December 14, 2007
By Lara de Matos
Director: Olivier Dahan
Cast: Marion Cotillard, Slyvie Testud, Pascal Greggory, Gérard Depardieu, Emmanuelle Seigner
Running time: 140 minutes
Classification: PG 13
Rating: ****
She is synonymous with the richness of French culture and hers is a voice that conjures up images of that nation's passionate approach to life - be it good, or bad.
That said though, while Edith Piaf could be considered the poster girl for Gallic mores, much about her life remains shrouded in mystery.
In his biopic, La Vie En Rose, director Olivier Dahan attempts to clear some of the fog surrounding "the Little Sparrow", but rather than offer a sequential representation of her life, he chooses instead to highlight the events that shaped it.
The result is a film that flits between Piaf's youthful past (when she was in her prime) and the desiccated, disease-pierced shell into which she had degenerated a mere two decades later.
Born into a world populated by drunkards, drug addicts and all manner of uncouth characters in Paris' poverty stricken Belleville district, Piaf (real name Edith Giovanna Gassion) was the daughter of a struggling café-singer mother, and a circus contortionist father. The tale of her earlier years picks up from where she is abandoned by her mom and left to be raised in a whorehouse run by her paternal grandmére.
When her father, Louis, eventually returns to reclaim her, Piaf is ripped away from the prostitute she had come to regard as a mother figure, and obliged to do her dad's bidding when he signs up with a travelling circus.
They subsequently find themselves wandering the streets after Louis loses his job, and it's during a pavement performance in which he forces Piaf to accompany him with song, that her trademark voice is revealed.
But it would be some years yet before this hard-living, lower-class talent would eventually be discovered by the music hall impresario, Louis Leplée.
In a refreshing move, Dahan avoids the customary sugar-coating preferred by his Hollywood peers when depicting the songstress during the height of her career as well
. Rather, he allows French actress, Marion Cotillard (who is brilliant and totally believable in her role) to portray Piaf in all her petulant, self-serving, drug-addicted, insecure, affair-riddled, yet tragically lonely, glory. In so doing, Dahan adds an authenticity that is so often lost in more "showbiz formulaic" flicks, along the lines of Ray and Dreamgirls.
However, the downside to Dahan's non-chronological approach is that those less familiar with the French star may find themselves struggling to make sense of the story.
Also, some crucial moments in Piaf's life (including her part in Leplée's murder, as well as her role as a member of the Resistance during World War 2) are brazenly disregarded, in favour of inconsequential scenes.
Even so, La Vie En Rose remains a feast for Piaf enthusiasts - not least because the movie is permeated with many of the legend's iconic tunes.
If you liked … Delovely, Frida or any biopic told in a more artistic format . . . you'll love this.
The Reel Lowdown
BEST BIT: When an already frail and sickly Piaf takes to the stage to sing Non, Je Ne Regrette Rien, but only the
song’s tune and the audience applause can be heard, rather than her actual voice. Powerful.
WORST BIT: The unexplained “snap scenes” that could leave even an ardent fan feeling confused as to their relevance.
BEST LINE: When her manager tells her she can’t cancel her dinner plans with the renowned poet and playwright, Jean Cocteau, minutes before she was scheduled
to meet him, Piaf turns to her manager and says: “But of course I can! Otherwise, what is the point of being Edith Piaf?
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