Review of Coco Before Chanel (2009) by Sarah E — 22 Jan 2011

With stunning direction, excellent performances, and cinematography that will make you believe in a higher power, Coco Avant Chanel is a near pitch-perfect telling of the-woman-that-would-be-Coco (played by Audrey Tautou). I say near because the ending of the movie falls apart. It's almost as if the screenwriters didn't want to take the time to resolve anything. "Well, we got her this far," they said to themselves, "Now she has to start making clothing!" The movie I wanted to see existed within those moments. Obviously, a biopic should be faithful to the life of its subject. Maybe there was no clear resolution for Coco except to make clothing. This needs to be communicated to the audience though. Anne Fontaine brought the gun into the scene, but then, not only did she not fire it, she removed it from the scene again and started making a completely different movie.

The rest of the movie is fantastic to behold though. Audrey Tautou embodies Coco; she purses her lips in fierce condemnation of a world that seeks to oppress her, and then, in an act of pure self-preservation, seeks to make her fortune in a world where she has absolutely no rights. The movie then comes to follow her relationships with two men, both of whom seek to claim her for their own, but neither of whom may ever own her, no matter how much Coco would love to submit to them. The actors here are great at what they do, the screenwriters are superb (up until the end), and the direction is a marvel. In spite of the fail-ending, Coco Avant Chanel is breathtaking and wonderful.