La Vie en Rose (2007) La môme (original title)

Director:

Olivier Dahan

Writers:

Isabelle Sobelman (written by) and
Olivier Dahan (written by)

Release Date:

14 February 2007 (Belgium)

Genre:

Biography | Drama | Music

Tagline:

The extraordinary life of Edith Piaf

Plot:

The life story of singer Édith Piaf.

Plot Keywords:

Singer | Singing | Concert | Song | Childhood

Awards:

Won 2 Oscars. Another 36 wins & 35 nominations

Cast

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
Caroline Raynaud	...	Ginou
Marie-Armelle Deguy	...	Marguerite Monnot
Valérie Moreau	...	Jeanne
Jean-Paul Muel	...	Bruno Coquatrix
André Penvern	...	Jacques Canetti
Mario Hacquard	...	Charles Dumont
Aubert Fenoy	...	Michel Emer
Félix Belleau	...	Robert Juel
Ashley Wanninger	...	Leplée's assistant
Nathalie Dorval	...	Mireille
Chantal Bronner	...	Josette
Cylia Malki	...	Philipo
Nathalie Dahan	...	Yvonne
Laurent Olmedo	...	Jacques Pills
Harry Hadden-Paton	...	Doug Davis
Laurent Schilling	...	Claude
Dominique Bettenfeld	...	Albert
Édith Le Merdy	...	Simone Margantin
Josette Ménard	...	Mamy
Emy Lévy	...	Brothel girl 1
Laura Stainkrycer	...	Brothel girl 2 (as Laura Stainkrycher)
Lucie Brezovská	...	Brothel girl 3
Vera Havelková	...	Brothel girl 4
Jan Kuzelka	...	Brothel customer
Dominique Paturel	...	Lucien Roupp
Nicholas Pritchard	...	Jameson
William Armstrong	...	Clifford Fisher
Martin Sochor	...	O'Dett audience member
Frederika Smetana	...	O'Dett audience member (as Frédérique Smetana)
Lenka Kourilova	...	O'Dett audience member
Pierre Derenne	...	P'tit Louis
Jan Pavel Filipensky	...	Fire eater (as Jan Filipensky)
Lara Menini	...	Circus dancer (as Laura Menini)
Oldrich Hurych	...	Clown
Mathias Honoré	...	M. Loyal
Diana Stewart	...	American woman
Jean-Jacques Desplanque	...	Tony Zale
Alain Figlarz	...	Boxing trainer
Robert Paturel	...	Boxing ring corner-man
Alban Casterman	...	Charles Aznavour
Olivier Cruveiller	...	Inspecteur Guillaume
Sébastien Tavel	...	Interviewer
Agathe Bodin	...	Suzanne
Nicole Dubois	...	Seamstress
Martin Janis	...	Jean Mermoz
Eric Franquelin	...	Etienne
Marc Chapiteau	...	Mitty Goldin
Maureen Demidof	...	Marcelle
Philippe Bricard	...	Man in Lannes
Olivier Raoux	...	Waiter
Nathalie Cox	...	Pin-up
Pierre Peyrichout	...	Journalist
Yelena Gabrielova	...	Drunk woman (as Helena Gabrielova)
Jaroslav Vízner	...	New year's eve man
Sophie Knittl	...	Bar customer
Hélène Genet	...	Bar customer
Farida Amrouche	...	Aïcha
Liliane Cebrian	...	Palm reader
Nicolas Simon	...	Journalist by the church
Pascal Mottier	...	Boy
Thierry Gibault	...	Ostende doctor (as Thierry Guibault)
Garrick Hagon	...	American doctor
Ginou Richer	...	Neighbor
Vladimír Javorský	...	Street spectator
Denis Ménochet	...	Journalist in Orly
David Jahn	...	A soldier
Sylvie Guichenuy	...	A woman in the street
Fabien Duval	...	Policeman
Maya Barsony	...	Girl at the bar counter
Paulina Nemcova	...	American journalist
Rodolphe Saulnier	...	Barman
Fedele Papalia	...	Diner waiter
Zdena Herfortová	...	Woman Etoile Cafe
Pier Luigi Colombetti	...	Brasserie owner
Olivier Carbone	...	Transvestite
Laurence Gormezano	...	Brasserie waitress
Christophe Kourotchkine	...	Civilian policeman
Christophe Odent	...	Dr. Bernay
Robert Nebrenský	...	Docteur in Dreux
Jaromír Janecek	...	Show manager in Dreux
Christopher Gunning	...	Orchestra conductor
Richard Hein	...	Orchestra conductor
Elliot Dahan	...	Child
Isaac Dahan	...	Child
Jil Aigrot	...	Edith Piaf (singing voice)
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Gérard Robert Gratadour	...	Voyou de Belleville
Jean-Luc Julien	...	Clifford Fisher (voice)
Marek Vasut	...	Le docteur à belleville
Eric Dahan	...	Accordion player (uncredited)
David Fellowes	...	Recording engineer (uncredited)
Anika Julien	...	Various Roles (voice) (uncredited)
Lana Likic	...	Mr. Jameson's Assistant (uncredited)
Ryan McBay	...	Lifeguard (uncredited)
Alexandre Mermaz	...	Street spectator (uncredited)
Chris Toma	...	American Waiter (uncredited)

