Coco before Chanel

Bea says: Another film seen at the wonderful Colloroy cinema in Sydney, at 12.30 in the afternoon (bliss!) after a bracing swim in the Colloroy rock pool. I will make no bones about the fact that I love clothes and fashion, so was thrilled when Cecil suggested this one. Despite being a dedicated follower of the fashion world though, I realised as I watched this film that I knew next to nothing about Coco Chanel. I did not know that she had been abandoned as a child and brought up in an orphanage (where the nuns taught her to sew beautifully), I didn't know she had made a living singing in bars with her sister, or that she had been forced by circumstance to throw herself on the mercy of a wealthy man, who took her in as his mistress, all before being supported by another man to move to Paris and begin her fledging hat and clothing business.





But aside from a riveting story, and the beautiful and striking clothes - everything worn by Chanel could easily be worn today, and reminded me of a piece of dressing advice I once read by her (and which I follow): "before you go out, take one thing off" - this was nicely written, well executed, and lovely to watch. The always good Audrey Tatou played a star turn in the leading role, and Alessandro Nivola puts in a solid performance as "Boy". My only gripes - Chanel came across as a little precious at times, and I guessed the outcome of Chanel and Boy's relationship before it happened.





A very enjoyable afternoon.


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Cecil says: I love the fact that a small arthouse cinema across the road from a surf beach in Sydney can show this film 4 weeks before it hits London's cinemas. Testing the audience in other parts of the world? If so, it's a particular cross-section of Australian society who pitched up to watch this with us for the matinee. I was the only man in the cinema - apart from the guy in the projection room; and the rest of the audience? 12 ladies, average age 65 - where did they all appear from??? Anyway, it made Bea and me the odd couple in the place.



Now, I'm not a great connoisseur of women's fashion, but I can tell when something really is awful and have quite a good eye for a stylish outfit. It's true that the fashion when Chanel started up was ridiculous: hats with bowls of fruit on top of them and other flouncy dresses and accoutrements so in that sense it was pretty easy to be revolutionary and keep things dramatically simple, as Chanel did. But actually I don't particularly like the style myself - a bit too boyish and plain for my liking, but hey, we aren't here to comment on fashion taste, but on film...

I must say I didn't really warm to any of the characters: the wealthy ex-officer from the French nobility, weary of his social obligations, playing with the young urchin from a provincial singing duo; the dashing young English businessman, a bit too business-like and so, you know, English!; and Coco Chanel herself, cute on one level, with her aspirations to make it on the Paris stage, but actually exploiting the noble officer's inability to throw her out. I didn't feel an enormous amount of sympathy for her really and since I also didn't much like the clothes, there was not a lot for me in this film.

I couldn't help feeling there was an undercurrent admiring the French for either knowing how to behave in society, or knowing how to rebel; while the English are really only interested in business, making money and driving fast cars, with love coming a poor 4th. Well, it's true, you might say. But is it????

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