Audrey Tautou reminds us of Audrey Hepburn. She is cute, adorable, pixie-ish...the kind of girl who worms her way into our hearts.
In Amelia, she crashed on the American scene as the winsome Parisian waitress, whose good deeds spread happiness wherever she went. In L'Auberge Espagnole, she dazzled as one of the international 20-somethings living together. We got to love her sweet personality and edgy wit. She got serious and really changed her colors in Dirty Pretty Things...so effectively, that she was a knockout as the brave kid who exposed the baddies.
In Coco, Audrey is perfect as the wayward child who eventually rules the fashion industry. This viewer had no idea that Coco was abandoned as a child, worked as a seamstress, and eventually became the mistress to a wealthy landowner.
The film is not easy to watch, in the same way a Jane Austen piece creates malaise. Turn of the Century France, like England, was not easy on women. If a young lady did not grow up in a wealthy family, she had to find a husband who would care for her...and if she failed in this dreary task, she could end up in the streets. So it was with Coco.
Without giving away plot details, we can safely say that our kept lady emerges victorious. Coco is worth seeing, both for Audrey Tautou's fine acting and a revealing glimpse at women's condition in France a century ago.
Grade of A. A fine film that instructs and entertains.
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