Maybe it's the sun and sea, the European glamour mixed with Hollywood royalty, or simply because even the most serious actors and directors appear to have fun at Cannes. How often do you see stars dancing up the red carpet a la Quentin Tarantino and Melanie Laurent? 

It's also one occasion where we get to see Angelina Jolie in colour - rather than the basic blacks and muted tones she favours for most of the US award shows. Like the glorious canary yellow number she wore two years ago to promote Ocean's Thirteen with Brad, or the beautiful jade coloured gown she wore last year whilst heavily pregnant. This year, Angelina channeled Veronica Lake with sleek hair and a leg-revealing Versace dress in dusky pink that draped in all the right places. To my mind these choices beat the lovely but safe black strapless gown she wore to this year's Oscars hands down.

Angelina wasn't the only actress looking gorgeous at Cannes this year, Indian superstar Aishwarya Rai and Spanish actress Elsa Pataky were elegant in long-trained white and black gowns. Their presence certainly injected some international glamour to the event.

However, for me at least, this year's Queen of the Croisette has to be Sharon Stone. Ms Stone looked a million dollars in a long-and-short Balmain gown that showed off her killer legs to perfection. I must admit I wasn't immediately won over by the gown when I first saw it, but it certainly grows on you. Besides, there is no denying how stunning Sharon looked in it, positively defying her 51 years. 

An honourable mention goes to Rob Pattinson. Yes I know, he didn't wear a gown so technically doesn't qualify, but he's just gorgeous and definitely one to watch. You might like to check out  hellomagazine.com's new Twilight blog for your Rob fix until the latest Twilight installment is released later this year.