Birthday

Breakthrough

The same aforementioned article on the Envelope reports that Marion has earned yet another accolade for her performance in "La Vie En Rose":

"The 19th Annual Palm Springs International Film Festival (Jan. 3-14) has jumped on the Cotillard train with an announcement that it will honor her with the breakthrough performance award. She joins past recipients such as Jennifer Hudson and Felicity Huffman."

Jennifer Hudson and Felicity Huffman--one Oscar winner and one nominee...good company, says I!

CONGRATULATIONS!

Envelope

The Envelope is featuring Marion on its front page, which screams out the following headline: Watch out for... Marion Cotillard
She's the darling of film festivals with her portrayal of Edith Piaf in 'La Vie en Rose.' And it goes on:

"This awards season it's all about Marion Cotillard. She's the 31-year-old French actress whose performance as Edith Piaf in "La Vie en Rose" left critics desperately searching for new words to describe her: 'incredible,' 'breathtaking,' 'inspiring,' 'gorgeous. '"
More...

Lombardi

One of my favorite performances of Marion's is her portrayal of Tina Lombardi in "A Very Long Engagement." (And because I want to appear smart and worldly, here's the French title: "Un Long Dimanche de Fiançailles." Yes, cut + paste is a wonderful thing).

Marion has a very short role in this lenghty, WWI film, but she practically steals the show. This particular scene is heartbreaking (if you haven't seen the film, I wouldn't recommend watching this particular sequence--it's a bit spoilerish, especially as it relates to the Lombardi character).



As you probably know, this performance earned Cotillard the César award for Best Supporting Actress. The film itself is pretty magical--worth checking out.

ETA: If you noticed, Tina Lombardi didn't have any regrets either.

Gurus

Yes, I realize it's still early, but when did that ever stop me? The Gurus O' Gold have posted their own predictions (subject to change), and I'm loving it! Here's their breakdown for the Best Actress category:

01. MARION COTILLARD - La Vie En Rose (111 points)
02. JULIE CHRISTIE - Away from Her (95 points)
03. KEIRA KNIGHTLEY - Atonement (79 points)
04. ELLEN PAGE - Juno (69 points)
05. CATE BLANCHETT - The Golden Age (53 points)
05. ANGELINA JOLIE - A Mighty Heart (53 points)

Sweet. For more on their methodology, click
here. Thanks to Awards Daily for the heads up.

Blanchett

This is the first post of its kind, but you should be seeing more of them in the future. Although I've had stubborn tunnel-vision regarding Marion Cotillard and my hope that the gods of Oscar fortune smile upon her, I'm perfectly aware of the strong competition she is likely to face. Case in point, Cate Blanchett.

Academy Award-Winning Actress Cate Blanchett is, along with Kate Winslet and Julianne Moore, the heir-apparent to Meryl Streep, arguably the greatest film actress of the past three decades. I first saw Blanchett in "Elizabeth" and I was totally blown away by her performance. To this day, I think voters dropped the ball big time that year when they failed to award her a very well-deserved Best Actress Oscar. She's made some wonderful films since then, including "The Gift," "The Missing," and especially "The Aviator" and "Notes on a Scandal." Her portrayal of Katharine Hepburn in "The Aviator" earned her a Best Supporting Actress Oscar. She was fantastic in the film and deserved all her accolades. And now she's back in the saddle (sort of speak) in "The Golden Age." She's well-positioned for an Oscar nod. In fact, I think a nod for her is as guaranteed as Marion's. Just look at the trailer, for God's sake!



The question is whether she'll end up taking home another golden boy. There are some obstacles in her way, however: the film is a sequel, it got a mixed reception at the Toronto International Film Festival, and (unfair as this criteria may be), she already has an Oscar. However, like Marion and "La Vie En Rose," even though the reception to the film has been mixed, Blanchett has received virtually universal praise for her work. Another factor to consider is Blanchett's complete transformation into Bob Dylan in the upcoming Todd Haynes film "I'm Not There." It was a bold step to take--one that earned her the Best Actress (although she will probably be positioned in the supporting category for the Oscars and probably the Globes) award at the Venice Film Festival a few weeks ago.

So there it is. Blanchett, I declare, is Cotillard's closest competition. She's guaranteed a nomination, even if the film under-performs at the box office. That's just how it is when you've reached the heights Blanchett has reached in a relatively short span of time.

Impressive

Here's a recent review of "La Vie En Rose." The reviewer glows about Marion Cotillard's performance but is a bit conflicted about the film itself. Overall, it is a positive review. Here's an excerpt:

"The most impressive component of "La Vie en Rose" is the superb acting of Marion Cotillard. Over the course of the movie, Cotillard portrays the singer with such realism that her Piaf transcends the usual boundary between a character of the silver screen and a multi-dimensional person. Even without Cotillard attempting this realist interpretation, the role is challenging. It is her responsibility to convey the paradoxical but simultaneous joys and sorrows that Piaf experiences. These are not run-of-the-mill highs and lows, but events of extreme emotion, making the ease with which Cotillard embodies her role all the more impressive." More...

