La Vie en Rose (aka La Môme)

So, I was looking forward to La Vie en Rose, not least to see Marion Cotillard's Oscar-winning turn as Edith Piaf.

It's tough to give a synopsis other than it's a bio-pic about a French singing superstar. It spans her life from the age of about 10 to her death at an incredibly old-looking 47.

Hers was a tough life and no messin'. Jesus, it makes Johnny Cash's look like a charmed one, full of love and happiness. Not only was it tough, it also had a lot going on, and this is the main problem with the film. There is just too much information crammed into the running time.

The other significant problem is that unless you have even the most basic knowledge of her life already, you may find yourself wondering what the fuck is going on every once in a while.

Cotillard is phenomenal in the lead role, of that there can be no doubt. As she ages, you can feel every ache in her bones. Her tiny shuffling frame towards the end of her life is almost heartbreaking to behold. And her scenes on stage are quite magnetic. (Don't be put off or swayed by the haters who bitch about her not singing her own songs. The lip-syncing is so good that you never notice anyway.)

But the film is simply not quite as good as she is. I half-wonder whether one day an extended cut might surface on DVD, or perhaps a mini-series-type adaptation, because I'll wager shitloads of footage hit the cutting-room floor to get this work down to some 130 minutes.

All that said, it is a beautiful-looking film, with amazing sets, costumes, and use of colour throughout. And the performances are good from the supporting cast, too, even though many are very brief.

I score La Vie en Rose a "worth watching but slightly disappointing" 70 points out of 100.

DiG!

Ostensibly, DiG! tells the story of two rock 'n' roll bands: The Dandy Warhols and The Brian Jonestown Massacre. The two were friends back in the day, playing gigs together, and the BJM were greatly influential on the Dandys. BJM frontman Anton Newcombe wanted to start a revolution and did not want to play the corporate rock game; the Dandys were happy (at least on the surface) to sell out for success.

What we have here is two parallel tales, informing us how the paths of these two groups diverged. In some ways, it's a cautionary tale; in others, it could be seen as some sort of bible on how to fail in the music biz (in much the same way that Overnight could be seen as how to fail in the movie biz).

This documentary is funny a lot of the time, but there are hints of sadness. Ultimately we are supposed to feel for Newcombe, but although he has some likable traits, it's hard to see him as anything other than a bit of a self-destructive loser. You just wouldn't want to be in a band with him, y'know? (Okay, maybe "loser" is a bit strong; but how else can you term someone who wants success but then bites the hand that tries to feed him every time? It's not like anyone asked him to sell out, y'know.)

The film is a riveting watch, and you may well spend a good amount of the running time slack-jawed with disbelief. While I'm not a fan of either band, it's telling that the least interesting of the two are the biggest success. And I dare say when they're writing the book of rock history in a few decades' time, the Dandys may well be simply a footnote to the creativity of Newcombe and The Brian Jonestown Massacre.

I give DiG! 72 points out of 100.