La Vie En Rose DVD Review

"La Vie En Rose" reviews

DVD

La Vie En Rose

Author

anonymous

Date reviewed

2007-11-30 15:50:24

Provider

MRIB

DVD Review

Prepare yourself for a biopic with a difference. After films of American icons like Johnny Cash and Ray Charles, modern greats who've only just left the land of the living and whose music informs the planet, now comes one about the most quintessentially French singer ever.

Edith Piaf's story is an extraordinary tale of triumph against the odds, both social (she was raised in her Grandmother's brothel and only just saved from prostitution) and physical (she was temporarily blind as a child). Piaf became a national icon after being discovered singing in the street by Louis Leplee.

Olivier Dahan's unblinkered and brave modern realisation is a truthful examination of a real star - warts and all. Marion Cotillard (and Pauline Burlet too - who plays Edith aged 10) is magnificent in the lead, bringing a brooding power to a woman whose name is so well known, yet whose life is shrouded in mystery. The film reveals itself in episodes, jumping forward in time in a manner that could confuse the viewer were it not so expertly handled.

Three hours and not one minute too long, La Vie En Rose is a French masterpiece, worthy of its subject and never hitting a bum note. Extras include audio commentaries, documentary and footage of the US premiere.

Copyright © MRIB 2007.