User reviews

Overall, I liked this movie. Technically, it is a well made film, and well acted. I enjoyed watching it and recommend it for a good entertaining film.

However, I just want to say that the film is not always that factual, at times. I would recommend reading a biography of Chanel (such as "The Gospel According to Chanel") to get a more realistic idea of her life.

This film has some fact, but also includes some idealized fantasy of her, which makes for good storytelling for a film. The film is good; the factual part, not so much.

The film shows Chanel as very skilled sewing and as a skilled pattern maker - but I believe in real life she was not that skilled; she could sew straight seams, but not necessarily intricate tailoring; she was more the creative genius with the fashion vision; she hired the skilled seamstresses and hired someone to make the patterns from her ideas and her rougher designs.

This film does cover the early part of Coco Chanel's life - up to about the beginning World War I. And in fact, it was because of the start of WWI in 1914-18, that Chanel got her big break in designing fashion - but the film does not include that historical background.

(As an aside, I think that a film would not have been made to cover her whole life, because during World War II, Chanel did live in Paris with a Nazi lover for a few years - and the whole part of her WWII years is usually hushed up. She then later lived in exile in Switzerland after the war with her ex-Nazi lover. So, they would not want to have included this unpopular part of her life in a big budget film, as it would be too controversial.)

It may be a subject that will not automatically appeal to many. However, this movie is certainly worth watching.

Audrey Tautou, complete with all the mannerisms and dark looks of Coco Chanel, plays a magnificent role. We start of at the miserable beginning of Gabrielle Chanel's life, in an orphanage. It quickly becomes clear that this is not the story about some high-society woman who got bored and decided to make clothes in a style that was unheard of at that time, even for people who don't know anything about the life of Coco Chanel. We see her, slowly but surely, clawing her way up in society, using her charm and wit, but most of all: her outspokenness, always telling what she thinks.

Cinematographically, this film is outstanding too. Throughout the film, certain elements of clothing (black and white patterns, stripes, men's shirts) are shown through an unclear lens, to point out that even the most early views of Coco on fashion were incorporated in her style later.

This film is not just a story about Coco's success, it's also about her struggle to fit in in a society that differed so much from her own opinions, about her losses and heartaches. All in all, we get a complete picture of the icon that is still loved and admired today.

Coco Before Chanel (2009)

Audrey Tatou has had a heck of a time maturing from her astonishing role in Amelie (2001), and if she showed her young true self better in He Loves Me (2002), she faltered badly in The Da Vinci Code. Now, playing the young Coco Chanel, she seems to have some solid footing. Oddly, it is partly by playing a part that requires seriousness, even a dour gloom. It's a solid role and a good performance.

The idea of the story is odd, in a way, because it shows very little of those turning points in Coco Chanel's early career as a fashion maven (and this is what we really are dying to see). This really is before Chanel, the brand, and at first it comes off a little routine, showing the young years, and her trying to get out of having to do silly song and dance acts. Eventually she moves up and meets people of influence (the two always go together, don't they?), and turns a corner by making hats for some well off women who have taken to them, and to her.

What makes the movie interesting is Chanel's relationships with other men, two in particular, and in the general libertine scene she found herself joining, if not always liking. She does find love, maybe twice (one more paternal, replacing the father who abandoned her as a child). And all three male actors are spot-on believable.

As is Tatou. The whole affair is interesting but with little magic or surprise. It's well made and well paced and you won't get drowsy, but expect a routine exploration. And learn something about a truly self-made woman who would change the look of the Twentieth Century, head to toe.

I love Chanel. I can't actually afford the clothes, but that won't stop me from liking them. Just like reading one or two bad reviews didn't stop me from wanting to see 'Coco Avant Chanel'.

The first part of the movie seemed very promising. It didn't take me long to like Coco's character, and everything seemed to have a reasonable pace. Then the movie zooms in on Coco's relationship with 'Boy' and you keep hoping things get interesting, but they don't.

I spent most of the movie admiring the wonderful atmosphere while the lovebirds exchanged meaningful looks. I would have liked this movie more if it paid more attention to things like Coco's hat shop, rather than a relationship of which we all know the ending anyway.

The best thing about this movie is the wonderful atmosphere, but if you don't like slow romance you can skip this one.

