Marion Cotillard is one of the most celebrated actors of our time.
In quite a stunner of an upset (and a just one) she won the 2007 Best Actress Academy Award for her astonishing work portraying Edith Piaf in La Vie En Rose. She has delivered a slew of indelible performances since in films that include: Nine, Inception, Midnight in Paris, Rust and Bone, The Dark Knight Rises, The Immigrant, Allied, Rock ’n Roll, and Two Days, One Night which brought her a much deserved second Oscar nomination.
She is currently co-starring with Adam Driver in one of the most singular cinematic achievements of 2021, Leos Carax’s Annette, a rock-infused movie with music, lyrics and a screenplay by Ron and Russell Mael (Sparks). In the film, Cotillard plays a world renown opera singer who falls in love with an idiosyncratic, popular comedian. The two marry and have a mysterious little girl and things get bizarre and super dark from there. The film does take on some heady themes such as the need for recognition, how ambition and ego can lead down a spiraling abyss and the destructive power of revenge.
I’d rather not say more since part of the experience is not knowing too much about the already divisive film that had its World Premiere at Cannes last month.
One thing is for certain, both Driver and the dazzling Cotillard will be in the awards conversation. I had the pleasure of speaking all too briefly with Marion on the literal eve of the Los Angeles premiere.
Annette is now available to stream on Amazon Prime.
Cottillard was fine, but far from captivating – I think. Tho, it may be more the fault of the screenplay and the role than hers. Anyway, I thought Driver and Helberg were magnificent – I wish more people were talking about the latter.
I thought Helberg was fantastic. The music didn’t work for me, nor did 2.5 hours of Adam Driver’s “singing” voice.
I disagree. I found her completely beguiling especially combined with the post-sea voyage scene. It’s easy to dismiss her performance since it’s less showy than Driver.
The film belongs to Adam Driver, who is a knockout. Cotillard is solid but it’s not one of her great roles nor will the performance receive any awards traction.
Honestly, beforehand, I can see this film nominated only for Original Song. But if critics champion Driver, Cotillard, and some technicals, it could go way longer than expected… however, at this point, I can’t see Carax over Almodóvar, Sorrentino AND Fahardi, and therefore not seeing this one climbing to Picture / Director consideration.
If Amelie couldn’t make it… Annette probably can’t.
A good strategy move for the campaign, would be to avoid the Drama cathegory at any Awards where they make the distinction, it would directly avoid the three foreign language masters competition… but without the Globes and the Satellites going this year – or so it seems – they can’t play that card to try to get easier recognition.
2022 alert… Wes Anderson is starting to shoot his next film, in Spain, in Chinchón (where Orson Welles shot two films). The production team has basically put the region in a lockdown and there’s total secrecy about the project itself, but some news coverage has peeked some of the production design and sets, in the distance… very much Andersonian. It seems that Wes is making a whole geography of the world with his career… India (Dajerling), France (The French Dispatch), the Ocean (Life Aquatic), now Spain…
Darjeeling 🙂
Sorry but the band is Sparks – not The Sparks.
Yes Annette is a divisive film but I l0ved it ! Being a divisive film is n0t necessarily a bad thing . Three films fr0m the sixties n0w c0nsidered classics B0nnie and Clyde , 2001 and The Wild Bunch were divisive. As f0r Mari0n C0tillard I am still angry at Harvey Weinstein f0r destr0ying The Immigrant and her chance f0r a sec0nd Academy Award . If they manage t0 d0 the G0lden Gl0bes this year Annette sh0uld be up f0r Best M0ti0n Picture Musical and Act0r and Actress in a Musical !