La Vie En Rose (A- or 3.5/4 stars)
The engrossing life of Edith Piaf is depicted in 'La Vie En Rose', a French biodrama directed by Olivier Dahan. Born in the slums of Paris, lived a fruitful life in NYC's limelight, & died in the French Riviera, Piaf's (astonishingly played by Marion Cotillard) life was a hard fought battle. Quite simply, her existence was all about survival, singing, and loving. Thanks to her iconic voice, intricate romances, & off-beat friendships, Piaf was able to overcome poverty and become a world-wide star. She pleased millions, but could rarely offer her mind & body a chance to recuperate from life's misfortunes. I can't tell right now if it's the movie that I love or if it's Marion Cotillard who has sold me. But I'll tell you one thing, I've just spent the last 1/2 hour researching the life of this fascinating woman.
Rather than delving into Piaf's self-destructive psyche or what can be considered false character depth (this is difficult, as who could account for it 45 yrs. after her death?), the film simply highlights her 'moments'. 'La Vie En Rose' is laid-out in a very purposeful, non-linear manner. So, we meet Edith at age 3, & we see her die at age 47. But the film opens with her collapsing during a N.Y. concert performance in 1959. From there, it skips through the 1920's, back to '59, off to '63 (months before her death), back to 1935, 63, 40 (she makes it big & meets the love of her life), 63, 59, 60 (enters rehab), 55, 50 (her man dies & she gets in one of many car crashes), 63, & 60 (a riveting scene as she performs at the 'Olympia' for one of the last times). You get the point. This may annoy many, but for the given content, I actually think the movie moves much faster in this broken-up method than had it been shown to us in a tedious linear path.
Let me try to touch upon the many 'moments' of Piaf's tragic life (as shown in the film): She's born into poverty. Her mom is an ailing street singer. Her dad is a circus acrobat. She lives with her sickly, maternal grandma for a while. She's then raised by her paternal grandma in a brothel. She loses her eyesight & hearing for 6 years. She claims she is cured by St. Therese. Her father returns & takes her away to work with him in a travelling circus. In her late teens, she has a baby (who dies 2 yrs. later of meningitis), and sings on the street for money. She impresses Leplee (Gerard Depardieu), who teaches her to stand up straight (she was only 4'8") and emote while belting a tune. He nicknames her Piaf ('little sparrow' in Parisian slang). He gets murdered. She makes it big in America ...
In the early 40's she meets & falls in love with a married man who happens to be the middleweight boxing champion of the world, Marcel Cerdan (Marcelle also happened to be her deceased daughter's name). Her life truly starts to fall apart when he dies in a 1949 plane crash. She becomes an alcoholic, has a series of car accidents; breaks bones throughout her whole body (each time); enters drug & alcohol rehabs (for alcohol & HEAVY morphine addiction). By the mid 1950's, Piaf aged prematurely, became afflicted with severe arthritis & acquired liver cancer. All the while, she still performed to legions of fans around the world & gave everything she had to her public (not because she loved them, but because she felt they deserved what they paid for). You'd think I made this all up, right!?
She was the most famous & beloved French singer of the 20th century (also because she helped the French in WWII, though it's not touched upon in the film). Marion Cotillard does a great job at conveying why the world loved her energy, personality, & eclectic singing style. That's not to say she was the sweetest of people. Often cantankerous, it helps you not feel so bad for her by the end, even if her destiny is tragic. Cotillard is fantastic in conveying appropriate emotions, pitch perfect lip-synching & an amazing physical performance. Piaf looked to be 87 at age 47, and Cotillard transforms into Piaf at each stage of her harried life. When all is said & done, I'd refer to Piaf as a French Judy Garland. Big voice, diminutive body, aged early, died young ... such melodramatic lives.
I enjoyed the vocal training scene which shows how her lyrical diction took precedent (even over the loud, clear timbre of her voice). Piaf's doomed joys & epic tragedies are depicted quite well. There's a visceral Oscar-bait scene where Piaf horrifically realizes that Marcel is dead. I don't mind the recklessness of the film because her life was simply built upon superficial, ill-timed, reckless behavior. The entire film is haunting, but the last scene steals the show. In one of her last performances, Piaf hobbles out to the microphone & lets loose with one of her many hits, Non je ne regrette rien ("No, I regret nothing"). She pours her heart out, the song ends, the screen goes black & the credits roll. It was a welcomed end to the frenetic, unkempt style of the film. Cotillard IS the film. I liked the 'whole' more than some of its' parts. But still ... 'La Vie En Rose' is a fantastic art house film to check out.
