Customer Reviews

Coco Chanel & Igor Stravinsky [Blu-ray]

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

This is a beautifully filmed biopic of the steamy affair between Coco Chanel and Igor Stravinsky. As depicted in the film, when the controversial "Rite of Spring" was first produced by the Ballets Russes in 1913, Chanel was one of the few in the audience who was deeply impressed by the composer's genius. From that event, she thereafter invites Igor Stravinsky to be a quasi-permanent guest at her villa in the country; it is there she seduces the maestro.

I wanted to like the picture more than I did. Certainly the music of the "Rite of Spring" - which holds the picture together - is intrinsically thrilling and dramatic. The glimpse of the ballet as it may have been initially produced is intriguing. (For the full ballet, I do recommend the recently released: "Stravinsky and the Ballets Russes" on DVD.)

But ultimately the story does not explain how the affair impacted either Stravinsky's or Chanel's individual creative projects. And the affair itself does not light up the screen - it is almost lukewarm.

The quote I picked for the title of this review is the line that shocked me in the film - when Stravinsky quips at Coco Chanel...and wrongfully at that. Everyone in fashion understands how much of a genius and artist Chanel was. Indeed the gorgeous villa that Chanel decorated is explicitly shown in the movie. It clearly exhibits the bold, simplistic, immeasurably compelling talent of Chanel. The film - which I said earlier is beautifully shot - shows the performance in the Opera House in the Champs-Elysee. It also uses historic costumes from the real Chanel collections.

A theme in the latter half of the picture is the impact of the love affair on the neglected wife of Stravinsky who was dangerously ill; the wife's accusations of immorality against Coco Chanel do not phase the couturier. After all, Chanel apologizes to no one for her independence.

Nonetheless, my favorite Chanel movie remains the documentary - "Chanel, Chanel." And as fictional drama, I actually did prefer "Coco Before Chanel", a movie most highly recommended by Roger Ebert. But Chanel enthusiasts wil see "Coco Chanel and Igor Stravnisky" ...definitely.

The images and the sounds&music are soooo exquisite that I can't hold the "lack of a typical story and story arc" against the movie. (I do not care for over the top drama, though I know it can be done well.) This movie lacks this in the story department, there is no "that this happens, and then she said that and he reacted this way". It is much more subtle than that. The pure visuals and sounds tell the story, the emotions and conflicts. The actors are part of the whole thing but not the most important thing, which I have to say I do like. I believe they did their job magnificently just because of that fact, that they don't over act, over dramatize everything.

The story is in the background, the moments in the foreground. It is much more a real way of telling a story, the way we experience life, in moments, in significant moments. And their significance can not always be determined/identified by the actions but by the emotions these actions cause in us.

It is beautiful from start to finish and for my personal taste a treasure, that I will enjoy for years to come.

The movie in two words: elegant, beautiful.

I watched this movie twice at a large theater with an excellent sound system. I enjoyed the first half hour, which presents a reasonably accurate recreation of the premiere of Stravinsky's ballet THE RITE OF SPRING. Everything seemed accurate, and even the actor who played the conductor Pierre Monteux looked as he might have. After this exciting, even raucous, beginning, however, this movie settled down to a much quieter level which it stayed on for the rest of the picture.
If you're interested in either THE RITE or in Stravinsky, this movie is of limited attraction. If you're interested in Coco Chanel, I'm not sure you'll be fully satisfied, either. The cover of this DVD pictures her as the dominant side of this affair (we don't even see Igor's face here), but the movie is evenly balanced between both, perhaps even giving us more of Stravinsky than Coco. Even though the cinematography, design, writing, acting, and directing is rather stylish, I felt something was missing. That element is passion. This is a curiously chilly biography of what is supposed to be a mad fling. Coco is presented as an ice queen, even though she's a generous patroness of the arts, bankrolling the revival of THE RITE with new choreography by Massine in 1920. Her love sessions with the great composer were done with the same detachment as one might watch an iceberg break off of Antarctica. The old ladies in my audience behaved as if these scenes were part of a documentary about penguins.
One other point I'd like to mention is that the final scenes in the film seem to suggest that Stravinsky ended his life as a lonely old man living in an apartment in some American city, apparently pining for Coco, which is nonsense. His first wife, Catherine Nossenko, lived until 1939, almost twenty years after the Coco episode, and Stravinsky remarried in 1940 to Vera de Bosset, whom he had met in 1921, when they were both married. In addition, Stravinsky's busy life was filled with friends and colleagues such as George Balanchine and Robert Craft. The implication that Coco was a major influence on Igor is probably not true. I doubt he gave her much thought after 1921 or so. He was just too busy.

