What We're Watching: Jan

Coco Before Chanel
Starring Audrey Tautou, Benoit Poelvoorde, and Alessandro Nivola. Directed by Anne Fontaine.

This is the story of the legendary fashion designer Coco Chanel before her rise to fame and fortune. Her childhood was a struggle. Coco and her sister were put into an orphanage by their father after the death of their mother. She learned to sew at an early age and that skill, along with a discerning eye, led to her lifelong work. Her relationships with men tumultuous and passionate. These wealthy men also helped Chanel in her fashion ventures - from hatmaker to creator of the collarless Chanel suit, the "little black dress", and Chanel No. 5.

Audrey Tautou (from The Da Vinci Code) gives an expressive performance. We can feel her: she is wounded from her early abandonment and poverty, is rebellious and sure of herself in her sense of style and finally vulnerable in allowing herself to love. The other performances in the film are riveting as well. The scenery and costumes of France in the early 1900s are beautiful. The movie is in French with English subtitles.

The movie familiarizes the viewer with the harsh background of a sophisticated style icon in history and in doing so takes us to a world we could never know - like movies often do.
Posted by Jan at 2:11 PM 0 comments
Labels: Adult, Staff-Pick