Directed by
Olivier Dahan

Writing credits
Isabelle Sobelman		(written by) and
Olivier Dahan		(written by)

Produced by
Timothy Burrill	....	co-producer
Axel Decis	....	assistant producer
Alain Goldman	....	producer
Marc Jenny	....	co-producer
Oldrich Mach	....	co-producer
Catherine Morisse	....	associate producer
Marc Vadé	....	line producer

Original Music by
Christopher Gunning

Cinematography by
Tetsuo Nagata

Film Editing by
Richard Marizy

Casting by
Olivier Carbone

Production Design by
Olivier Raoux

Art Direction by
Beata Brendtnerovà
Mick Lanaro
Laure Lepelley-Monbillard		(as Laure Lepelley)
Stanislas Reydellet

Set Decoration by
Stéphane Cressend
Petra Kobedova
Cecile Vatelot
Christine Gilbert		(uncredited)

Costume Design by
Marit Allen

Makeup Department
Jan Archibald	....	key hair stylist
Amélie Bouilly	....	makeup artist
Linda Eisenhamerova	....	hair stylist (as Linda Dvorakova)
Richard Glass	....	contact lens optician
Barbara Kichi	....	hair stylist
Barbara Kichiova	....	hair stylist
Didier Lavergne	....	key makeup artist
Chris Lyons	....	special effects teeth
Ruzena Novotna	....	hair stylist
Gabriela Polakova	....	makeup artist
Jemma Scott-Knox-Gore	....	contact lens coordinator
Loulia Sheppard	....	hair stylist
Matthew Smith	....	prosthetic makeup artist
Hovette Stephanie	....	wig maker
Ivo Strangmüller	....	hair stylist
David White	....	prosthetic makeup designer

Production Management
Abraham Goldblat	....	post-production manager
Michal Prikryl	....	production manager
Anaïs Subra	....	assistant unit manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Seb Caudron	....	second unit director
Martin Guena	....	assistant director
Vojta Hlavicka	....	second assistant director
Mathias Honoré	....	first assistant director
Oldrich Mach	....	first assistant director

Art Department
Mario N. Bonassin	....	art assistant
Wilfrid Charua	....	painter
Emmanuel Delis	....	property master
Karim Djerbi	....	art department coordinator
Antoine Dore	....	props
Bradd Fillmann	....	art assistant
Rouches Frank	....	prop buyer
Antoine Galinié	....	props
Natasha Giraldo	....	art coordinator
Sonia Gloaguen	....	set decoration assistant
Benoit Godde	....	assistant art director
Benoit Godde	....	concept illustrator
Christophe Graziani	....	assistant property master
Virginie Hernvann	....	assistant art director
Alexis Imbert	....	props
Radan Kapinos	....	stand-by props
Chloé Leguay	....	second assistant art director
Pavel Lipert	....	construction stand-by
Thierry Pitel	....	carpenter
Gabriela Rezacova	....	props
Jirí Trier	....	props buyer
Aloiz Vyslan	....	set dresser

Sound Department
Charles Autrand	....	dialogue editor
Guadalupe Cassius	....	assistant sound editor
Boris Chapelle	....	assistant dialogue editor
Mathieu Descamps	....	trainee sound
Marc Doisne	....	sound re-recording mixer
Robert Dufek	....	location sound: second unit
Jean-Baptiste Faure	....	boom operator
Jean-Paul Hurier	....	sound mixer
Nikolas Javelle	....	sound editor
Edouard Murcier	....	adr supervisor
Gael Nicolas	....	sound editor
Sandy Notarianni	....	assistant sound editor
Florian Penot	....	assistant foley artist
Philippe Penot	....	foley artist
Pierre Picq	....	boom operator
Gréggory Poncelet	....	sound recordist (as Grégory Poncelet)
Caroline Reynaud	....	foley editor
Pascal Villard	....	supervising sound editor
Christophe Vingtrinier	....	post-synchronization
Laurent Zeilig	....	sound