I saw this film six times. I obviously loved it not because it was some sort of "biopic," which it was not, but because it was a film using known people in a made up situation that created a powerful story about art, craft, passion and creativity. From what I could find out, almost nothing in the film except the names of the characters had anything to do with fact.

I thought the best way to understand the film and the problematic ending was to see it as a study of two different types of creative artists each using the other's passion to discover something about his/her own work. In the meantime the contrast between the old style of life (Katia) and the new style (Coco) effectively showed the necessity of generosity as the basis for the modern. The film seemed to me to be a feminist statement of the influence of women on a fairly stodgy male whose creativity was dependent first on his wife and then on the passion he felt with Coco. It was the women, both of them, who made him the voice of the modern at the end of the film, but it was Coco's sacrifice of her passion (although Igor made it easy by calling her a "shopkeeper")that allowed him to triumph in the second performance of the "Rite" nine years later. Her appearing in the costume she had designed for the sacrificial victim signaled her sacrifice to art.

I particularly liked the sly way the actress who played Katia showed her superiority to Igor. She nods slightly to her son who then checkmates Igor at chess. She is very aware of her place in his creativity and success. Yet, she represents Old Russia whose voice in exile can no longer be heard.

It is true that the real Igor gave the real Coco the icon seen in the film. She did keep it on her mantle, and it is true that he and his family stayed at Coco's manor for two years, but he worked on Pulchinella, a neo-classic work, not a revision of the "Rite." It is not clear what happened between them. At the time Coco was involved with another Russian emigre.

So, by looking at the film as a powerful statement of artistic process and creativity, of passion and feminine superiority, of the conflict between the old and the new, and the necessity of generosity as the glue that makes the future possible, the film becomes a stunning work of art in itself.

It seems that Coco & Igor is more a beautifully imagined story than it is a biography. The movie is based on a novel that presumed a relationship between them during his time in Paris in 1920. The only problem is that Igor Stravinsky seems like little more than a "boy toy" played between Coco and his deeply jealous wife, Katerina. The women in this movie are by far the most captivating to watch, while Mads Mikkelsen pretty much plays Stravinsky like a rube, at least when it comes to affairs of the heart.

I won't hold this against Mads, because I have enjoyed him in other movies, but he seems clearly miscast as Stravinsky, right down to his heavy Russian accent. If you are going to invite Yelena Morozova to play Katerina, why not invite Oleg Menshikov or Vladimir Mashkov to play Stravinsky. Much better for a Russian actor to speak with a heavy French accent than it is to have a Danish actor struggle with two languages.

As a film, Coco & Igor is beautiful to watch. It plays out like a sonata, with sparse dialog, conveying much less than do the impeccable sets, lighting and clothing that take you back to 1920. This is after Coco became Chanel and had established her House and was scrutinizing what would become her famous perfume. The camera soaks up every detail right down to the art deco etchings on Stravinsky's brandy snifter as he works out the final revisions to his Rite of Spring, which had been so badly received before the war. That he owed any debt of gratitude to Coco Chanel for this is highly unlikely, but it would be nice to think so.

First watch "Coco before Channel" with the magnificient Audrey Tautou then watch this film about his later years and meeting Coco when she had achieved some modicum of fame. Outstanding combination for anyone interested in the man who with Bach and Beethoven is considered the greatest innovator of all music history and Coco, whose style is popular to this day.

I feel this was a glorified love story that made a mother and her children suffer because of it. It did want me to seek out the truth and find out the actual occurances, The dresses, housing etc were very interesting,

COCO CHANEL & IGOR STRAVINSKY is a sumptuously beautiful film to watch - all artsy art nouveau decor, almost devoid of conversation, with captiating portrayals of two of the 20th century's most creative talents - Coco and Igor - played with distant but memorable acting by Anna Mouglalis and Mads Mikkelsen. And there is enough of the core star (Stravinsky's 'Le sacre du printemps') of the 'biography' to make it musically stable. But the problem with this otherwise tasty peak into the lives of Coco and Igor is the lack of accuracy of fact. Perhaps that is what writers Chris Greenhalgh, Carlo De Boutiny, writer/director Jan Kounen had in mind: drop a few elements of fact, mix those with a huge dollop of imagination and create a moment of lust and frustration that usually accompanies the public and private lives of stars. Perhaps in their eyes, fiction is stranger than fact.

