Edith Piaf
Writer/director Olivier Dahan (Crimson Rivers II) helmed La Vie en Rose, the screen biopic of tragic French songstress Edith Piaf. Marion Cotillard portrays Piaf, the superstar once raised as a young girl by her grandmother in a Normandy bordello, then discovered on a French street corner -- as a complete unknown -- by cabaret proprietor Louis Leplée (Gérard Depardieu). The film segues breezily between various episodes from Piaf's life -- such as her lover, French boxer Marcel Cerdan's (Jean-Pierre Martins) championship bout in mid-'40s New York; her period in Hollywood during the '50s; Piaf's abandonment as a young girl by her contortionist father (and earlier by her mother, a street singer); her brushes with the law as an adult; and her 1951 car accident and subsequent morphine addiction that caused her to age well beyond her years and left her barely mobile; and, through it all, her ability (like Billie Holiday) to funnel personal tragedy and emotional struggles into her vocalizations -- dazzling audiences in the process. ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Marion Cotillard, Sylvie Testud, (more)
Widely regarded as one of the most popular female singers of all time, Edith Piaf's unique voice and talent earned her an incredible career and the nickname "Little Sparrow." Filmed four years after her death, this French documentary contains a plethora of rare archival footage, film clips of Piaf in some of her greatest performances, and several historic interviews. Among the songs included are "La Vie en Rose," "A Quoi Ça Sert l'Amour," "Milord," and "Mon Dieu." Edith Piaf: A Passionate Life also provides a retrospective of the singer's life and career, from her birth in 1915 to her death in 1963, and all of the tragedies and highly publicized romances in between. ~ Tracie Cooper, All Movie Guide
Piaf: Her Story, Her Songs stars Raquel Bitton who plays the part of the great singer. She sings many of the songs Piaf was known for and in her style, but also narrates Piaf's life. The film contains reminiscences from many of her collaborators. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide
- 2003
French filmmaker Jean-Paul Civeyrac directs the drama Toutes Ces Belles Promesses (All the Fine Promises), loosely based on the novel Hymnes à l'amour by Anne Wiazemsky. Jeanne Balibar stars as Marianne, a young Paris cellist mourning the recent death of her mother. When she discovers that her late father had a mistress, she casts aside her boyfriend Étienne (Renaud Bécard) in order to find her. It turns out that the mistress is also a musician, a pianist named Béatrice Marquet (Bulle Ogier). Marianne and Béatrice strike up a strange and tender friendship while reminiscing about the past and playing Edith Piaf songs on the piano. Marianne also reconnects with her family's maid Ghislaine (Valérie Crunchant) before returning to her home in Paris. All the Fine Promises premiered at the 2003 Toronto Film Festival. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jeanne Balibar, Bulle Ogier, (more)
- 1996
A music performance video with various French singers performing their most popular hits. ~ All Movie Guide
A blend of comedy, drama and romance, Bull Durham follows the intertwining of three lives brought together by the great American pastime. Crash Davis (Kevin Costner, showcasing his Midwestern charm) is a perennial Minor Leaguer assigned to the Durham Bulls, a hapless team with a long tradition of mediocrity. There he tutors a young, dim-witted pitching prodigy, Nuke LaLoosh (Tim Robbins) in the ways of baseball, life, and love. Each strikes up a romance with Annie (Susan Sarandon), the team's "mascot" who takes it upon herself to sleep with a new player every season. Each has his/her own conflict: Crash struggles to end his career with some measure of dignity; Nuke struggles to make it to the "big show"; and Annie struggles to find something more than a roll in the hay -- and of course, Crash and Nuke come into conflict over Annie's affections to further complicate matters. The film treats the sport of baseball with a sort of casual reverence, highlighting both the drama and the humor inherent in the game, illustrated by Annie's numerous references to baseball as "her religion." ~ Jeremy Beday, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Kevin Costner, Susan Sarandon, (more)
- 1986
- R
Based on a 1981 book by Leonard Michaels, focuses on a lawyer (Richard Jordan) who brings together a singularly dysfunctional group of men in a kind of venting, loquacious therapy session. All that talk brings out the worst in everyone. Cavanaugh (Roy Scheider) is a retired baseball star whose wife wants to leave him, Harold (Frank Langella) is an uptight lawyer, Terry (Treat Williams) is a self-centered doctor, Phillip (David Dukes) is the stereotypical, irritating college professor, and Solly (Harvey Keitel) is a blue-collar worker with a warm heart, the closest to normal among the lot. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Roy Scheider, Frank Langella, (more)
- 1978
A music biography video of Edith Piaf, with clips from concerts and interviews. ~ All Movie Guide
- 1973
This video profiles the life and musical career of Edith Piaf, "the Little Sparrow." ~ All Movie Guide
- 1955
Beautifully photographed, this comedy drama from Jean Renoir chronicles the revival of Paris' most notorious dance as it tells the story of a theater producer who turns a humble washerwoman into a star at the Moulin Rouge. The film is also title Only the French Can. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jean Gabin, Maria Felix, (more)
- 1954
Sacha Guitry's Si Versailles M'Etait Conte (If Versailles Were Told to Me) is best known by its American title Royal Affairs in Versailles. In addtion to writing and directed the film, Guitry reserves for himself the plum role of Louis XIV. Concentrating on the palace of Versailles over a period of 300 years, the storyline concentrates on the various amorous and political intrigues of three French kings. The plot manages to wend its way through the French revolution, coming to a halt in "the present". The star-studded supporting cast includes Jean Marais as Louis XV, Claudette Colbert as Mme. Montespan, Micheline Presle as Mme. Pompadour, and, best of all, Orson Welles as a gouty Ben Franklin. Most currently available prints of Si Versailles M'Etait Conte are severely edited, and fail to do justice to the rich Eastmancolor hues of the original version. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Sacha Guitry, Michel Auclair, (more)
Stage Fright toys with our notions of the dividing line between reality and artifice by being set in the London theatre world. On the lam from the police, Richard Todd takes refuge in the home of his former girlfriend, RADA student Jane Wyman. Todd has been spotted fleeing the scene of a murder, but he insists that he's innocent. Wyman believes his story, but knows that the police won't, so she decides to play detective herself. She also plays several other roles in a variety of disguises so as to escape the notice of genuine detective Michael Wilding. Top-billed Marlene Dietrich plays a Dietrich-like chanteuse whom Wyman pigeonholes as the real murderer. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jane Wyman, Marlene Dietrich, (more)
- 1946
Etoile Sans Lumiere (Star Without Light) represents a rare screen appearance by French singing sensation Edith Piaf. The plot is something of a predecessor to Hollywood's Singin' in the Rain (1952), albeit with a less happy denouement. Piaf plays an aspiring singer who tries to break into films during the early talkie era. She is hired to dub the singing and speaking voice of a silent-movie favorite (Mila Parely). Sworn to secrecy, the fill-in must stand by in silence as the star receives all the praises and plaudits. When the truth is revealed, the result is disastrous for everyone concerned. Etoile Sans Lumiere is chiefly memorable as the screen debut of Edith Piaf's protégé Yves Montand. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Mila Parély, Edith Piaf, (more)
