Marion Cotillard totally deserved the Oscar she got for this movie. That being said, I didn't like it very much. It's a biopic about the French singer, Edith Piaf, who went from the gutters to being the toast of society. Unfortunately, she was also an alcoholic, a morphine addict, and a total bitch.
The movie is non-linear, swinging from her final days to her childhood and early fame, which would be fine if the cuts made any sort of sense story-wise. I think they were trying to tie the jumps to the different people that stood by her but it was really hard to follow who everyone was. Maybe this is just me, but I wondered exactly how this woman was able to keep so many friends. She was constantly throwing fits, making demands, and generally being incredibly high-maintenance. I'm not sure why the movie focused on those aspects instead of showing her being more charming. Why else would anyone put up with her?
Also, the director waits until about the two hour mark to introduce a love interest, and ten minutes before the credits roll they break out the fact that she had a daughter who died of meningitis while she was still singing in cabaret acts. Yet they spend 45 solid minutes on her life growing up in a brothel owned by her paternal grandmother.
The whole movie experience is like sitting down with an elderly relative and having them recount their life for you. You're only going to get the parts that are interesting to them and unlike a face-to-face, there's no way to go back and ask or try and steer the conversation.
The costumes and makeup are great but overall this movie was crap.
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