Coco avant Chanel focuses, quite literally, on the roots of Coco before the whole Chanel business.

I noted the movie seemed to frustrate those with no grasp of the French language at all. Many seemed to go in unaware that the movie was set before her 'Chanel' days and I couldn't help but feel a sense of disappointment at the end from others; via looking at their faces, overhearing conversations and talking with friends. It's interesting, but it does plod on very slowly.

We are treated to a very rude, harsh character in Coco. Full credit goes to Audrey Tautou for her performance though. She really does fit into this movie's feel and tone very well. Her cheeky performance is definitely a highlight.

I don't know what to make of Alessandro Nivola as 'Boy'. The character was and looked rather sleazy. I'm not sure if that was meant or if that was Alessandro. Other than that, mentions go to Benoît Poelvoorde for his solid performance and Emmanuelle Devos as the sexy and self-assured Emilienne d'Alençon.

Other than that, it's a solid biopic. 7/10

Directed by Anne Fontaine and based upon the book by Edmonde Charles-Roux, Coco Before Chanel is a biographical tale of Gabrielle "Coco" Chanel set a timeline which is just that, before she founded the fashion empire. So for those who are more intrigued about the fashion world and the impact Chanel has on it, then this is not the movie you're looking for, as it firmly dwells on Coco as a person, and her romantic dalliances with two men who played significant roles in her life, be it in support of her daily sustenance, or inspiring and providing fuel for her desire to make a name for herself.

The film dedicated plenty of time in Coco's awakening toward the French high life of the time, since she became a voluntary kept mistress of rich playboy Etienne Balsan (Benoit Poelvoorde), who in a way had rescued her from poverty, and whose riches afforded to her provided that access to the slacker lifestyles of the rich and famous. The audience too get reminded time and again of how stifling a woman's place in high society was at the turn of the century, made worse by the restrictive clothing like corsets, frills, and lace from the neck right down to sweeping the floors. Coco's disdain and penchant for freedom led to bold designs that do not conform, starting from her hats which provided her some attention and notoriety even.

As Coco Chanel, Audrey Tautou epitomizes that level of elegance, vulnerability and rebellious streak to do things differently. Her petiteness and somewhat boyish cut figure probably suited the role really well as the initial designs by Coco were those inspired by menswear, though you only get glimpses of her design genius from short montages scattered throughout, and from some scenes which show her working at a tailor shop, but other than that you will gain very little from this bio-pic other than the messy love life that she got herself into, first with benefactor of sorts Etienne, who treated her nothing more than an object to bed in exchange for lodging, then Alessandro Nivola's Arthur "Boy"Capel, a businessman with whom she falls head over heels with. The romances do make you wonder about how careless the treatment of emotions are, where love and issues of marriage are quite trivially handled.

While Anne Fontaine nailed down the look of the film, the feel somehow was found to be lacking, as apart from the romantic angle, nothing else really rang through until the last act, which was a very hastily down finale to show the tremendous progress Coco had undergone once she had closed her heart, where she had broken through a society and introduced radical changes to an industry, from hats to influencing a lot more in the fashion world. How she did exactly that, is best left to another film because this one had little else other than repeated shots of scissors going through fabric.

Without a doubt the clothes here are the star of the show, from the fashions of societal norms in both directions of the rich-poor spectrum, to Coco Chanel's designs for her own with her menswear inspired pieces, and unfortunately, the glamour-chic pieces only making it through in a parting shot at the finale, since the founding of the business empire was grossly passed over deliberately. The opulently designed clothes of that era stand in stark contrast to the Chanel pieces, which celebrates sheer beauty and elegance in their simplicity, and probably from there, stamping its mark on the fashion industry.

Don't approach this film with an expectation that you would learn something of the beginnings of Chanel the brand and how it became the icon of today. In fact, it's more about the love and early life of its founder, who without her accomplishment and the name backing her, could have turned out to be nothing more than a generic, average, and perhaps even strange romantic picture. And of course, this is also for Audrey Tautou fans who'll lap up her look as Coco Chanel in those chic garbs.

"Coco before Chanel" is exactly that; the life of an impoverished girl up until the start of what became a fashion empire.

