the festival was going through a "transition", but said critics could not expect every film to be a masterpiece.

He added that there were strong films shown outside of the main Palme d'Or competition such as those the Un Certain Regard section.