OFCS

The Online Film Critics Society have nominated Marion for Best Actress:

Best Actress
Julie Christie, Away from Her
Marion Cotillard, La Vie en Rose
Angelina Jolie, A Mighty Heart
Laura Linney, The Savages
Ellen Page, Juno

La Vie en Rose also goes up against The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, The Host, The Orphanage, and The Lives of Others for Best Foreign Language Film.

Rewind

This is one of the first video interviews I posted of Ms. Cotillard’s, but it’s such a gem, I had to post it again. So for those of you who haven’t seen it, enjoy. For those of you who have, you’re welcome!

Happy New Year!!!

TOUR DE FORCE

Scott Feinberg, a Boston-based critic and editor of andthewinneris.blog.com, interviewed Marion about a month ago about her film career so far and her work on La Vie en Rose. Read the full interview here. He also spoke to her on the 14th, after her Globe nomination. Here’s a snippet of the first interview:

TOUR DE FORCE!

THE PERFORMANCE OF MARION COTILLARD AS FRENCH ICON EDITH PIAF IN LA VIE EN ROSE IS NOT JUST ONE OF THE BEST OF 2007, BUT EVER. NOW, MEET THE WOMAN BEHIND THE MAGIC…

I read that you made a deliberate decision, when you were preparing to play Piaf, not to speak with people who knew her. Why was that?
Oh, no, no, no—I didn’t make that decision. I mean, I didn’t feel right away that I needed to meet people, but actually I met some people. I met two people who really helped me understand a lot of things about her. I met Georges Moustaki, who wrote ‘Milord,’ and who was one of her lovers. And I met Ginou, who was her best friend for fifteen years, and she really opened her heart and a part of her life for me in a very generous way, and she really helped me and supported me in all the process.

WENN: "Cotillard has already won the Best Actress Oscar"

The World Entertainment News Network has named La Vie en Rose the sixth best film of the year, and has a nice bit about Marion’s performance:

6. La Vie En Rose Marion Cotillard has already won the Best Actress Oscar for her portrayal of tragic torch singer Edith Piaf in this heartbreaking film. The French actress truly ‘becomes’ Piaf and even she admits she “channeled” the spirit of the legendary performer, who died too young, for the part. A true cinema masterpiece.

French dressing

The Envelope has included a little tidbit about Marion in their 2007 Fashion Rewind to predict what this year’s Golden Globe nominees will wear to the ceremony:

Marion Cotillard is nominated for portraying famed French chanteuse Edith Piaf in “La Vie en Rose.” Wanna bet she wears yet another gown from the house of Coco Chanel, another legendary Frenchwoman? The only catch? If Chanel has promised Keira Knightley that they won’t dress anyone else. Look out, couture catfight on the carpet!

VH1’s Best Week Ever, and much more

VH1’s Best Week Ever has named La Vie en Rose as the best film of 2007, and have called Marion’s performance “one of the best on screen portrayals by any actress, ever.”

1. La Vie En Rose. This heart-stopping biopic of French songbird Edith Piaf, played by French actress Marion Cotillard, is one of the best on screen portrayals by any actress, ever. The story of Piaf begins with her upbringing in a whorehouse and a circus, on through her worldwide success as one of the most famous, albeit cursed, singers ever. The perfect film to watch when you’re feeling down on life: It will either make you realize that things could be much, much worse, or make you kill yourself. Win, win!

Larry Ratliff of the San Antonio Express-News has also included La Vie en Rose on his top 10 list, having this to say about the film and Marion:

“La Vie En Rose”: Don’t worry, we’ll get to films made in the U.S. in a second. This French import starring Marion Cotillard is a mesmerizing biographical portrait of late French songbird Edith Piaf. Writer-director Olivier Dahan dazzles with one of the best biopics of all time.

Pat Clark of the Modesto Bee also has La Vie en Rose in the #6 spot on his top 10 list:

6. La Vie En Rose (August) — Marion Cotillard gives a virtuoso performance as French icon Edith Piaf. As brilliant a singer as she was a troubled person, her loves and losses are traced. By the time she steps up to the microphone to deliver her signature song, you’ll have chills.