This I must say is a different kind of a biopic. There was some sort of subtleness about it, everything was going too slow and not much was happening in terms of demonstrating that this hopeless little girl from nowhere had this extraordinary talent for cloth-making. Yes we did see her advocating simplicity in times of great extravagance and even dressing up (probably) her first clients but had the viewer not been aware of the brand "Chanel" he or she would have to wait until the finishing titles to realise Coco turned out to become a fashion icon.

If there is one thing about Coco is that she was a rebel; in a late 19th century puritan society she stood up for what she believed, refused to get married and instead of settling for a wedlock with a rich spouse she chose to live the adventure, go to Paris and start up a hat shop.

It seems however that her rebellious nature extended to her design skills. To use her own words: "Simplicity is the keynote of all true elegance." Coco Chanel always kept the clothing she designed simple, comfortable and revealing. Unlike most designers in that Europe, she kept the woman inside the clothes at the center of her creations. "I gave women a sense of freedom; I gave them back their bodies: bodies that were drenched in sweat, due to fashion's finery, lace, corsets, underclothes, padding." Perhaps it was fate or desperation from her impoverished upbringing but the affair with the playboy millionaire and, later, his best friend were pivotal to give her the push she needed to make a start. Though not an expert on French upper class culture but were quite impressed how civilized and elegant the two men were when it came to loving and pursuing the same woman.

All in all a decent film but no wow factor.

COCO AVANT CHANEL simply means Coco's life before Chanel as we know her now. So here is a film about her 'then'. This very well produced film has many pluses and two glaring and irritating minuses. On the plus side we have a costly film that displays delicious art direction and production values with lavish or complicated vintage scenes set in extravagant re creationed times or within gorgeous mansions and breathtaking seaside locations... all with superb costumes. However, this film, more about an hour of its running time suffers from the same annoying factors that spoiled the recent film MA VIE EN ROSE, the bio pic of Edith Piaf: 1: a cranky and rude personality who is ungrateful when benefactors assist and 2: idiotic photography closeups where the hand held camera darts about between people talking or following someone's hands when they are doing something eg: Coco is at a table sewing so the camera is gawking about in closeup of her reaching for things. There are several grand set pieces: racetrack and ballroom magnificence, well dressed and filmed and a fashion sequence later in the story that is (again) all too brief. The first 40 minuets of orphanage and cabaret misery and rudeness mirror LA VIE EN ROSE too much and only later when Coco falls in love with "Boy" (Alessandro Nivola) and they romance by the sea does the film lighten a bit and she actually for a few minutes becomes likable. Oherwise it is Gallic aloofness well dressed but at odds with allowing the audience in too far.

I watched this film for two reasons--I like French films and I like Audry Tautou. However, about midway through the movie I realized that I just didn't care all that much about what I was watching. Perhaps you'll have a different reaction.

After being dumped at an orphanage with her sister by their indifferent father, the film jumps ahead 15 years. The two sisters are now singing in a dive--with hopes of getting out and getting a gig at a nicer venue. However, when the sister falls in love with some rich guy, the act falls apart. Soon afterwords, Coco herself moves in with another rich guy and becomes his lover--though why he would want such a dour and indifferent person was a major question that plagued me. In fact, ALL of Tautou's performance confused me, as she almost always seemed depressing to be with--yet, people oddly were drawn to her. It was almost like she was sleepwalking through life. In addition, it was very, very difficult to connect with not only her but anyone in the film--a severe deficit to the film unless there was more action and suspense. Unfortunately, there was almost none. In fact, where there clearly must have been some energy or excitement...there was still none. And, what irritated me most is that although a huge portion of the film took place during WWI, the war was not mentioned or even alluded to even once. You'd think that a war that resulted in at least 11 million deaths and the destruction of a third of France would at get a mention! And, after meeting her second lover (with which she spent nine years), you get the impression that he died only months later. As a result of this style of film making, the context for EVERYTHING is missing--and it's even worse at the end of the film where Coco appears to have aged very little--yet many of the models around her are dressed in clothing from decades in the future.

Unlikable characters and poor/confusing history make this a rather tedious film. Mildly interesting, but not much more...and it certainly SHOULD have been more engaging.

