La Vie en Rose - Preview
Preview by Jack Foley
LA Vie en Rose, a biopic about French singer Edith Piaf, opened the prestigious Berlin Film Festival on February 8, 2007, and looks to be a serious contender for the coveted Golden Bear Award.
Starring Marion Cotillard (of A Good Year fame), the film follows Piaf from the age of 20 until her death at the age of 47, including the singer’s rise to fame, her tempestuous private life and her struggles with alcohol.
Known internationally as the “sparrow of Paris” her voice was in fact strong, expressive and passionate. Her international fame rests on the astounding success of songs like La Vie en Rose, Non, Je ne Regrette Rien, Mylord and many others, 30 of which are to be heard in the film.
But in spite of her success, Piaf’s life was one long struggle. Left by her street singer mother at an early age, she grew up with her paternal grandmother, who ran a brothel in Normandy.
Edith Piaf suddenly went blind between the ages of three and seven; legend has it that she regained her eyesight after the prostitutes working for her grandmother undertook a pilgrimage to Sainte Therese de Lisieux. And she later went to live with her alcoholic father, only to leave him at the age of 15 to go and sing on the streets of Paris.
In 1935 she was discovered by a nightclub owner named Louis Leplae who convinced her to sing, in spite of her fear of performing, and gave her the nickname – “La Mme” Piaf, or little sparrow – that she was to retain for the rest of her life.
Edith released her first album during the same year, and her magical voice soon turned her into an international star – on both sides of the Atlantic. But passionate affairs and her friendships with famous contemporaries such as Yves Montand, Jean Cocteau, Charles Aznavour, world boxing champ Marcel Cerdan and Marlene Dietrich meant that her private life was often in the public eye. Flights of fancy and moments of happiness alternated with drama and tragic falls. And everyone knew that it would only be a matter of time before the “sparrow of Paris” burned her wings…
Cotillard, who has emerged as an early favourite for the best actress prize at the festival, told a press conference that she lip-synched over the original Piaf recordings – but that her performance ran much deeper.
“It wasn’t just an imitation of Edith Piaf,” she told reporters. “I wanted to do more than that – I wanted to bring her to life and we all did that together.”
The film is one of the 373 films being featured at this year’s Berlin Film Festival, which is now in its 57th year.