Persepolis

Friends, France has chosen its foreign language submission for the Oscars and no, it's not "La Vie En Rose." France went with Persepolis, winner of the jury prize at Cannes this year. I'm actually very much looking forward to seeing this film, but you know, it's still a bit of a let down.

In any case, this is the right spirit:

"Meanwhile, for lovers of La Vie En Rose, there is still hope that its star, Marion Cotillard -- undoubtedly the best thing about the film -- will be nominated for Best Actress. If that doesn't happen, THEN I'll start working up some serious outrage." More...

Powerful

Check out this great scene from "La Vie En Rose":



If you noticed, a still from this scene is the one that hovers supreme over this blog!

Manamana

You regular visitors might have noticed a lack of updates during the past few days. No real reason except for the fact that there's no real news out there, plus I've been mad busy at work (which is a good thing).

Anyway, when there's nothing to say or nothing to do, it helps to watch a little manamana:



Hopefully I'll have a Marion-related update soon!

Official

Two official announcements:

1. Rob Marshall has confirmed Marion's participation in "Nine." She will be playing the role of Luisa, Guido's (Javier Bardem) wife. Source.

2. An inside source directed me to the trade ad for the November 13 release of "La Vie En Rose." Click on the image for the full size.



Bravo, powers that be. I'm definitely looking forward to the Into Character featurette, and of course, the extra footage.

Finally, the latest issue of Rolling Stone arrived at my door today. Look to the film section for the following quote:

"For acting, the Academy is directed to get out the gold for Marion Cotillard as chanteuse Edith Piaf in 'La Vie En Rose.'"

Audio

Click here to listen to another interview with Marion Cotillard--in English.

Of note is Marion's comments about her next film project: "Nothing that I can talk about right now, but it's going to be a stage musical, sort of rock-opera, something like that."

Can you say "Nine"? By the way, the Pittsburgh Post Gazette is reporting that the rumoured line up (Cruz/Bardem/Cotillard) is now official. Nice!

Risky

The Hollywood Reporter reflects on the best movies released during the past few months. On Marion:

"Writer-director Olivier Dahan throws nearly every acting challenge in the proverbial book at his leading lady, Marion Cotillard. As legendary chanteuse Edith Piaf, she transforms from vagabond street performer to the toast of Paris -- but there's truly nothing she can't handle: aging decades, struggling with drug addiction, mourning the loss of a lover. Dahan's decision to structure the story in an almost obnoxiously nonlinear fashion has alienated some critics, but that feeling of constant dislocation arguably helps capture the sense of what it must have been like to be Edith." More...

Release

An inside source revealed to me that an extended version of "La Vie En Rose" will be released in the US on November 13. The timing could not be better--it will serve as a strong reminder to audiences, critics and Academy members alike of this brilliant film, and of course, Marion Cotillard's award-worthy performance.

Blogs

I have to say, one of the highlights of this experiment has been reading other people's blogs (like this one) and opinions about not only this film and its star, but life in general. Call me sentimental, but it speaks to the power of film to bring people from vastly different walks of life together.

Tops

Thanks to the European DVD release of "La Môme," lots of video clips are finding their way online. Here's a clip (with Spanish subtitles)of what I consider to be the best sequence in an already magnificent film. Someone wrote that this clip alone could work as a short film of Piaf and we would know pretty much everything there is to know about the artistry of this woman--it is that powerful. And it is the perfect marriage of filmmaking, music, and acting.

And that, ladies and gentlemen, is acting.

Holiday

I've been on a bit of a holiday (i.e. Labor Day), so nothing new to report, except for a lovely image that came my way:

Voilà.

Comienzo

A wonderful clip--this is the actual opening of "La Vie En Rose." It's subtitled in Spanish--se lo dedico a todos mis visitantes de habla Hispana.



Chills! I can't wait for the North American DVD release.

Competition

So September is once again upon us, it can only mean one thing: the best of the best, the creme de la creme will hit be hitting a screen near you. In short, the Oscar-baiting season begins.

Because news have been pretty slow (as expected...), I'll be expanding the scope of the blog to include news about other candidates for the Gold. In the end, this will accomplish two things: (a) provide context to Marion's inevitable win, and (b) keep aware of the ever-changing trends should the win prove not that inevitable after all.

In addition, I'll be discussing the main contenders in other major categories, like lead actor, best picture, best director, etc.

Lastly, thanks to everyone for the kind messages I've received. It's nice to see folks out there enjoy this absurd little experiment! Cheers.