A-list stars light up the red carpet on the opening day of the 68th Venice Film Festival, which is regarded as the world's most prestigious festival in the world. This year, 22 films from around the globe are competing for the Golden Lion, including George Clooney's fourth directorial effort in "The Ides of March", which explores the dark side of politics. Starring George Clooney, Ryan Gosling and Philip Seymour Hoffman, the opening film centers around a young aide to a presidential candidate, who discovers how dispensable ideals can be. Other films that are fighting for the top prize include, Roman Polanski's latest work "Carnage", David Cronenberg's "A Dangerous Method" starring Keira Knightley and Vincent Cassel, Matthew McConaughey's movie "Killer Joe", and Taiwanese historical drama film, "Seediq Bale" directed by Wei Te-Sheng and produced by John Woo. Oscar-nominated director Darren Aronofsky who is praised for his past works will head the jury for this year's festival, which will run until September 10th. US actor and director Al Pacino is set to be honored with the Glory to the Film-maker award on the island of Lido, prior to the premiere of his documentary-drama film, "Wilde Salome".