COCO BEFORE CHANEL may have been avoided by some who thought the film might be a superficial sob story about a 'little girl that makes good' - another cutesy venue for Audrey Tautou fans. Nothing could be further from fact. Instead Writer/director Anne Fontaine (with Camille Fontaine) adapted the book by Edmonde Charles-Roux into a screenplay that is a serious look at times in La Belle Epoque France, a time when a little orphan girl and her sister made the best of losing parents, learning a trade, and using their fortitude to move into the upper circles of a society into which their presence was forbidden. Yes, this could have been a saccharine mess of a movie, but due to the writing, directing and acting it is exactly the opposite: nothing can defeat an indomitable spirit.

The film opens in France of 1893 as we see two sisters, motherless and with a father that is unable to cope, dropped off to an orphanage. The girls mature into Gabrielle/Coco (Audrey Tautou) and Adrienne (Marie Gillian) Chanel, gain skills as seamstresses and popularity for their singing at little parties. Adrienne falls for a man of wealth and leaves Coco to develop her skills as a designer of chapeaus and dresses. Her independent spirit is mirrored in the manner in which she does away with the excesses of contemporary garb (feather, birds, fake flowers, lots of ruffles and flounces and trains) and dresses in a more masculine, yet still very sophisticatedly beautiful way. She is noticed by a gentleman landowner, Étienne Balsan (Benoît Poelvoorde) and Coco decides to take advantage of the comforts of wealth, moving in as Étienne's secret guest. Through Étienne's connection she meets French actress Emilienne d'Alençon (Emmanuelle Devos) who eagerly approves of Coco's fashion instincts and uses Coco's clothes in public and on stage, introducing the genius that will become Coco Chanel. Coco also meets a British investor Arthur 'Boy' Capel (Alessandro Nivola in an astonishingly fine role) who provides financing for a studio in Paris where Coco becomes a popular fashion designer - and also falls in love with Boy only to lose him in a automobile accident. By this time Coco's no nonsense approach to fashion - simplicity and understatement - has taken hold and the film ends with a parade on the Chanel stairway of mirrors of her magnificent creations: the saddened by indomitable Coco sits on the stairs as her models parade before an impressed audience.

Audrey Tautou continues to grow as an actress and this may be her finest achievement to date. She portrays Coco as a strong woman with a vulnerability she is able to camouflage. The entire cast is strong, with special nods to American born Alessandro Nivola who delivers his entire performance in impeccable French. The cinematography of Paris and the countryside is beautifully captured by cinematographer Christophe Beaucarne, the gorgeous costumes are the work of Catherine Leterrier, and the musical score is perfectly placed in the always capable hands of Alexandre Desplat. But much of the success of the film rests in the brilliant direction of Anne Fontaine who has managed to give us a fully three-dimensional picture of not only the brilliant Coco Chanel but of the times in Paris that nourished her rise and forever altered the way women would be perceived as equal to men. Excellent!

Grady Harp

Pretty much everything about this movie is perfect. The costumes, the hairstyles, the cinematography, the story and it is just over all a very beautiful film. The only problem is, its slightly boring.

Gabrielle, nickname Coco (Audrey Tautou), and her sister (Marie Gallain) grow up as orphans and later make money as seamstresses during the day and singing at a bar by night. When her sister leaves her to get married to a baron, Coco decides to leave, too. She stays with a friend/lover where she meats the man that helps her change her life.

As I said, Coco before Chanel is a stunningly beautiful film. The costumes are obviously a huge part of the films look but I also loved the hairstyles. Cocos whole style is just gorgeous. I am so glad that it was filmed in French, which gives it a sort of authenticity that an English version would have lacked. Audrey Tautou is great, as always. She has such a strong presence on screen and is just so beautiful to watch.

Watching Gabrielle grow into Coco is very inspiring. It really shows that you have to stay true to yourself and don't let anyone tell you that you can't do something or shouldn't wear something. The story itself is very interesting but it is told in a very slow way that made me constantly grab my ipad to play Farm Story. That is never a good sign.

www.themovieness.com

What do you want in a foreign period film? Beautiful locations? Check. Class struggle? Check. Subtitles? Check. All that's missing is urgency.

Coco Chanel is a French legend. The designer of the ground-breaking haute couture style, creator of the huge fashion brand Chanel, and a forward-thinker in terms of women's independence. Chanel is a complex and dynamic personality. Makes me want to see a movie called "Coco During Chanel". But "Coco Before Chanel"? Not so much.