What we do know is that prior to the May 29, 1913, at the Théatre des Champs-Elysées in Paris scandalous premiere of 'Le sacre du printemps' Igor Stravinsky (Mads Mikkelsen) was a very successful composer of such favorites as 'The Firebird' and 'Petrouska' and before his premiere of 'Le sacre' was presented by the Ballet Russes under the direction of Diagilev (Grigori Manukov) with choreography by the notorious Vaslav Nijinsky (Marek Kossakowski in a very bland portrayal): Stravinsky would later write in his autobiography of the process of working with Nijinsky on the choreography, stating that "the poor boy knew nothing of music" and that Nijinsky "had been saddled with a task beyond his capacity." In the audience is the icy Coco Chanel (Anna Mouglalis) who, still grieving for her deceased lover Boy Patel (Anatole Taubman), connects with the primitive passions of the production. The film then cuts to 1920 with Stravinsky and his four children and tuberculous wife Katerina (Yelena Morozova) barely existing in Paris when Diaghilev introduces Stravinsky to the wealthy patron Coco Chanel who invites the poverty stricken Stravinsky family to stay in her lavish villa outside Paris where Stravinsky composes while Katerina copies her husband's music and Coco keeps her successful Parisian business and seeks out her famous perfume Chanel No. 5. Some history books (including memoirs by Stravinsky himself) state that the stay lasted for only 2 weeks and that the two were simply close friends, but the creators of the film would have us believe that a torrid love affair occurred under the eyes of Katerina, a lusty sexual fulfilling of a need for both geniuses which ends in Katerina and the children moving out to Biarritz and distance develops between Igor and Coco: the secretive patronage of Coco to the Ballet Russes is supposed to have allowed a new performance of the 'Sacre' with costumes designed by Chanel and re-choreographed by Leonid Massine - the truth of these elements cannot be proved.

So what we have here is a two hour nearly wordless study of the needs of two famous people colliding in an affair but also focusing the world of Paris' attention on new ways of creativity. Mikkelsen and Mouglalis are terrific if cold, the 'love' scenes are beautifully photographed, and the decor of Chanel's house and all of the costumes are splendid. Gabriel Yared provides a musical score that is based on phrases from Stravinsky and makes for an exciting background for this visual outing. It is worth viewing if only to step inside the Paris of the time of the two main characters. Just don't expect solid facts to reign! Grady Harp, September 10

The first time I put on my newly arrived DVD, I was a bit exhausted and perhaps had one too many Martinis. When it was over I stumbled into bed. A few nites later I watched again, and it wasn't until then that I realized I had nodded off more than I realized during the first viewing. What a nice surprise! It was like watching a 5 star movie I hadn't seen before! Yes, indeed, I it enjoyed so much the second time around, not so tired, and relatively alert. I know it isn't perfect, but to take me into the theatre on the premier of Le Sacre alone was worth the price of "admission". Even that wasn't perfect but I was in my glory. After 50 years of loving Stravinsky and a Johnny-come-lately to fashion via Project Runway, this movie was so entertaining for me. I hope you find it that way too.

Gabrielle Bonheur "Coco" Chanel, the French fashion designer who was a pioneer of fashion during the 20th Century and the founder of one of the world's most noticeable brands....Chanel.

Igor Stravinsky, the Russian composer, pianist and conductor who is known as being one of the most important and influential composers of the 20th Century.

What do these two have in common aside being influential and important to their respective careers and industry? The two also were romantically linked together, albeit having an affair with each other.

And thus, the affair is documented in the biopic "Coco Chanel & Igor Stravinsky", a film written and based on the novel "Coco & Igor" by Chris Greenhalgh and directed by Jan Kounen ("Renegade", "Doberman", "Darshan: The Embrace") and will be released on Blu-ray courtesy of Sony Pictures Classics.

Earlier this year, we had the chance to see another Coco Chanel biopic "Coco avant Chanel" from Sony Pictures Classics starring Audrey Tautou as Gabrielle, in her earlier years as she and her sister tried to survive from poverty by taking whichever job they can and we saw how Gabrielle became a fashion designer and found love in Arthur "Boy" Capel, a man that she had loved but a love that would end in tragedy and would streamline Chanel's focus into her fashion line and make her one of the most powerful women in France.

"Coco Chanel & Igor Stravinsky" establishes the timeline of when Coco Chanel first met the composer Igor Stravinsky and how the two became close.


