Coco Before Chanel Blu-ray delivers great video and audio in this overall recommended Blu-ray release
This is the story of Gabrielle "Coco" Chanel, who begins her life as a headstrong orphan, and
through an extraordinary journey becomes the legendary couturier who embodied the modern
woman and became a timeless symbol of success, freedom and style.
The aptly-titled Coco Before Chanel peeks into the life of a young nobody of a French girl
before she founded a fashion empire and her name became synonymous with quality and the
label
that defined an industry. Starring Audrey Tautou (The Da Vinci Code) as
the film's title character, Coco Before Chanel is a unique picture that emphasizes the life,
thoughts, and characteristics of a young girl before wealth and stature entered her
life but seemingly never came to define it, the film a celebration of roots and struggles rather
than a simple recap of a woman's
construction of a fashion conglomerate. Indeed, it's Coco Before Chanel's innocence and
subtle tone that emphasizes the person and not the name that makes the movie special, the title
itself a perfect moniker for a picture that's about a person that happened to one day make a
name
for herself rather than focusing on a name that's synonymous with fashion but not the flesh and
blood
and, most importantly, heart and soul, behind it.
Chanel after Coco.
Gabrielle Chanel (Tautou) grew up an orphan in the French countryside and years later has
landed a job as a cabaret performer with her sister Adrienne (Marie Gillain). While singing a song
about a puppy named "Coco," a drunken and wealthy Baron, Étienne Balsan (Benoît Poelvoorde),
bestows upon her the nickname, which sticks. He promises to land Coco a singing gig that will
ultimately take her to Paris, but with her sister head over heels with a man and Coco on her own,
she fails to impress Balsan's friend and finds herself on the outs. With no recourse, she follows
Balsan to his palatial country estate where he lives the life of an uninhibited playboy and takes
Coco in for a short stay, but the savvy seamstress who's as handy with a needle as she is her
singing voice finagles her way into staying as Balsan's long-term guest. As she rubs elbows with
French elite and criticizes the stuffy and tight Paris fashion scene, she remains her own woman
and refuses to conform to the rituals of the day and
wears more liberating clothes that reflect her rebellious personality. Not one for love, Coco
nevertheless finds herself attracted to an Englishman who arrives on the scene, Arthur "Boy"
Capel (Alessandro Nivola), a gentleman who reciprocates the attraction. As Coco struggles with
her feelings and finds herself augmenting her spare time by designing fashionable hats for
Balsan's rich friends, she must come to terms with who she is and decide what she wants from
life.
Coco Before Chanel works as a brilliantly-flowing and accessible film because its focus
remains on a girl that could pass for anybody with a desire to be different and to break from
conformity and follow their own paths and hearts, to choose a life defined not by society but
rather
talent, drive, and purpose. Indeed, the story of Coco before her ascension to the top of the
fashion industry is one that's universal, applicable to any number of tales that might offer a range
of emotions, from triumph to tragedy, examining the human side of the equation rather than
becoming lost in the superficial glamour of the successes in later years that are ultimately shaped
and
defined by the experiences before the rise to stardom. The story of Coco Chanel works not
because of the name attached to the title; the film would have proven a success with any
fictionalized protagonist, and the picture smartly makes the movie about a real, feeling, and
somewhat sympathetic person rather than a larger-than-life figure or even an entire industry,
the picture about a life's journey and all of its triumphs and tragedies and
not simply the empire that made a name for an otherwise average young French maiden with
nothing to lose but everything to gain with her skill sets and unique outlook on life.
The film takes on a feel that's similar to the exemplary Becoming Jane in
craftsmanship, quality of production, and focus on a historically significant and
landscape-altering female artist in a time where a woman's role in the world was narrow but
dreams nevertheless propelled the most talented and ambitious to the top of their respective
professions. Much like Jane Austen, Gabrielle Chanel was given a gift of vision and construction,
the ability to, with a specialized skill, revolutionize an industry and pave the way for countless
followers that might surpass them but never rekindle the magic spark that would reshape the
worlds of literature or, in this case, fashion, and to a greater extent, femininity-at-large. Of
course, neither Becoming Jane nor
Coco Before Chanel are simply clichéd tales of girls and their
dreams. Coco is a somewhat superficial but nevertheless fascinating journey into
turn-of-the-century France, the tale of a young girl struggling to get by with a pretty face, a gift,
a
stroke of luck, and a steadfastness in principle and determination to follow her own guidelines and
thought processes.
It's a tale of burgeoning love, of questioning the status quo, of understanding feelings, and of
great tragedy from which would rise a worldwide empire that almost a century later continues to
thrive because of a vision and spirit that propelled one girl of humble beginnings to a world of
glamour both before as Coco and after as Chanel.
The true star of Coco Before Chanel -- and not to mention the film's gorgeous
cinematography, locations, and Oscar-nominated costume design -- is the girl herself and the
deliciously delightful and engrossing performance by Audrey Tautou. She gives a depth to the
character not in physical stature or even the impeccable delivery of her lines, but rather with
deep, gazing eyes that seem always reflective of Coco's turbulent soul, dealing with a life that's
seen her grow into a woman of her own making but one nevertheless marked by tragedy and
despair in the midst of furthering her skills as a designer and a women not content to simply
carry out the wishes of a predetermined society and with nowhere to go but along the same
straight and narrow path traversed by so many before her. Tautou is at once both elegant but
plain as she discovers herself on stage, in the seamstress shop, in the lap of luxury at Balsan's
estate, and in the arms of the one man that seemed the embodiment of the fairy tale in which
she once believed true love could only exist. The actress again proves herself in Coco Before
Chanel, showing both a determination and a vulnerability that both define her persona but
never clash or otherwise lead her down a path other than her very own. Surrounded by several
performers each playing their parts with a vigor and a passion for the material in Benoît
Poelvoorde and Alessandro Nivola, Coco Before Chanel is a charming but also slightly
harsh and heartbreaking look at a life built on spirit and an empire constructed on one girl's own
terms.
