La Vie en Rose (La Môme)
The Extraordinary Life of Edith Piaf
Born in the slums of Belleville, Paris, to a prostitute mother and a street acrobat father, Édith Giovanna Gassion received little formal education. By her early teens, she was a street kid, making small change by singing on the street corner. At 20, she was discovered by Louis Leplée, the owner of a cabaret who recognized her extraordinary talent and renamed her Edith Piaf.
Because of her diminutive stature and early stage nervousness, her nickname was “The Kid Sparrow” (La Môme Piaf). She recorded her first record, but when Leplée was found mysteriously murdered, she was accused of being an accessory. Not long after, legendary agent Raymond Asso took Edith under his wing and made her an international star. From New York, which she conquered in 1947, to Grasse, where she lived out her last days, the singer of hits such as "La vie en rose," "Hymne à l'amour" and "Non, je ne regrette rien" lived life to the fullest. But she was never able to mend the wounds of her childhood, which she tried to anesthetize, for want of anything better, with drugs and alcohol.
Member Reviews
Okay - RobBC
More of a loose collage than a standard biography which, taken in its entirety, leaves you with a keen sense of the woman behind the legend. I admit to not being a great fan of the biopic genre as I am constantly aware of the artistic license directors use in order to make their films watchable. The camera certainly lingers on Piaf’s private misery often to the exclusion of anything else. It’s this lack of balance that left “La Vie En Rose” feeling incomplete and somewhat lop-sided to me. A passionate and sincere film nonetheless with some of the most dynamic acting I’ve seen in some time.La Vie en Rose - Derekstar
The following things are true. I liked Marion Cotillard a lot in this movie. I liked that girl who played Edith Piaf as a child even more than that. I thought the music was alright. I mean, I like that kind of music broadly, but this specifically wasn't really my thing. But whatever. Somehow, amongst liking these things, the movie felt pretty conventional. Kind of like every other biopic ever. Even structurally. The only thing that sets it apart are those two performances that I liked.To see for Marion Cotillard! - Cricri7
I give this movie a 4 star because of Marion Cotillard's performance. It is absolutely incredible! She deserved the Oscar and so much more. In French, we would say "criante de vérité". Cotillard totally inhabits this character that was Edith Piaf, because Piaf was a character in her life. She lived the songs she sung. Like many great divas, like Judy Garland, she lived a fast life and died pretty young.
You have to know her life before watching the movie because it does not explain anything. You should watch the bonus features before watching the movie, it will help you if you have not read her about her life. I had read her half sister's biography many years ago so I was not lost but I did not appreciate the lack of explanation during the stories, that go back and forth from adult to the end of her life constantly. When the boxer Marcel Cerdan appears, you have to know the story to guess who he is and the place he took in her life.
All this said, this movie should be zipped because of Marion Cotillard and Piaf's songs, you never tire from those...even after all those years!
Member Reviews
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Okay - RobBC
More of a loose collage than a standard biography which, taken in its entirety, leaves you with a keen sense of the woman behind the legend. I admit to not being a great fan of the biopic genre as I am constantly aware of the artistic license directors use ...La Vie en Rose - Derekstar
The following things are true. I liked Marion Cotillard a lot in this movie. I liked that girl who played Edith Piaf as a child even more than that. I thought the music was alright. I mean, I like that kind of music broadly, but this specifically wasn't ...To see for Marion Cotillard! - Cricri7
I give this movie a 4 star because of Marion Cotillard's performance. It is absolutely incredible! She deserved the Oscar and so much more. In French, we would say "criante de vérité". Cotillard totally inhabits this character that was Edith Piaf, because ...