La Vie en Rose
Picturehouse Entertainment | Release Date: June 8, 2007 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
66
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 29 Critic Reviews
Positive:
19
Mixed:
10
Negative:
0
Watch Now
Buy on
Stream On
Stream On
Stream On
Expand

Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
100
Chicago Sun-TimesRoger Ebert
Olivier Dahan's La Vie en Rose, one of the best biopics I've seen, tells Piaf's life story through the extraordinary performance of Marion Cotillard, who looks like the singer. Read full review
100
Philadelphia InquirerSteven Rea
For Piaf fans, La Vie en Rose is a must-see. For fans yet-to-be, Dahan and Cotillard's film is an opportunity rich with discovery. Read full review
91
Seattle Post-IntelligencerSean Axmaker
Olivier Dahan's sprawling portrait of the life of Edith Piaf is the kind of grand, passionate historical drama that no one seems to be able to pull off any more. Read full review
88
TV Guide MagazineMaitland McDonagh
It's sometimes wrenching to watch, but it's too gripping to turn away from. Read full review
88
Rolling StonePeter Travers
Dahan's impressionistic heartbreaker of a movie gets it all in. And Marion Cotillard, lip-syncing Piaf's songs and digging into her soul with gale-force urgency, gives a performance for the ages. Read full review
83
Entertainment WeeklyOwen Gleiberman
Hurtling and impassioned, driven by some of the greatest popular music ever recorded, this wildly overripe and unkempt biopic is a true experience. Read full review
83
Baltimore SunMichael Sragow
Cotillard brings honesty to histrionics. She makes Piaf - "the little sparrow" - soar. Read full review
78
Austin ChronicleToddy Burton
How do you tell the true story of a mythical woman? In epic proportions, of course. Read full review
75
Christian Science MonitorPeter Rainer
La Vie en Rose elevates Piaf the archetype over Piaf the artist. Although I question this approach, I'm not sure it could have been done any differently, at least given the facts of Piaf's life. If there is such a way, Duhan didn't find it. Read full review
75
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Kamal AL-Solaylee
Surprisingly but fittingly, for a film about the life of a singer, the use of songs is generally elliptical. Read full review
75
New York PostLou Lumenick
Thanks to the extraordinary performance of Cotillard, who expertly lip- syncs to Piaf recordings and disappears into the part, few will regret seeing La Vie En Rose, named after a famous Piaf tune. Just brace yourself for a film of unvarying intensity that seems longer than its 140-minute running time. Read full review
75
New York Daily NewsJack Mathews
The song for which Piaf is best-known - "Non, Je Ne Regrette Rien" ("No Regrets") - leads to a killer finale with Cotillard perfectly lip-synching Piaf's recording of it. Trust me; you'll want to own it. Read full review
75
Boston GlobeWesley Morris
If even half of Olivier Dahan's robust film about Piaf's life is true -- and let's face it, much remains shrouded in myth and mystery -- it's a wonder she could get dressed in the morning, let alone forge a legendary singing career. Read full review
75
Portland OregonianShawn Levy
It's not an ideal film, but it has the virtue of the ideal star, and that counts. Read full review
70
Wall Street JournalJoe Morgenstern
The film is long and sometimes harrowing, but also enthralling. Read full review
70
Los Angeles TimesCarina Chocano
Marion Cotillard astonishes as Edith Piaf in 'La Vie en Rose. Read full review
70
Washington PostPhilip Kennicott
Cotillard leaves you loving her Piaf, wishing you could reach through the screen and steer her life a bit differently. Read full review
63
USA TodayStaff (Not credited)
There's a riveting tale within this awkward litany of pivotal moments. Still, despite the film's uneven nature, Cotillard's extraordinary performance is worth experiencing. Read full review
63
Chicago TribuneMichael Phillips
Wildly uneven. Read full review
60
New York Magazine (Vulture)David Edelstein
She lip-syncs convincingly to Piaf's songs. Even when she overacts like mad, she makes you think she’s Piaf overacting like mad--the little sparrow with the foghorn pipes. Read full review
60
The Hollywood ReporterKirk Honeycutt
The film is messy the way Piaf's life was messy: It's unafraid of extravagant gestures even when they fail to come off. Read full review
60
EmpireAnna Smith
A far-from-rosy life story makes this lengthy biopic entertaining, but despite a strong lead performance it fails to get under Piaf’s skin. Read full review
50
Village VoiceElla Taylor
Uplifted beyond its merits by a stunning performance from Marion Cotillard, the humdrum biopic of Edith Piaf, La Vie En Rose, jogs obligingly along with Piaf the legend rather than the woman. Read full review
50
The New York TimesA.O. Scott
La Vie en Rose, which Mr. Dahan wrote as well as directed, has an intricate structure, which is a polite way of saying that it's a complete mess... In the end, as often happens in movies of this kind, La Vie en Rose is saved by Piaf herself. Read full review
50
San Francisco ChronicleSteven Winn
A feverish, unremitting and grimly joyless film. Read full review
50
SalonStephanie Zacharek
Dahan's filmmaking damn near sabotages the performance. Read full review
50
Chicago ReaderJonathan Rosenbaum
Marion Cotillard tears up all the available scenery in this overblown, achronological biopic of French pop singer Edith Piaf. Read full review
42
The A.V. ClubNathan Rabin
For all its florid pretensions and epic length, the film's overwrought take on its subject's not-so-rosy life leaves behind no lasting insight. Read full review
40
TimeRichard Schickel
There is no rhyme or reason to this jumble -- except perhaps to stress Edith's endless self-victimization. This lack of narrative coherence naturally has the effect of distancing us from her story. Read full review
More From This Movie

66 Critic Reviews

7.8 User Reviews

Details & Credits|Trailers

Current Movie Releases
By MetascoreBy User Score
1 81 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple
2 77 Project Hail Mary
3 75 Send Help
4 73 Hoppers
5 71 The Sheep Detectives
SEE ALL
Essential Links
New on Amazon Prime Video
New on Netflix
Coming Soon to DVD/Blu-ray
SEE ALL