A TRUE STORY ABOUT TRUE LOVE : "COCO AVANT CHANEL"

This is yet another film I have been meaning to watch for ages. It’s all about tidying up and tying up loose ends these days for me, don’t ask me why. Coco would be proud of me. Well, possibly not of the state my living quarters are in at the moment but of the intention. I think. Hmm. Anyway, so the film. The film that was nominated for an Oscar®, won awards and is one of the most touching love stories I have heard for a long time. Not least because it’s a true story… This is the true story of the extraordinary life and love of an extraordinary woman.

Gabrielle Chanel and her sister Adrienne were dumped at an orphanage to be taken care of by nuns at a very young age. The two sisters rely only on each other and take care of themselves as best they can, mainly by singing and performing in rather dodgy dives, live modest lives but dream of fortune. Adrienne is more feminine, outgoing, “charming” if you will. Gabrielle is serious, the more sensible of the two but has her own way of going about things. She is strong and independent and she is afraid to neither follow her heart nor speak her mind openly. These are not qualities that are appreciated in a woman of the early 20^th Century. Still, the fates conspire that Gabrielle meets Etienne Balsan, a rich businessman a bit older than her through her sister (who unlike Gabrielle, has many suitors, one of them a Baron no less). Etienne is not particularly good looking or deep intellectually and emotionally, but he has a certain charm. Gabrielle does not believe in happy endings or love, but she has nowhere to go after her sister moves in with her Baron and Gabrielle loses their singing job. Thus, much to her own disgust, she finds herself in the position of a “hanger on” with Balsan. Balsan’s group of giddy Parisien friends awaken nothing but disdain in the heart of Gabrielle. But to be fair, there are a few that are quite alright. The actress Emilenne d’Alençon, for example proves a good friend to Gabrielle for all her terrible taste in clothes. And then there’s the handsome, cultured, enigmatic British businessman Arthur ‘Boy’ Capel…  

You probably can guess the rest. Well, the most important bit anyway. It is a truly great love story, it is a great story about true love. The film itself is utterly spectacular. Audrey Tatou is brilliant as the slightly taciturn Gabrielle ‘Coco’ Chanel . I mean, to be honest I pretty much like anything Tatou acts in but in my opinion, this film deserves a separate place on its own. Coco Chanel was not, by all accounts, the easiest person to get on with. The film makes it quite clear how this came about though, I mean of course, part of it is nature but the greatest part comes from having had a difficult life. Yet as the film continues we slowly get to know her, we understand her point of view. I mean, this is mostly the aim of biographical films, it is not always achieved however and this is, for me, what makes or breaks a biographical film. This film definitely “makes it”. So when, towards the middle of the film, Gabrielle meets Boy Capel, the great love of her life, you are positively rooting for her and praying things work out. If you know the least thing about Coco Chanel, you probably know she never married. But well, I’ll let you watch the film and discover how that came about.

This film is beautiful and emotional. It is a love story, biography AND period piece. So guess what, I’m the tiniest bit in love with it. So give it a go. Come on, surely you trust me by now?