The Orlando Sentinel has named Marion’s performance in La Vie en Rose as one of the best of the year, alongside other Best Actress contenders Amy Adams (Enchanted) and Julie Christie (Away from Her):

Best movie performances: Amy Adams, Enchanted; Brenda Blethyn, Introducing the Dwights; John Cusack, 1408; Julie Christie, Away From Her; Marion Cotillard, La Vie en Rose; Tommy Lee Jones, In the Valley of Elah and No Country for Old Men; Catherine Keener, Into the Wild; Viggo Mortensen, Eastern Promises; Michelle Pfeiffer, Hairspray and Stardust; Keri Russell, Waitress; Amy Ryan, Gone Baby Gone; George Clooney and Tilda Swinton, Michael Clayton.

The Boston Herald, it it’s look back on 2007, has a nice little mention of Marion’s performance:

Marion Cotillard’s Little Sparrow enchanted us in “La Vie en Rose.”

Also, a little sour to note, David Thomson of the UK Guardian says it is “far-fetched” to nominate Marion at the Oscars this year, calling her portrayal of Edith Piaf a “robust yet dubbed impersonation.” He’s also got some pretty nasty things to say about actress who aren’t Julie Christie. Here’s hoping he’ll be eating his words this January!

Reflection

Although this is one of the first things I posted on this blog, I’m posting it once again because I feel it captures the roller-coaster ride that is “La Vie en Rose” and the dynamo that is Marion Cotillard’s Edith Piaf. So sit back and enjoy and think about what brought you to this blog to begin with. Cheers.

La môme
Uploaded by Bruno-Lucas

More lists

Marion has been named by USA Today as one of the Top 100 People of 2007. She comes in at #57, in between Quentin Tarantino at #58 and Roky Erikson at #56. The blurb also mentions an upcoming project with “No. 41” — Javier Bardem:

57. Marion Cotillard. The French actress embodied the soul of Edith Piaf in La Vie en Rose. Chances are, we’ll be hearing much from her in the years to come; her next project is a film with No. 41 on this list.

La Vie en Rose has placed on a few more top 10 lists — two in Vancouver and one in Atlanta.

Two critics from Canadian entertainment site, straight.com, both have La Vie en Rose as one of the ten best films of the year (there are no rankings). Janet Smith says:

Edith Piaf’s surreal life becomes a gorgeously wrought morphine dream punctuated by poignant revelations. It helps that Marion Cotillard seems to channel the “little sparrow” herself.

Mark Harris, another columnist, says:

Here solely on account of its star, Marion Cotillard, whose interpretation of Edith Piaf is nonpareil.

Felicia Feaster of Atlanta’s Creative Loafing puts La Vie en Rose at the number 2 spot, having this to say about the film:

Director Olivier Dahan’s subtext-laden, tight and emotionally devastating film about the legendary French chanteuse Edith Piaf was far from the sorrow-jonesing, pity-party biopic too many critics dismissed this film as. Because along with Marion Cotillard’s uncanny impersonation of Piaf, La Vie en Rose was a film that did that rarest of things: celebrating with style, sadness and wit the life of an exceptional and exceptionally damaged woman who never succumbed to the worst life gave her.

Forest

I hope you guys had a lovely Christmas. Here’s a snippet I discovered through the Goldderby forums. Roger Friedman was recently talking to Forest Whitaker about the upcoming awards race, and this is what transpired:

“At the screening, I asked Forest Whitaker, slimmed down and refreshed from his Oscar win last winter for “The Last King of Scotland,” to whom he expected to hand the Best Actress award in February — assuming we have an Oscar ceremony.

“Marion Cotillard!” he shouted. “Did you not see her in ‘La Vie En Rose?’ She’s transforming! That’s it!” It’s nice to see someone has an opinion.”

Pretty cool, says I. As you might remember, Marion co-starred with Forest in “Mary,” a film I’ve been wanting to see for a long time but which has yet to be released in the US.

Earlier this year I speculated on the possibility of Forest, as last year’s Best Actor winner, reading Marion’s name from the envelope and handing her the Oscar…sigh.

Along with Cate Blanchett, Keira Knightley, Ryan Gosling, Julia Stiles and now Forest, it’s pretty cool to see that actors, Marion’s peers (and, as it happens, the largest voting branch of the Academy) are coming out in her support.

In any case, nice to see Forest supporting his girl.

Source

Tribute

A fan created this fantastic montage — I just had to share it.

Someone should burn this onto DVDs and send them out to Oscar voters.