The Associated Press

Hollywood's premier cash-and-award magnet Steven Spielberg kicked off the Venice Film Festival Wednesday - just the man to inspire money-scooping moguls and prize-hungry artists during 11 days of glitz and film magic.

The opening night's gala screening is Spielberg's The Terminal, in which Tom Hanks has the lousy luck to get stuck in an airport, but the good fortune to find Catherine Zeta-Jones there.

Sure, the movie may have opened in the United States more than two months ago, but it gave Venice a chance to parade American celebrities. Among those expected to toddle along the red carpet include Robert De Niro, Angelina Jolie, Will Smith, John Travolta and Al Pacino.

Before his arrival, Spielberg eulogized the glorious lagoon city, saying it helps people rediscover their sense of wonder. "The festival, the city and the islands around it are a place rich with charm where cinema finds a magical setting," he said in a column in Corriere della Sera newspaper.

Magic there may be. But this year's festival is also about grim realities, particularly among the 21 films jostling for the prestigious Golden Lion awards.

Mar Adentro, by Alejandro Amenabar (The Others), tells of a paralyzed Spaniard's attempts to end his life. Britain's Mike Leigh grinds it up with Vera Drake, about an abortionist in 1950s England. German Wim Wenders addresses American life after the Sept. 11 attacks in Land of Plenty. And Amos Gitai's Promised Land deals with enslavement in Israel.

The Golden Lions will be handed out Sept. 11 at a ceremony hosted by Sophia Loren.