Rather than delving into Piaf's self-destructive psyche or what can be considered false character depth (this is difficult, as who could account for it 45 yrs. after her death?), the film simply highlights her 'moments'. 'La Vie En Rose' is laid-out in a very purposeful, non-linear manner. So, we meet Edith at age 3, & we see her die at age 47. But the film opens with her collapsing during a N.Y. concert performance in 1959. From there, it skips through the 1920's, back to '59, off to '63 (months before her death), back to 1935, 63, 40 (she makes it big & meets the love of her life), 63, 59, 60 (enters rehab), 55, 50 (her man dies & she gets in one of many car crashes), 63, & 60 (a riveting scene as she performs at the 'Olympia' for one of the last times). You get the point. This may annoy many, but for the given content, I actually think the movie moves much faster in this broken-up method than had it been shown to us in a tedious linear path.
Let me try to touch upon the many 'moments' of Piaf's tragic life (as shown in the film): She's born into poverty. Her mom is an ailing street singer. Her dad is a circus acrobat. She lives with her sickly, maternal grandma for a while. She's then raised by her paternal grandma in a brothel. She loses her eyesight & hearing for 6 years. She claims she is cured by St. Therese. Her father returns & takes her away to work with him in a travelling circus. In her late teens, she has a baby (who dies 2 yrs. later of meningitis), and sings on the street for money. She impresses Leplee (Gerard Depardieu), who teaches her to stand up straight (she was only 4'8") and emote while belting a tune. He nicknames her Piaf ('little sparrow' in Parisian slang). He gets murdered. She makes it big in America ...
In the early 40's she meets & falls in love with a married man who happens to be the middleweight boxing champion of the world, Marcel Cerdan (Marcelle also happened to be her deceased daughter's name). Her life truly starts to fall apart when he dies in a 1949 plane crash. She becomes an alcoholic, has a series of car accidents; breaks bones throughout her whole body (each time); enters drug & alcohol rehabs (for alcohol & HEAVY morphine addiction). By the mid 1950's, Piaf aged prematurely, became afflicted with severe arthritis & acquired liver cancer. All the while, she still performed to legions of fans around the world & gave everything she had to her public (not because she loved them, but because she felt they deserved what they paid for). You'd think I made this all up, right!?
She was the most famous & beloved French singer of the 20th century (also because she helped the French in WWII, though it's not touched upon in the film). Marion Cotillard does a great job at conveying why the world loved her energy, personality, & eclectic singing style. That's not to say she was the sweetest of people. Often cantankerous, it helps you not feel so bad for her by the end, even if her destiny is tragic. Cotillard is fantastic in conveying appropriate emotions, pitch perfect lip-synching & an amazing physical performance. Piaf looked to be 87 at age 47, and Cotillard transforms into Piaf at each stage of her harried life. When all is said & done, I'd refer to Piaf as a French Judy Garland. Big voice, diminutive body, aged early, died young ... such melodramatic lives.
I enjoyed the vocal training scene which shows how her lyrical diction took precedent (even over the loud, clear timbre of her voice). Piaf's doomed joys & epic tragedies are depicted quite well. There's a visceral Oscar-bait scene where Piaf horrifically realizes that Marcel is dead. I don't mind the recklessness of the film because her life was simply built upon superficial, ill-timed, reckless behavior. The entire film is haunting, but the last scene steals the show. In one of her last performances, Piaf hobbles out to the microphone & lets loose with one of her many hits, Non je ne regrette rien ("No, I regret nothing"). She pours her heart out, the song ends, the screen goes black & the credits roll. It was a welcomed end to the frenetic, unkempt style of the film. Cotillard IS the film. I liked the 'whole' more than some of its' parts. But still ... 'La Vie En Rose' is a fantastic art house film to check out.