http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/sagefever/26423 &nbsp;After watching this relative unknown, at least to us here in America, win the Oscar for best actress, I knew I had to watch this film. Always intrigued by Billy Holiday and other unique voices, one name stands alone for me&hellip; Edith Piaf. Even with no understanding of French, some voices cross all language barriers and hers certainly does so. The director, Olivier Dahan, chose to read all he could find about &ldquo;the Little Sparrow&rdquo;, both published and unpublished, and make an impression of her tragic life rather than an actual bio picture. So many great artists are tragically flawed, suffer much and yet overcome all to rise to heights we can only dream of. Such was Edith Piaf. Marion Cotillard, as Piaf, does an amazing job of aging from 15 to 47 and manages to capture the essence of the chanteuse. Abandoned several times by her parents, raised in a brothel, singing on the streets that lead to her big break at a Paris nightclub, losing the love of her life and her subsequent addiction are the tragedies, yet there was always someone there to help her, someone to focus her on her art~ that voice. The film weaves in and out of the early times, then her later years, leaving you with a melody that lingers in your ears. &nbsp;After watching this relative unknown, at least to us here in America, win the Oscar for best actress, I knew I had to watch this film. Always intrigued by Billy Holiday and other unique voices, one name stands alone for me&hellip; Edith Piaf. Even with no understanding of French, some voices cross all language barriers and hers certainly does so. The director, Olivier Dahan, chose to read all he could find about &ldquo;the Little Sparrow&rdquo;, both published and unpublished, and make an impression of her tragic life rather than an actual bio picture. So many great artists are tragically flawed, suffer much and yet overcome all to rise to heights we can only dream of. Such was Edith Piaf. Marion Cotillard, as Piaf, does an amazing job of aging from 15 to 47 and manages to capture the essence of the chanteuse. Abandoned several times by her parents, raised in a brothel, singing on the streets that lead to her big break at a Paris nightclub, losing the love of her life and her subsequent addiction are the tragedies, yet there was always someone there to help her, someone to focus her on her art~ that voice. The film weaves in and out of the early times, then her later years, leaving you with a melody that lingers in your ears. en-us <p></p> <p>I thought the movie was a flawless production. It's a shame more people didn't see it.</p> <p> </p> http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/sagefever/26423/#c_236818 http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/sagefever/26423/#c_236818 <p></p> <p>I thought the movie was a flawless production. It's a shame more people didn't see it.</p> <p> </p> <p>I have not seen this one, but I did take your recommendation and I rented &quot;Snow Cake&quot;. I really enjoyed it.&nbsp; I liked Alan Rickman's 'Alex' very much, and Sigourney Weaver's talent was shown in full bloom as she portrayed the autistic 'Linda'. Thanks for the tip.</p> http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/sagefever/26423/#c_237128 http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/sagefever/26423/#c_237128 <p>I have not seen this one, but I did take your recommendation and I rented &quot;Snow Cake&quot;. I really enjoyed it.&nbsp; I liked Alan Rickman's 'Alex' very much, and Sigourney Weaver's talent was shown in full bloom as she portrayed the autistic 'Linda'. Thanks for the tip.</p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Thanks TSM~&nbsp;</span><span style="font-size: small;"> I thought it was a shame more people did not see this film&gt;&gt;&gt;it is definitely worth a rental!\<br /> </span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Ghost~glad you liked Snowcake!</span></p> <p>&nbsp;</p> http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/sagefever/26423/#c_237162 http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/sagefever/26423/#c_237162 <p><span style="font-size: small;">Thanks TSM~&nbsp;</span><span style="font-size: small;"> I thought it was a shame more people did not see this film&gt;&gt;&gt;it is definitely worth a rental!\<br /> </span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Ghost~glad you liked Snowcake!</span></p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>Sage, I see you have The Trials of Darryl Hunt at home. I challenge anyone to watch this documentary and give a convincing argument our judicial system isn't racist.</p> <p>Make sure you watch the interviews in the special features. There's one with a woman who was raped by the same guy who killed the woman Hunt was framed for. The police destroyed the evidence that linked the murder to the real suspect and told the woman not to pursue the case because it would have jeopardized Hunt's trial. The cops and prosecutor knew Hunt was innocent and lied in court and withheld evidence which proved his innocence.</p> <p>&nbsp;I just added Snow Cake to my queue. Thanks for the suggestion.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/sagefever/26423/#c_237288 http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/sagefever/26423/#c_237288 <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>Sage, I see you have The Trials of Darryl Hunt at home. I challenge anyone to watch this documentary and give a convincing argument our judicial system isn't racist.</p> <p>Make sure you watch the interviews in the special features. There's one with a woman who was raped by the same guy who killed the woman Hunt was framed for. The police destroyed the evidence that linked the murder to the real suspect and told the woman not to pursue the case because it would have jeopardized Hunt's trial. The cops and prosecutor knew Hunt was innocent and lied in court and withheld evidence which proved his innocence.</p> <p>&nbsp;I just added Snow Cake to my queue. Thanks for the suggestion.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Just finished the trials of Darryl Hunt~ I had followed the case in the news,but the documentary really lays it out plain and simple.....a must see for anyone concerned with justice here in the U.S.</span></p> <br /> http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/sagefever/26423/#c_237623 http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/sagefever/26423/#c_237623 <p><span style="font-size: small;">Just finished the trials of Darryl Hunt~ I had followed the case in the news,but the documentary really lays it out plain and simple.....a must see for anyone concerned with justice here in the U.S.</span></p> <br /> <p></p> <p>Sage, two other documentaries I have queued are Paradise Lost and Paradise Lost 2. They're about a case (no surprise, in the south) where 3 boys were charged and convicted of a murder they didn't commit. The evidence pointed to the father of one of the victims, but it was never pursued.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/sagefever/26423/#c_237757 http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/sagefever/26423/#c_237757 <p></p> <p>Sage, two other documentaries I have queued are Paradise Lost and Paradise Lost 2. They're about a case (no surprise, in the south) where 3 boys were charged and convicted of a murder they didn't commit. The evidence pointed to the father of one of the victims, but it was never pursued.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Let me know ~I'll add them if they are any good.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">The interview with the second rape victim was stunning. That she never received justice,and was treated so badly by the police was beyond the pale. Thinking to a few cases here,one wonders about the culture of justice.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Just finished &quot;I m not There&quot;...wow and more later on that film.</span></p> <p>&nbsp;</p> http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/sagefever/26423/#c_237775 http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/sagefever/26423/#c_237775 <p><span style="font-size: small;">Let me know ~I'll add them if they are any good.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">The interview with the second rape victim was stunning. That she never received justice,and was treated so badly by the police was beyond the pale. Thinking to a few cases here,one wonders about the culture of justice.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Just finished &quot;I m not There&quot;...wow and more later on that film.</span></p> <p>&nbsp;</p>