Pakistan, Sept. 4 -- George Clooney received the Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement at the Venice Film Festival's opening ceremony on Wednesday, September 2, in an emotional tribute that brought both Clooney and his wife, Amal, to tears.

The award was presented by longtime friend Laura Dern, whose relationship with Clooney dates back more than 40 years to the 1980s horror sequel Grizzly II: Revenge, an early, ill-fated production the two worked on together in Hungary while just starting out.

Clooney has a deep history with the festival, having debuted major films there including Good Night and Good Luck, Michael Clayton, Burn After Reading, Gravity and, most recently, Jay Kelly.

His 2005 directorial breakthrough Good Night and Good L...