A tense courtroom drama about a writer accused of her husband's murder took the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival on Saturday, capping a strong year for women directors.

French director Justine Triet won the festival's top prize for the film "Anatomie d'une Chute" (Anatomy of a Fall), a gripping and icy drama led by a powerful performance from German actress Sandra Hueller, who also starred in "The Zone of Interest" which won the runner-up Grand Prix.

As she accepted the Palme d'Or, the highest prize awarded at Cannes, Triet slammed the French government of President Emmanuel Macron over its "shocking" suppression of pension protests.

"The country suffered from historic protests over the reform of the pension system. These protests were denied… repressed in a shocking way," she said in her speech.