At the Cannes Film Festival, Noël Godin, disappointed that Godard, in his opinion, made a religious film, threw a shaving cream pie into Godard's face, making international news. Under heavy criticism, Godard attempted to withdraw the film from Italy, but his distributor was unable to do so. He also claimed that the film is not about the Virgin Mary, but about "a young woman named Mary who, at a certain moment in her life, finds herself part of an exceptional event that she would never have wished for herself." Despite the initial heavy criticism, the film has also been praised for its beautiful cinematography.