Special Effects by
Jan Holub	....	special effects crew
Kamil Jaffar	....	special effects supervisor
Miroslav Miclik	....	special effects technician
Pavel Policar	....	special effects technician

Visual Effects by
Lucy Ainsworth-Taylor	....	visual effects executive producer: MPC
Serge Anthony	....	color grader
Renata Azambuja	....	visual effects producer
Richard Bain	....	digital compositor: BainVFX
Seif Boutella	....	compositor
Jim Bowers	....	digital matte painter
Stephanie Broussaud	....	Lustre assistant
Izet Buco	....	compositor
Stuart Bullen	....	digital compositor
Earle Stuart Callender	....	visual effects producer: Rainmaker UK
Seb Caudron	....	visual effects supervisor
Jimmy Cavé	....	computer graphic artist
Hal Couzens	....	visual effects supervisor
Mark Curtis	....	compositor: MPC
David Danesi	....	visual effects producer
Nicolas Daniel	....	Lustre assistant
Julien Dias	....	senior compositor
Nick Drew	....	visual effects production manager: CIS London
Sebastien Dupuis	....	compositor
François Dupuy	....	digital intermediate technical director
Michael Elson	....	executive producer: MPC
Adam Gascoyne	....	visual effects supervisor: Rainmaker UK
Uel Hormann	....	visual effects supervisor
Simon Hughes	....	digital compositor: Rainmaker UK
Abdel Ali Kassou	....	technical manager
Aurelie Lajoux	....	senior compositor
Laurent Larapidie	....	lead cgi artist
Tim Mendler	....	movematcher
Amandine Moulinet	....	vfx assistant coordinator
Collette Nunes	....	visual effects editor
Roma O'Connor	....	executive producer: visual effects
Carine Poussou	....	visual effects coordinator
Aled Robinson	....	visual effects editor: MPC
John Van Hoey Smith	....	digital compositor
Hugh Welchman	....	visual effects supervisor

Camera and Electrical Department
Christian Abomnes	....	focus puller
Jean-Christophe Allain	....	focus puller: b camera
Bruno Calvo	....	still photographer
Mathieu Caudroy	....	Steadicam operator
Patrick Contesse	....	head gaffer
Roberto De Angelis	....	Steadicam operator
Roberto De Angelis	....	camera operator: "a" camera
Xavier Dolléans	....	balloon light technician
Ingo Gardner	....	balloon light technician
Manuel Gaspar	....	electrician
Gaston Grandin	....	key grip
Roman Hodek	....	key grip
Michal Houzvicka	....	grip
Alex Ivanco	....	electrician
Alaux Jean-Marc	....	lighting balloon technician
Vladimir Muller	....	Steadicam operator
Olivier Nedelcu	....	electrician
Morvan Omnes	....	grip
Zdenek Pozar	....	electrician
Sylvain Rodriguez	....	additional video assist
Martin Schmarc	....	video assist operator
Jaromir Simek	....	gaffer: Czech Republic
Petr Svoboda	....	electrician
Carsten Thoms	....	balloon light technician

Casting Department
Marie-Laure De Saint Venant	....	casting assistant
Brigitte Fourcade	....	extras casting
Jirí Hrstka	....	extras casting
Alex Johnson	....	casting: UK
Zusana Kobedova	....	casting assistant

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Céline Collobert	....	dresser: Paris/Los Angeles
David Crossman	....	costume supervisor
Natalie Humphries	....	assistant costume designer
Alice Kheilova	....	costumer

Editorial Department
Elisa Aboulker	....	assistant editor
Serge Anthony	....	color timer
Yves Beloniak	....	additional editor
Jerome Brechet	....	editor: pan & scan
Stephanie Broussaud	....	digital intermediate editor
Sophie Delecourt	....	additional editor
Élodie Ichter	....	digital intermediate editor
Natacha Louis	....	digital color grader
Tuong Vi Nguyen-Long	....	assistant editor
Fabien Pascal	....	colorist
Virginie Seguin	....	first assistant editor
Reginald Gallienne	....	dailies color grader (uncredited)

