Entertainment, Movie Reviews Tags:
Audrey Tautou,
Benoît Poelvoorde,
biopic,
Chanel,
Coco Avant Chanel,
Coco Before Chanel,
Coco Chanel,
Etienne Balsan,
French,
Marie Gillain,
movie review
At the end of the day, “Coco Avant Chanel” doesn’t do justice to one of the world’s most iconic fashion figures. It leaves you wanting to see more of the avant (before) and the après (after) of Chanel’s rise to fame.
As suggested by the title, the film focuses on Coco’s early years, before she hit it big in the global fashion scene. We first meet her as an orphaned girl, with no sight of the glamour and celebrity endorsements that are associated with today’s Chanel brand. The movie then fast-forwards to a twenty-something Gabrielle “Coco” Chanel (played by “Amelie’s” Audrey Tautou) who’s involved in a French cabaret act with her sister (Marie Gillain). She dreams of becoming the next theatre starlet of Paris, but that dream slowly slips from her hands.
One older, wealthy man (Etienne Balsan played by Benoît Poelvoorde), promises to try and get her an audition and while she doesn’t make the cut, Gabrielle continues a brief fling with him. She comes off as opportunistic when she arrives at Etienne’s mansion unannounced and stays there as she decides what to do with her life.
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For a generation of people who missed out on the 1960s and the advent of rock’n'roll, we sure are getting to be well-versed. Yet another biopic is slated for release this October, this time in the name of John Lennon.
Nowhere Boy is based on the book Imagine This: Growing Up with my Brother John Lennon by Lennon’s half sister Julia Baird, according to Pitchfork. The screenplay was written by Matt Greenhalgh, author of the Joy Division film Control. The film will focus more on Baird’s experience growing up with the rising star, perhaps offering a unique insight into what transformed Lennon into one of the most idyllic artists of our time.
On board to direct in his feature film debut is Sam Taylor Wood, whose repertoire includes the BAFTA-nominated punk short Love You More.
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Anne Hathaway is set to channel Judy Garland in both a film and a stage production about the Hollywood icon.
Producer Harvey Weinstein announced Monday he has tapped the Oscar-nominated actress to star in the two projects, which will be based on the 2000 biography “Get Happy: The Life of Judy Garland.”
“I have worked with Anne on projects in the past and have known her for many years,” Weinstein told WENN. “She will be a true class act in this challenging role.
“Gerald Clarke’s biography is a fascinating and comprehensive look at Garland’s life and is particularly outstanding because of its exclusive details from her own writings,” he added.
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The World Entertainment News Network reports that Mike Tyson is planning to produce a biopic about his life, and has already hand-picked Jamie Foxx for the part.
The two-time boxing heavyweight champion has certainly experienced enough drama in the last two decades to make the film interesting. He was convicted of raping a beauty pageant contestant in 1992, bit off part of Evander Holyfield’s ear in 1997, declared bankruptcy in 2003, and was jailed last year for a DUI and possession of cocaine.
Of his struggles with substance abuse, Tyson said that he is now clean. “Even when I was training for a fight, there were no drugs, but I would drink. I had never been clean and sober my whole life. This is the first time. I’m tired of losing. I lost the trust of my family, my five kids. I didn’t like that way of life and decided to change. I saw the devil and didn’t want that.”
Benazir Bhutto was assassinated just one week ago, but steps are already in motion to immortalize her forever in film.
According to HollywoodReporter.com, Pakistani writer Aqeel Ahmad Ruby is already writing the script, and the biopic will be helmed by Indian filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt. Skies Unlimited Films are in charge of the project, which is in pre-production. Producer Angela Kahn commented that the company will soon announce the film’s director.
The decision of who will play the lead role will have to wait, however, as the producers aren’t sure what they’re looking for. “It could be someone famous or a completely new face,” Khan said. “There are possibilities that some of the scenes would be shot in India, but we are not sure.”
