Undescribable Perfection

I wanted to but couldn't!

For all the hype it got I was expecting a lot more!

Absolutely brilliant

An un-chronological look at the life of the Little Sparrow, Édith Piaf (1915-1963). Her mother is an alcoholic street singer, her father a circus performer, her paternal grandmother a madam.As of now (2015), Edith Piaf has been the focus of a number of films. But it would be hard to say any are better than this one, and the reason is simple: they cast the right actress. Another well-known actress was named as a potential choice, but Marion Cotillard was the only correct one -- she brings a power to the screen that few can. (She may also be the only non-English speaking actress to achieve wide acclaim in the United States).Although I know nothing about Piaf and cannot say if this is accurate, it is certainly well presented and a joy to watch.

Oliver Dahan was very intentional throughout his directing of La Vie en Rose. His depiction of Edith Piaf purposely provokes such a strong connection to the artist by showing her intense and emotional life journey. By setting this sort of context, the audience can more easily relate to Piaf, therefore a stronger appreciation based is formed. Many points throughout the movie help create this connection to her art. Specifically, Piaf's love for singing is truly inspirational and captivating. By forcing herself to finish songs despite her health risks, Edith demonstrates a desperation to sing, reminding the viewers of the true meaning behind her nickname as "the little sparrow", flashing back to images of a practically mute little girl who would shine through with her singing voice. Edith's voice is really the only thing she feels she has to offer. Her background story and dedication to her dream provokes a massive appreciation for her work. Not only does Dahan make that evident in his depiction of her childhood, her attachment to singing carries on throughout her aging process to the point where she has almost exhausted her career by giving too much. This context gives the audience a great appreciation for her songs, seeing that she gives all she has in every performance. That is one of the most important messages portrayed throughout La Vie en Rose; the point that Edith Piaf dedicates her life to her dream and does everything she can to not fall short of the expectations from her audience. Edith Piaf gives her whole heart in every performance, so La Vie en Rose examines the reasoning behind her passion. Other moments that sparked admiration for her work is found through the different emotions sung throughout the movie. For instance, her performance when Marcel is in the crowd is very joyful in comparison to the performance after his death, which captures her pain in a very intense way. La Vie en Rose gives the context as to where she draws her emotion from on stage. La Vie en Rose purposely shows Edith Piaf's background to emphasize her many personal triumphs. The occupations of her parents and grandmother, as well as living situations demonstrates a very unstable environment. Showing that she was born into a low class family proves that she overcame a great deal before becoming such a widely known singer. Although her transition from a low social class to a famous woman demonstrates a great paradox, it also adds a significant amount of meaning behind her story. Her preparation and training leading up is intense and brutal. In making the movie, Dahan purposely shows that her background shapes her love for singing. It is her comfort, joy, and reason for her existence. Without her voice, Edith feels she has nothing. That desperation to hold on to her one true love connects with audiences, therefore creating the universal appeal to her songs. From laughing and singing in the tub as a child, to her last performance as a frail and aged woman, La Vie en Rose identifies the reasons why Piaf gives her soul in every song. The emphasis on the term "the little sparrow" is also very crucial in this movie. The term takes Edith's story full circle. Every time she sings, you see the same facial expression you see her wear as a child, the face of dedication. It suggests she is holding onto a very precious gift. It is a desperation to hold onto her dreams, a desperation that she never loses, also seen in her determination to sing in Olympia. This expression is one that keeps the universe so captivated in what she has to offer.Edith Piaf is perfectly summed up during her interview on the shoreline. When asked her favorite career moment, she replies "every time the curtain goes up". La Vie en Rose proves that, for Edith Piaf, a life without song is no life at all.

From 2007, La Vie en Rose is the story of the great Edith Piaf, a little woman with a huge voice, a huge soul, and huge eyes, who transcended her beginnings and became an international star.Marion Cotillard is Piaf, and what a magnificent job she does - ethereally beautiful in sections, she creates an unforgettable portrait of a woman who loved and sang and lived with great passion but in the end was her own worst enemy due to drugs and alcohol. Like so many people, she became addicted to painkillers after an accident, and both her parents are depicted as alcoholics. I can only describe the end of the film as shattering and heartbreaking due to Cotillard's fantastic acting.That's the performance - now to the movie. A life like Piaf's isn't easy to get into a couple of hours, even a couple of hours plus like this one, so events in her life are skipped or go by very quickly. Director Olivier Dahan moves from the end of Piaf's life to the beginning and the middle throughout, and in my opinion, he does it expertly. What's not so expert is the hurried way some of the incidents are presented, for instance, the murder of Leplee (Gérard Depardieu) - you would have to know Piaf's life to follow what happened in those scenes.Also, the reappearance of certain characters after many years had passed - one look at the message board tells you that many viewers didn't know who they were. I'm a complete snob and I admit it, so why people thought the older blond woman who approaches Piaf and raves about her work was Marilyn Monroe is beyond me. Okay, it wasn't the best Marlene Dietrich I've ever seen, but she had her hair like Dietrich's, she was obviously a mature woman, everyone is so reverential -- if you think people were reverential toward Marilyn Monroe like that in those days, think again.All in all, I found the film excellent, despite incidents and relationships (Yves Montand, and the fact that her best friend Momone was actually a half-sister) being omitted. I need to also add that Pauline Burlet, who was the 10-year-old Edith, was absolutely beautiful in the role.Highly recommended for the story and for Piaf's incredible voice, heard in most of the songs. Cotillard performs "Frou Frou" and Jil Aigrot does two numbers, the truncated "Padam" and "L'Accordéoniste."

Existence. As puzzle. Dark pieces. Gray childhood. Music as Jacob ladder. Pendulum from dizzy heights to abysses. A honest story about success and its harsh price. Lights, public and horrible night. Death as circle and love as pray. Result - a movie, special movie behind cages or traps. Sketch of a brilliant woman and her wars. Nothing forced. Nothing artificial, pink or fake. And the merit is, in great measure, work of Marion Cotillard. Which is in perfect place, with precise art of balance of feelings, gestures and expression. A impressive Piaf. Bricks for role - the truth in pure form. The film may be extraordinary, spectacular, sad, original or masterpiece. But important is only the crumb after its end. Not presentation of a life, not homage of a great artist. Only clay of a house. And the traces of a silhouette. Natural, young Cotillard is Piaf.