La vie en rose (2007)
"La môme" (original title)

The life story of singer Édith Piaf.

Director:

Olivier Dahan

Writers:

Isabelle Sobelman, Olivier Dahan

Stars:

Marion Cotillard, Sylvie Testud, Pascal Greggory

Won 2 Oscars. Another 36 wins & 35 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Marion Cotillard	...	Edith Piaf
Sylvie Testud	...	Mômone
Pascal Greggory	...	Louis Barrier
Emmanuelle Seigner	...	Titine
Jean-Paul Rouve	...	Louis Gassion
Gérard Depardieu	...	Louis Leplée
Clotilde Courau	...	Anetta
Jean-Pierre Martins	...	Marcel Cerdan
Catherine Allégret	...	Louise
Marc Barbé	...	Raymond Asso
Caroline Sihol	...	Marlene Dietrich (as Caroline Silhol)
Manon Chevallier	...	Edith - 5 years old
Pauline Burlet	...	Edith - 10 years old
Elisabeth Commelin	...	Danielle Bonel
Marc Gannot	...	Marc Bonel

Storyline

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. During childhood she lives with each of them. At 20, she's a street singer discovered by a club owner who's soon murdered, coached by a musician who brings her to concert halls, and then quickly famous. Constant companions are alcohol and heartache. The tragedies of her love affair with Marcel Cerdan and the death of her only child belie the words of one of her signature songs, "Non, je ne regrette rien." The back and forth nature of the narrative suggests the patterns of memory and association.

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Plot Keywords:

singer | singing | concert | song | childhood | 

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Taglines:

The passionate life of Edith Piaf

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Genres:

Biography | Drama | Music

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for substance abuse, sexual content, brief nudity, language and thematic elements

Details

Official Sites:

Official site [fr] Official site [uk]

Country:

France UK Czech Republic

Language:

French English

Release Date:

14 February 2007 (France)

Also Known As:

La vie en rose

Filming Locations:

Brasserie Julien, 16 rue du Faubourg Saint-Denis, Paris 10, Paris, France

Box Office

Opening Weekend:

£205,659 (UK) (22 June 2007)

Gross:

$10,299,782 (USA) (4 April 2008)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Légende Films, TF1 International, TF1 Films Production

Technical Specs

Runtime:

140 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital DTS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Marion Cotillard is one of only six actors to have won an Academy Award for a part spoken mainly in a foreign language. Sophia Loren, Robert De Niro, Benicio Del Toro, Roberto Benigni and Christoph Waltz are the other five.

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Goofs

During Edith's first date with Marcel, a sommelier comes from Marcel's right. Marcel tastes the wine, looks to his left, and tells the waiter that the wine is OK.

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Quotes

American journalist: If you were to give advice to a woman, what would it be?
Edith Piaf: Love.
American journalist: To a young girl?
Edith Piaf: Love.
American journalist: To a child?
Edith Piaf: Love.

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Connections

Featured in Maltin on Movies: Favorite Oscar®-Winning Biopics (2012)

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Soundtracks

"L'Accordéoniste"
Performed by Jil Aigrot

User Reviews

A Magnificent Biopic, but Overwhelmingly Sad

Piaf's tumultuous life receives a superb framework in this excellent biopic. I've read some criticism of Dahan's editing style which switches often to various parts of her all-too-brief life, but with a woman of such roiling emotions and dramatic upheavals, how could it not be so? The two things I found missing here were her WWII Resistance activities and her final marriage to a man twenty years her junior. But then again the film might have approached the three- hour mark and at nearly two and a half, you walk away feeling as though you witnessed a train wreck in slow-mo. Please do not let this prevent you from seeing an astonishingly fine recreation of a life that is so fully lived you cannot believe it. Piaf's magnificent, emotional singing is fully complemented by Cotillards balls to the wall performance. Heart and soul are in total sync here and Cotillard manages to age astonishingly well. This is a terrible tale of a child grotesquely abandoned emotionally by her parents. Piaf's will to live is inspiring even in the face of self-destruction that makes Judy Garland's own battles with alcohol and drugs seem minor in comparison. The parallels to both women are hard to ignore. The rest of the cast is first-rate, and the film beautifully evokes the eras covered in her life. Best of all there is the great Piaf recorded legacy which is well-handled here. There's no sense that Cotillard is not singing and that's a testament to the skill that suffuses this fine film. Excellent.