Audrey Tautou does a commendable job of playing Chanel in her early years (and looks a lot like Chanel in the movie's later scenes). Adding complications to the idea is the fact that there is little known about Chanel's youth, and what is known often has conflicting stories. But be prepared, what does happen in "Coco Before Chanel", happens slowly. This, in a movie that portrays the French elite as people with crazy money, outlandish parties and a constant desire to quench their boredom. I desired the same.

Although she often denied it, Chanel was brought to an orphanage early in life (this was denied mainly to prevent preconceptions of her as an undesirable). The film sharply cuts to late teens/early twenties Coco (real name, Gabrielle), singing with her sister in clubs to make a buck. It was the plight of women in the 1890s to find a man or fear being lost in society. Coco's sister was beholden to a man for thirty years, and he FINALLY married her after his parents died so he wouldn't have to explain to them that he married an orphan (for shame!). This assnine mentality is certainly worth rebelling against, but Coco remains passive for too much of the movie. She is taken in by a wild playboy named Balsan (expertly played by Benoit Poelvoorde) and is mistreated by him for years. Chanel wants to answer to no man and wants to design clothes that avoid the feathers and corset that alter a woman's natural body. But again, this is done with little dramatic flair and many, many pages of slow-moving script. Coco came off as a little too inert for a little too long.

This movie is the first of the late-year potential Oscar nominees. Tautou's performance is a maybe, but the costume design is a sure thing, and rightfully so. The Chanel style is famous, they have to nail it, and they did, while also building gorgeous period outfits for the rich, end-of-century French culture and a few military outfits as well.

The score by Alexandre Desplat does a lot to enhance a few of the scenes, and the cinematography is lush. I want to give a special nod to Alessandro Nivola, who's very good here and very good in everything, but the guy doesn't appear in enough high-profile stuff. He sits very comfortably in the French language here and smolders in some of his more romantic moments like a poor man's Ralph Fiennes.

A traumatic event late in the film propels Coco to launch into her designing full speed. That moment felt a little rushed and the whole ending follows suit. What I wanted at the end was the "Coco During Chanel" movie to start, so, then, that could be kind of a success for the film? But remember, I wanted "Coco During Chanel" going in, so really, the whole 'before' story just felt like slow filler. Frills, perhaps? Padding?

First of all, perhaps this would have been a better film if another actress had the lead. I don't dislike Audrey Tatou in general, but contrary to the love notes that other reviewers have written, I think she was very flat & boring in this rol. She is simply is too old for the story, which is the story of Chanel in her late teens and early twenties. Audrey T. is 33 years old in real life. The spark of that dewy youth isn't there. (I am not saying 33 isn't young, it's just that if you saw an actress of 20 next to her, the difference would be palpable. Or maybe it is the director's fault, because most of Coco's charm seem to be from these long, lingering close-ups of Audrey's big eyes---but her character was somber and brooding for a large portion of the film. Anyway, I think of Anne Hathaway's collegiate youth in the Devil Wears Prada, and that same youthful charm & energy just didn't come across in this film, albeit it was attempted to be conveyed with various different scenes, such as riding a galloping horse without knowing how to ride, etc.

Secondly, I agree that it was a very two-dimensional and simplistic movie. It could have been a Hollywood script, rather than the fact it was a complex biography of a real person in an important era of history.

But lastly, it was fun to see the fabulous clothes of an era, the lush settings and French ambiance. For that, it was fun to see.

Roger Ebert said Audrey Tautout was amazing in this film, she really is! And she looks a lot like Gabrielle Chanel... Alessandro Nivola, so handsome, American born he worked to learn French for his role in this, a tender romance. The atmosphere and mood is strictly Chanel No. 5, authentic I do believe, sophisticated and elegant. My brother lives now in France and I have to add a word or two with the description in French... ravissant, merveilleux... I did not find it "slow" and I was not bored at all as one reviewer commented. My goodness it's a romance and the director has crafted it carefully. The music score by Alexandre Desplat is lush and romantic (that word again!) finely orchestrated, I was at a loss when it finished... Oh incidentally check out "Coco and Igor", the wonderful companion piece to this "Coco avant Chanel" DVD Comment from Malcolm in Toronto Aug 2011

"Coco Before Chanel" is a Biography - Drama movie in which we watch the life of Coco Chanel focusing in her adult life and her relationships. We watch her start in fashion and her way to the top of it.