Coco Before Chanel weaves a generally terrific 1080p transfer housed in a 2.35:1 frame.
The image is one that's incredibly film-like, striking in its rich detail and lavish depth, the picture
for
the most part an example of a transfer that truly defines "home theater." Fine detail throughout
the film is natural and eye-catching; the loose threads and intact stitches in garments, woven
hats,
textured brick façades, the scratches and natural lines on an old wooden desktop, and other
assorted details seen in the film's various locales but primarily within the walls of Balsan's country
castle are impeccably rendered throughout the film. Exterior shots sparkle, too; grass is a
breathtaking shade of green and other natural foliage proves finely detailed, even in some
greater-distance shots. The film's color palette seems just slightly washed out and drab; white
and
grays and blacks seem the predominant members of the picture's color scheme, but the many
splashes of other shades are presented with nary a hint of over-saturation. The image also
delivers a strong sense of depth in every frame alongside a fine layer of film grain that, combined
with the transfer's fine color reproduction and intricate detailing, lends to the transfer a
mesmerizing
film-like appearance. Only a hint of excessive softness in some scenes and blacks that
sometimes look a bit too washed out and bright mar an otherwise gorgeous transfer from Sony.
Coco Before Chanel fashions an excellent DTS-HD MA 5.1 lossless soundtrack for this
Blu-ray release. The film's score is nicely implemented, its delivery full and rich with a slight
accompanying back-channel support structure. The track also features fairly good ambient
effects; listeners will feel like a passenger in the old horse-drawn wooden cart that transports
Gabrielle to the orphanage at the beginning of the film, while other exterior environmental effects
as heard during various scenes of the film -- chirping birds, slight blowing winds, waving grasses,
and rustling leaves -- are nicely and very subtly realized but with more of a front-focused
presentation. More zealous interior ambient effects, such as the din of patrons at a lounge where
background chatter, clanking silverware, and steps on hardwood floors are a bit more
pronounced and perhaps slightly overly so, these effects at times competing with dialogue for the
most prominent aspect of the track. Nevertheless, the atmosphere is a comfortably bustling one,
fairly immersive and a welcome addition to the track. Coco Before Chanel isn't a
bass-happy film, but the pounding of horse hooves in several scenes delivers a nice low-end
presence
to spruce up the track. Generally, Coco Before Chanel is a dialogue-intense film, and the
spoken word enjoys superior clarity throughout; the accompanying music and supportive effects
are nicely presented and round out a full and satisfactory listen.
Coco Before Chanel sews together a tidy supplemental package for this Blu-ray release.
First up is an audio commentary track with Writer/Director Anne Fontaine, Producer Philippe
Carcassonne, and Editor Luc Barnier. Presented in French with optional English subtitles, the
participants discuss a broad array of topics, including choosing an opening shot for the film,
crafting a film with just the right thematic tone, artistic influences and connections throughout
the film, the work of editing a feature film, the performance and real-life skills of star Audrey
Tautou, the film's costumes, and much more. The Making of 'Coco Before Chanel' (480p,
46:12, French with English subtitles) is a seven-part documentary that dissects the construction
of the film and offers a
plethora of behind-the-scenes footage and cast and crew interview clips. Segments include
The Project's Origins (5:36), Coco's Look (8:30), An Extraordinary
Destiny (5:25), Étienne Balsan (11:08), Boy Capel (6:47), Historical
Reconstruction (6:01), and Anne Fontaine (3:20). The next supplement, 'Coco
Before Chanel:' The Meeting (480p, 18:17, French with English subtitles), features a
selection of cast and crew individually discussing the life of Coco Chanel and those around her,
her fashions, and various elements behind the making of the film. Walking the Carpet: From
Los Angeles to New York (1080p, 7:49) takes viewers behind-the-scenes of the film's
premieres at two elegant locations. Also included is BD-Live functionality; the Coco Before
Chanel theatrical trailer (1080p, 2:02); and additional 1080p trailers for An Education,
The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus, Whatever Works,
Paris 36, Soul Power, A River Runs Through
It, By the People: The Election of Barack Obama, Michael Jackson's This is
It, Easy Virtue, The Class, and I've Loved You So
Long.
Coco Before Chanel is a wonderful biopic that emphasizes all the right parts of the fashion
designer's early life, examining her drive, her skills, her thoughts, her loves, and the people that
defined her existence, all of which together allowed for the construction of an empire that's
synonymous
with fashion in the same way that Henry Ford is synonymous with the automobile or Samuel Colt is
synonymous with the six-shooter. A lovely film that's wonderfully acted, engaging and endearing,
and beautifully
conceived and handsomely executed, Coco Before Chanel is one of
2009's better films, perhaps not as shiny as some and not as memorable as others, but a wonderful
all-around throwback-style film that emphasizes life and story in the midst of some exemplary
costuming and set pieces. As expected, Sony's Blu-ray release of Coco Before Chanel is
wonderful, the disc boasting a high quality and naturally film-like 1080p transfer, an easygoing but
exceptionally clear lossless soundtrack, and a nice collection of bonus materials. Coco Before
Chanel earns a hearty recommendation.
Sony Pictures Home Entertainment has announced that they will bring the critically acclaimed biographical film 'Coco Before Chanel' to Blu-ray on February 16th. Technical specs have not been announced at this time, though you can expect to see the typical 1080p ...
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