The opening night feature of the Rendez-Vous with French Cinema 2007 was a biopic of French singer Edith Piaf, La Vie en Rose. That's actually the American title. In France it's simply called La Môme, which was Piaf's nickname. La Vie en Rose was her signature song.Unless one knows a fair amount about Piaf's life, a viewer will probably find this film confusing. I don't, so I did. Flash-backs and flash-aheads abound, frequently with a title on the screen, but too often without. Characters appear without identification. Maybe it's common knowledge in France who her boxer-lover was, but I had no idea. I did figure out who Marlene Dietrich was--but only after she introduced herself to Piaf as "Marlene." A husband suddenly appears at the end. There were lots of loose ends. At best one (at least a previously uninformed one like me) will walk out wanting to know more.
But that's often the way it is with French films. They frequently don't have everything wrapped up and tied with a neat bow. La Vie en Rose does give one the sense of Piaf's life, I think. The details are secondary.
The performances are excellent, particularly Marion Cotillard (who was present at the screening, along with the director) as Piaf. She did not do the singing, however. Her lipsyncing was great, though (and I've seen a lot of lipsyncing)--they used Piaf's recordings for the later songs, and another singer for her earlier work. The film was released in France only two weeks ago, and apparently is doing well. It will be released in the U.S. in June. So if you're interested, you have time to do a little research before seeing it. You may enjoy it more than I did.
No comments:
Post a Comment