La Vie en Rose
By Jason Revill
At four foot eight inches Edith Piaf (Marion Cotillard) was one of the best loved singers the world has known, French or otherwise. Known as the “Little Sparrow,” she began her life as the daughter of a circus contortion father and a street singer mother. When her father went off to war, Piaf was left with her paternal grandmother, who was a brothel owner. There she found as close to a stabile environment as she had had in her life but lost her eyesight due to meningitis, which returned miraculously after her grandmother’s prostitutes saved up to take her to visit the grave of St. Therese. All of this was before her ascent to stardom and the tragic ups and downs associated with it, including working for a pimp, the death of her mentor, a romance with a married world champion boxer, alcoholism, and morphine addiction. There are some aspects left out, including her role in the French Resistance, but there is more than enough that is left in to enjoy.
La Vie en Rose basically swirls around Piaf so that not only do we move in and out of points in her life, but characters do as well. The supporting work is all good with a special mention to Sylvie Testud as Simone “Momone” Berteaut. As Pilaf’s half sister she is there from the beginning when she was a street singer being pushed around by pimps up until the height of her success, all of which she captures as a faithful companion. That being said this is Marion Cotillard’s show. She’s already started winning festival awards for her portrayal as Piaf and it is undoubtedly deserved. The rest of this year better have some great female leads, because at this point nothing has touched Cotillard. She completely embodies Piaf from a youthful street urchin singing for meals to the prematurely hunched morphine addicted waif at her death. Through all that she embodies every joy and sadness at every point in Piaf’s life.
Olivier Dahan’s direction here is absolutely superb. If you put the simple fact that this is a fantastic looking film aside, the screenplay he co-wrote with Isabelle Sobleman is poignant and really just sharp in general. Sure it may be slightly over the top, but the emotions are genuine and well earned instead of manipulatively yanked out of you. One of the more brilliant strokes is that by not telling the story chronologically the audience has the ability to see how one point in her life affects another and more importantly it put Piaf’s successes next to her tragedies. Say what you will about the lives of Johnny Cash and Ray Charles, but their swings between highs and lows can’t touch Piaf.
La Vie en Rose would be worth seeing for the songs alone, but with Marion Cotillard’s performance this really is a movie to be seen by both music and film lovers alike. This is a beautiful film that will not only suck you in but wrap you up in the whirlwind that was the “Little Sparrow”’s life. By the time the film climaxes with "Non, Je Ne Regrette Rien" you’ll not only be moved, but you will be on iTunes downloading.
The Grade
- Story: A
- Acting: A
- Visuals: A
- Originality: A
- Enjoyability: A
- Overall: A
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