Thorny "Rose": Review for "La Vie en Rose"

Marion Cotillard won the Academy Award, the Cesar Award, the BAFTA Award, and countless others for her portrayal of French diva Edith Piaf (Piaf means “Sparrow” in French). Her nickname and her voice are icons in France. Olivier Dahan has directed the life of the chanteuse in a very cinematic yet confusing way. Dahan switches scenes from the beginning of her life in the slums of Bellville to her last days in the studio recording “Milord”. Gerard Depideu plays Piaf’s singing teacher during her teenage years. Throughout her life (as this film chronicles it), it does not seem as if she were a woman to be admired. Yes, her voice is amazing, but if I were to find a personification of prima dona, the answer may be Edith Piaf. Cotillard’s performance is an extraordinary transformation of an actress. As if that it is not actually Cotillard, but the spirit of Piaf embodying and possessing the body of Cotillard. But due to the confusing order of the film, it is my regret to say that this film is not one that a person who is simply watching La Vie en Rose to waste time. With shots from her early life being raised in a brothel to her death bed at an “old folks home”, you may get confused. You really have to pay attention, otherwise, you may be lost in Edith Piaf’s Life of Pink.

Grade: B-