Music Department
Guy Barker	....	musician: trumpet solo
Becky Bentham	....	music supervisor
Becky Bentham	....	score coordinator
Katia Boutin	....	music editor
Benjamin Caillaud	....	protools engineer
Marcia Crayford	....	musician: first violin
Edouard Dubois	....	musical director
Isobel Griffiths	....	orchestra contractor
Dave Hartley	....	musician: piano
Igor Outkine	....	musician
Édith Piaf	....	singing voice
Stéphane Reichart	....	music recordist
Guillaume Roussel	....	assistant orchestrator
Chris Clad	....	violin (uncredited)

Other crew
Michaël Beaufrère	....	assistant location manager
Olivier Billard	....	assistant location manager
Élizabeth Boorn	....	production assistant
Diane Brasseur	....	assistant script supervisor
Tomas Cisar	....	interpreter
Thierry Cretagne	....	location manager
Jon Duncan	....	production accountant: UK
Jacqueline Edwards	....	production coordinator
Dara Etzel	....	production assistant: los angeles
Zdenek Fiala	....	location manager
Filip Firlej	....	production coordinator
Zdenek Flídr	....	location manager
Abraham Goldblat	....	post-production manager
Romana Hajkova	....	horse master
Aurore Jactat	....	legal advisor
Jirí Kasan	....	production assistant
Tommy Kerne	....	assistant location manager
Vladimir Kesl	....	computer technician
David Koranda	....	location manager
Virginie Le Pionnier	....	script supervisor
Lenka Likarova	....	assistant location manager
Denisa Murinova	....	production accountant
George Nicholis	....	film publicist
Gregoire Ohnet	....	assistant location manager
Marc Paris	....	production accountant
Nicolas Ploux	....	assistant location manager
Harmel Sbraire	....	coach: actors
Mirka Valova	....	production coordinator
Daniel Villagomez	....	credits administrator (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Légende Films
• TF1 International (co-production with)
• TF1 Films Production (co-production with)
• Okko Productions (co-production with)
• Songbird Pictures (co-production with)
• Canal+ (with the participation of)
• TPS Star (with the participation of)
• Scotts Atlantic (with the participation of)
• Sofica Valor 7 (in association with)

Distributors

• Cinéart (2007) (Bulgaria) (theatrical)
• Alfa Films (2007) (Argentina) (theatrical)
• Best Film CO (2007) (Poland) (theatrical)
• Cathay-Keris Films (2007) (Singapore) (theatrical)
• Constantin Film (2007) (Germany) (theatrical)
• Festive Films (2007) (Singapore) (theatrical)
• Hoyts Distribution (2007) (Australia) (theatrical)
• Hoyts Distribution (2007) (New Zealand) (theatrical)
• Icon Film Distribution (2007) (UK) (theatrical)
• Monopole-Pathé (2007) (Switzerland) (theatrical)
• Paradise Group (2007) (Russia) (theatrical)
• Picturehouse Entertainment (2007) (USA) (theatrical) (subtitled)
• RCV Film Distribution (2007) (Netherlands) (theatrical)
• Sandrew Metronome Distribution Sverige AB (2007) (Sweden) (theatrical)
• Sandrew Metronome Distribution (2007) (Denmark) (theatrical)
• Sandrew Metronome Distribution (2007) (Finland) (theatrical)
• TFM Distribution (2007) (France) (theatrical)
• TVA Films (2007) (Canada) (theatrical)
• Europa Filmes (2008) (Brazil) (DVD)
• Home Box Office Home Video (HBO) (2007) (USA) (DVD)
• RCV Home Entertainment (2007) (Netherlands) (DVD)
• Sandrews (2007) (Sweden) (DVD)
• TVA Films (2007) (Canada) (DVD)
• Toho Company (2008) (Japan) (DVD)

Special Effects

• Bain VFX
• Breakthru Films
• Moving Picture Company (MPC)
• Rainmaker (visual effects) (as Rainmaker Animation & Visual Effects UK)