I liked this movie because I learnt a lot about the life of Coco Chanel and her beginning in fashion, her tough early life and her relationships. Despite that I would like to watch more about her way until the top of the fashion and which obstacles surpass in order to achieve her success. Unfortunately this movie did not have any of this. I liked very much the interpretations of both Audrey Tautou who played as Gabrielle 'Coco' Chanel and she was simply amazing, and Benoît Poelvoorde who played as Étienne Balsan and he was very good. I recommend this movie to anyone who wants to watch the early life of Coco Chanel but do not have high expectations by it because I am sure that you will be disappointed.

The single word that kept entering my mind when watching this little masterpiece of understatement, was, "Fine." In all my life, I have NEVER called a film, 'Fine.' But it seems that no other term so exemplified this superb gem of cinema. Naturally, it was Audrey Tautou's movie, but the entire cast was equally up to the task, a simple story so elegantly told that it surprised me with it's subtle but elegant power. It seems that every movie I see Tautou in, her face and magnetic presence is completely irresistible, and this is certainly no exception, moving from scene to scene with magnificence and grace, much like Chanel herself. American films are like drinking Coca-Cola, bubbly and refreshing, but gone in an instant. This movie was like watching fine wine grow from the dirt, then blossom on the vine, and ultimately become a thing of pure pleasure and beauty, something to be slowly savored and not rushed. That is the lasting impression this film made on me. "FINE," is indeed, the word.

There was no better choice to play this iconic, fashion figure than Audrey Tautou. She's just so . . . French—100%, through and through. In fact, she does such a good job transforming herself into this grande dame that I'm never going to be able to watch another actress play Coco Chanel again without comparing her (probably unfavorably) to Audrey. All this, of course, bodes ill for my future enjoyment of Coco Chanel & Igor Stravinsky. (I'm still watching it, though, because it actually picks up more or less where this film leaves off). The film explores Coco Chanel's humble, working class origins—singing in bars, and gold- digging from wealthy men. The movie actually portrays her as being quite brazen in the way she finagles favors out of the landed gentry. I guess when you haven't got much to lose, there's no reason not to just go for it. Still, it would take a very industrious, unabashed personality to do this. But then, pretty girls have always been able to get away with all kinds of outrageous things.

So, this movie is very grand and high-budget, with beautiful, refined people discussing very classy things. And, honestly it would be a bit of a snoozefest if I weren't interested in learning more about the historical figures involved. The fact that the film is about very fascinating people, and that we want to learn how they became what they're known for today, buys these actors a little more time to recite their dull, meditative lines, while smoking cigarettes and gazing into the mid-distance. It's all very stylish. But, as we all know, fashionable doesn't always translate into wildly entertaining. I'm not saying that the movie is tedious. The production value is wonderful, and the subject matter is very interesting. But, fortunately director, Anne Fontaine, doesn't get too carried away. The film clocks in at a thankfully restrained 110 minutes. I always appreciate a director who can realistically assess her work. So, I did enjoy this film. I'm glad I watched it. I was kind of obligated since it's one of those sweeping period pieces that panels love considering for various cinematic awards. But, it wasn't a chore (the way some others have been). Still, it's not a movie to attempt if you're feeling at all fidgety or distracted.

Anne Fontaine's film 'Coco avant Chanel' (the English title is 'Coco Before Chanel') has three serious reasons to be a movie that I like. Their names are Audrey Tautou, Benoît Poelvoorde and Emmanuelle Devos. Two actresses and an actor who, from my point of view, can't go wrong on screen and who turn every movie they act in into a delight. Here, too, the three did not disappoint me, but still, this story of the becoming the famous fashion designer Coco Chanel from childhood in an orphanage to the launch of her fabulous career was not up to my expectations. It is a very well made and aesthetically beautiful film, it has some interesting ideas, but it lacks something essential: emotion.

