Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		2.5
Overall		3.5

Coco Before Chanel Blu-ray Movie Review

Sony delivers a fine Blu-ray presentation of a well-crafted biopic of a 20th century icon.

Reviewed by Martin Liebman February 5, 2010

Love is best in fairy tales.

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 Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

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 Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

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 Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

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 Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

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.