Other Companies

• Air Lyndhurst Studios  score recorded and mixed at (as Air Studios, Lyndhurst Hall)
• Airstar  grip and lighting equipment
• Arri Rental  grip and lighting equipment
• CE VideoAssist Rental  VideoAssist equipment provided by
• Duran Duboi  digital intermediate
• EMI Records  soundtrack
• EXTRAfilms S.r.o.  extras casting
• Fuji Photo Film  motion picture film supplied by
• Hothouse Music  music coordination
• Isobel Griffiths Limited  music contractor
• Lansdowne Studios  score recorded and mixed at
• Macwell  computer services provided by
• Malde & Co.  financial consultants
• Panavision Alga  camera equipment
• Panavision  camera equipment serviced by
• Prague Studios  sound stages

Also Known As:

"La môme" - France (original title)

MPAA:

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

Runtime:

140 min

Country:

France | UK | Czech Republic

Language:

French | English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital | DTS

Certification:

Switzerland:12 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:12 (canton of Vaud) | Germany:12 | Finland:K-11 | USA:PG-13 | UK:12A | Ireland:15A | Argentina:13 | France:U | Portugal:M/12 (Qualidade) | Singapore:NC-16 | USA:PG-13 (extended edition) | Hong Kong:IIA | South Korea:12 | Philippines:PG-13 | Brazil:12 | Sweden:7 | Taiwan:PG-12 | New Zealand:M | Australia:M

Filming Locations:

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

Company:

Légende Films

Trivia:

To help portray Edith Piaf, Marion Cotillard shaved back her hairline and shaved off her eyebrows, which were later penciled in, to better resemble the singer.

Goofs:

Errors made by characters (possibly deliberate errors by the filmmakers): In a hospital scene, set in 1960, Piaf says "I'm 44 years old", which means she was born in 1916. That means she couldn't be a little girl in the first scene, set in 1916.

Quotes:

Edith Piaf:I can't? Then what's the point of being Edith Piaf?

Movie Connections:

Featured in "The Oprah Winfrey Show: And the Nominees Are..." (2008)

Soundtrack:

L'Hymne à l'amour

A French afternoon in New York

Before getting to the review of this astonishing film, let me tell you about how I came to see it. On my way back to the UK from Indiana last week I had a seven hour layover in Newark. I don't much enjoy hanging around airports for hours, so I took the 30 minute train ride into Manhattan. Wandering up the road from Maddison Square Gardens I heard a smart-suited African speaking French into his 'cellulaire'. Wondering if he was from Côte d'Ivoire where we used to live, I followed him through a shop doorway. As my eyes adjusted to the rather greasy gloom, I noted that I had entered a little Caribbean bakery/restaurant full of black faces. I suppressed the desire to make a quick exit and joined him at the back of the queue at the counter. He turned out to be Senegalese rather than Ivorian, but was very pleased to have another chance to talk French...

After a very tasty $7 lunch of 'stew chicken with rice & beans' and a portion of fried plantains, I headed on up 8th Avenue. A few blocks further on I came to a cinema and decided that it would be great to see a 'movie' on a real big screen rather than the way I see most films these days through the distinctly low-def screen built into the back of the airline seat in front of me.

I was just in time to buy tickets for La Vie en Rose which was starting right away. Entering the big 'movie theater' I was shocked that at four on a Wednesday afternoon the place was packed solid. As my eyes adjusted and hunted for an empty seat I observed that I was once again the stranger - almost everyone there appeared to be over sixty. Perhaps it was the cheap day for seniors or the fact that La Vie en Rose had only opened a few days earlier but the film definitely merits a large audience.

Perhaps you are put off by foreign language films with subtitles, but to have dubbed this from French would have been a crime. It is a biopic of the life of Edith Piaf whose theme song was La Vie en Rose - literally 'Life in Pink' or more idiomatically 'The Rose-tinted Life'. Edith Piaf's gravelly voice and melodramatic life is superbly portrayed by Marion Cotillard as the film works its way through her life to the accompaniment of her distinctive songs. Of course, as in all French films which make it to the anglophone world, there is a role for THE French Actor as we often refer to Gerard Depardieu; he is the impresario who literally discovers 'the Little Sparrow' singing in the back-streets of Montmartre.

It was quite a puzzle to place each scene in chronological order as the film jumps around through more flashbacks and flash forwards than an entire season of Lost. Apart from that though, La Vie en Rose is an absolute triumph, rich with the colours of Piaf's tragic life. The entire audience stuffed damp handkerchiefs into their pockets, rose to their feet and applauded this guaranteed Oscar winner. Piaf finished her career singing a song which she felt summed up her life - "Non je ne regrette rien!" Take your friends to see this classic film and you'll have no regrets either.