The story follows quite faithfully the rules of the biopic genre. For Gabrielle Chanel (the future Coco - Audrey Tautou), abandoned as a child together with her sister in an orphanage, there were not many alternatives to getting out of poverty at the end of the 19th century. The social comment on women's status is critical and acute, and we know it well from the novels of Emile Zola and other writers of the time. To overcome her status as a worker in a tailor's shop, Gabrielle will become the mistress of a wealthy horse owner, Etienne Balsan (played by Benoît Poelvoorde), dreaming of becoming a cabaret actress or a singer. Meanwhile, in order to supplement her income, she begins to create hats and especially to look critically at the exuberant but extremely impractical and uncomfortable dresses of the women in high society. The story advances describing in parallel the sentimental life of the heroine involved in a love triangle with Balsan and Boy Capel, a rich Englishman (played by Alessandro Nivola) and the transformation of her side occupation from a simple craft into a creative activity with a personal vision that was to turn tailoring into art and would influence the lives of 20th century women. When the love story ends, the formidable career of Coco Chanel will begin.

Audrey Tautou's role in 'Amélie' was so memorable that it is almost inevitable that anything she did afterwards will be compared to that role. Her character in 'Coco avant Chanel' is very different from Amelie. Gabrielle faces social barriers in both her private and professional life, defeating them not by means of kindness but with determination, being endowed with the inner strength of the lonely individuals hit early in life, which will allow her to overcome tragedies and break through to success. This kind of people or characters do not externalize, you have to look deep into their eyes to read their feelings. Benoît Poelvoorde is excellent in the role of Balzan, the wealthy and decadent bourgeois, with a deep superficiality. Emmanuelle Devos appears in a supporting role that she undertakes brilliantly, playing the character of the actress who begins by being the idol of Gabrielle / Coco, then becoming her social mentor, encouraging her talent and gaining her friendship (or maybe more than that). Director Anne Fontaine was very attentive to details and the film looks good and authentic. But the passion is missing, too often the characters behave predictably, they fail to put enough life behind the stereotypes. 'Coco avant Chanel' is not a bad film, but it is positioned too close to the docu-drama and too far from an original artistic vision, which is exactly what characterized the art of Coco Chanel.

This is rather plodding and very incomplete attempt to capture the life of Coco Chanel. If you enjoy seeing her hobnob with the lesser known idle French aristocrats you may like it. I have to agree with other comments here that film makers always seem to avoid a discussion of her collaboration with the Nazis in WWII, something which caused her to leave France for nine years after the war. The closing summary of the film lauds her for her contributions to the fashion world without mentioning her shameful actions in WWII. Even recent "documentaries" about her seem to dodge the subject also. But it is well documented indeed. They should have given us a balanced, warts and all treatment. See the London Times article of April 4, 2009 "Chanel and the Nazis". This excerpt is particularly relevant: "Perhaps Chanel-lovers also have no idea that she tried to wrest control of her perfume manufacturing from a Jewish family, taking advantage of pro-Aryan laws. Or that she was arrested for war crimes - and then mysteriously released. Previously, I'd seen it mentioned that Chanel had survived the war rather comfortably at the Paris Ritz in the arms of a Nazi officer, Hans Gunther von Dincklage, and then gone into exile in Switzerland with him, but a few hours spent in the library revealed that she was far more deeply involved with the Germans than that. There was even a (somewhat ridiculous) Nazi plot, using Chanel as bait, called "Operation Modelhut"." (From Chanel & the Nazis" by Kate Muir, London Times, April 4, 2009.

This movie seemed unidimensional to me - only about the men and romances in Coco Chanel's life.

I knew that this movie was not supposed to be about the Chanel Brand - but about the life of Gabrielle Chanel before she and her brand became iconic; however, when one is watching a movie about a person who is known by the brand they created, one does want to see how and when they made it big.

It was an okay movie if you're just looking for some regular day time entertainment - and if this is a genre you like.

If, however, you're looking to see how Coco Chanel transitioned from an orphan of limited means to being one of the biggest fashion icons of the century - this is not it.

Initially the movie progresses at a very slow pace, and then suddenly moves so fast that it skips all the major details. I read in Chanel's biography that Coco lived with Balsan for 3 years and was in a relationship with Boy for 9 years - from the movie I couldn't have imagined for this long a period to have passed.

The movie leaves many questions unanswered - when she first moved to Paris to pursue a career - what did she first do? How did she get started and how did she gain popularity? What made her famous?How did the house of Chanel come into being? The movie seems incomplete.. I know that wasn't the theme of the movie - but I strongly believe that even a 10 minute part about the making of Chanel as we know it would have given it a lot more context.