This movie's flaws are an unforgivable sin by its makers.

Rating: 7/10 (23 December 2007)

From time to time, comes a movie that has so much soul and so much love for its theme, that all its flaws feel like a sin against a story that could be perfect. With the vast life of very Edith in their hands, the screenwriters just had to pick relevant moments from her biography and place them, coherently, into the movie. Unfortunately, not all choices were good, and the first 30 minutes, particularly, suffer from a terribly fractured and unfocused narrative. Although it may seem like a dare, it is just a coward choice from Sobelman and Dahan, an easy way to escape from the linear biopic format. The opening sequence was a bad choice, too: we see Piaf singing in a crowded place, but, later, it's clear that this scene steals strength from many others, like the first street presentation and the music hall one.
Another problem is with the editing: it utilizes all possible techniques, from slow fade-ins and fades to black, to brisk cuts and sudden mood change, making transitions always irregular. Again, the beginning of the movie is largely compromised because of that issue. As a minor flaw, comes the use of the soundtrack. Obviously, it is wonderful, but sometimes the choice of the songs is mistaken, especially when they are redundant with what we are seeing on screen. Luckily, this is a sole err from Dahan's skillful hands. He gives a lot of passion in his work, exploring Piaf even more than the screenplay does. A beautiful touch was to show Edith's reflex many times throughout the projection, to show her constant self-judgment. One of the most elegant choices is the scene of the soundless song: making we focus on the artist's performance, he shows notion of how to conduct his story.
There lies the triumph of the screenplay (after the bad start). Everything hovers around Piaf and her vices, her manias, her career, her health, and other countless aspects of her life. Scriptwriters dive deep into the artist's world, and explore so many different issues that viewers get awestruck about her more and more. In the correct moment, Marlene Dietrich makes a wonderful compliment, and we all but agree : without being tendentious, the screenwriters manage to provide such a touching Piaf, that it is impossible not to build up an infinite admiration towards her. Another highlight in the screenplay is Marcel, her all time love, a married man that she "can never have completely". We laugh, cheer, and, ultimately, cry with Cotillard because of him.
The French actress, actually, is why this film is such a tour-de-force. It is impossible to conceive such a perfect, hearty and inspired work from an actor, and Marion Cotillard can surpass even the highest expectations. After the flawed start (with two good young actresses), we get to see many ages of Edith. In her twenties, her face expresses only the pain of a difficult street-singing life, but some occasional joy enlightens her soul  specially after some alcohol. Being an artist, a famous singer is her goal, so distant yet so certain in her heart. As the years go by, and her talent starts to give her fame, it is clear she is much closer to happiness, even though some twists in fate continue to drag her down, in heartbreaking spirals down to depression. After fame kicks in and stays for good, Piaf is all music. It is clear how much she loves to perform  a pair of scenes, in which she listens to career-defining compositions, become indescribable thanks to Cotillard's sensitivity -, and everything is put behind.
Only Marcel matters as much. Unfortunately, her relationship with him is complicated: the scene that I will not describe is painfully sad to watch. Thanks to marvelous make-up, we can see Mrs. Piaf with almost 50 years, in a horrifyingly quick transition from mid-age woman to precocious senility. Marion Cotillard shows all parts of Edith's life with body and soul commitment, far from mere gestures and expressions (yet those are also there). It is almost ridiculous to explain, impossible to describe with words, the flawlessness of Cotillard's work: the deliverance to her character is so grand and so awe-inspiring that hers is the top must-see acting in all cinematic history  although I do not risk to say that it's the best, I've never seen anything like it. Even though this is a very small fraction of what she is capable of, the interpretations, especially the closing one, are so beautiful that they make me shiver only on thinking about it. Two paragraphs are still not enough to describe all the feelings that she washes over in her performance, so one has to see it to believe it.
Amidst all songs, some clearly stick out in recent memory, for their beauty, for Cotillard's sublime work and for the quality of the sound. While Piaf's songs normally have that oldies feel to them, here, they are alive, in a total transportation back to the time when she really was in the stage performing. Thanks to that, Edith's classics are alive, and as wonderful as before. Other departments also achieved good marks, like the costume designers, very important, because Edith's taste was very selective. An effective art direction also portrays the numerous ages of the artist with precision, varying from poor Post-War houses to luxurious 50's mansions. There is nothing spectacular about the cinematography, which does the trick, with adequate illumination and good solutions to the constantly moving camera.
The flaws in this movie are almost a sin, as I already said, since "La Môme Piaf" will certainly never have such a faithful and perfect depiction on film. Nevertheless, this is a reminder of how grand the cinematographic achievements can get: Marion Cotillard is certainly going to be appraised for "La Vie en Rose" for all eternity, and remain as famous an artist as her character.