VIDEO:

"Coco Chanel & Igor Stravinsky" is presented in 1080p High Definition (2:35:1 aspect ratio). The film looks absolutely magnificent. Cinematographer David Ungaro did a fantastic job with the camera work in capturing the lifestyle and decor of Coco Chanel's home (indoors and outdoors) and store.

The shots of "The Rite of Spring" was well-choreographed and featured remarkably well on film. Also, the clothing of Coco Chanel and the overall lighting that accentuates the shadows on both Coco and Igor's body, there was a lot of creativity and planning in getting these shots and it shows.

Skin tones are natural, there is a fine layer of grain and blacks are nice and deep. Picture quality for "Coco Chanel & Igor Stravinsky" is awesome.

AUDIO & SUBTITLES:

"Coco Chanel & Igor Stravinsky" is presented in French 5.1 DTS-HD MA. Audio is crisp and clear. Dialogue is clear, to the touch of the piano keys, the music, the horse galloping and even the love making scenes, these come through crystal clear through the front channels and surround channels.

The scene that will catch people's attention is the first 20-minutes of the film when we watch the riot at "The Rite of Spring". Not only is the music wonderful but you get a good amount of crowd ambiance as well.

Subtitles are presented in English, French and English SDH.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

"Chanel Coco & Igor Stravinsky" comes with the following special features (in standard definition, French stereo and with English subtitles):

* The Making of Coco Chanel & Igor Stravinsky - (20:20) Presented in standard definition. We get to see how the talent were behind-the-scenes. The thoughts that went behind the certain scenes and talents talking about their experience and more.
* Theatrical Trailer - (2:02) The original theatrical trailer for "Coco Chanel & Igor Stravinsky" presented in HD.

JUDGMENT CALL:

"Coco Chanel & Igor Stravinsky" is an interesting and visually appealing film. It's a film where dialogue is not so much the importance, but how two powerful individuals, with a similar, cold style are able to find an attraction to each other. But at the same time, how both are amoral as they do what they feel is right, even if it make people who are dear to them, suffer.

And this is where I have a difficult time with the film and trying to find out what is fact and what is fiction. Did these two really care for each other? Was it a one-sided love? I've read about Stravinsky's relationship with his wife, about him being a philanderer and how he found love with Vera de Bosset. But there is not many details on his relationship with Coco Chanel, mainly that the two had a sexual affair when he (along with his family) were living with Coco Chanel.

It is well-documented that Coco Chanel was an independent woman, we know that she was a different person after the death of her beloved "Boy", but I often wonder if "Coco Chanel & Igor Stravinsky" paints Coco as this desirable woman that men just want, but she is not the type to give back emotionally. In some ways, she is portrayed as a cold-hearted vamp that can care less of what she is doing. She is completely amoral of her sexual liasons and affairs, even during a scene when confronted by the wife of Stravinsky. But was Coco Chanel, this bad? Was she this cold? Did both of these individuals really care for each other up to their elder years?

These thoughts ran through my head as my experience watching "Coco avant chanel" (Coco Before Chanel) was much more positive as we see Coco in various emotions but in this film, Coco had an air about her that was very cold and times, uncaring. She did what she wants, she said what she wants and I suppose the death of Arthur "Boy" Capel changed her forever.

But despite of Coco's demeanor in the film, whether is accurate or not, I will say that "Coco Chanel & Igor Stravinsky" was entertaining. The first 20-minutes is dedicated to "The Rite of Spring" and I believe this may be the first film that tried to recreate the famous classical riot on film. It was an exciting musical piece and very enjoyable to watch and something you just will not find in American cinema (as the first 15 minutes, many filmmakers try to establish the story), for this film, the actual story starts after those 30-minutes or more later when Stravinsky and his family move to Coco's home.

And this is where the film becomes visually driven. The placement of the characters, the lighting that accentuates the bodies of Coco and Igor and you can tell that the film really focused on camera placement and showcasing the affection both Coco and Igor had for each other. Meanwhile, each time the film switched over to Katerina, we are greeted with a sickly woman who knows her husband has been with another woman. The cinematography was fantastic but the storyline was average. One should know who Chanel and Stravinksy were before watching this film, one should read up on these individuals. Otherwise the film makes you think that these two people, who may be successful in their own respective fields, both are flawed, amoral, self-indulgent individuals.

I am not sure if the film is cinema hyperbole but I have a hard time believing how this sexual affair ended in the war of words between both Chanel and Stravinsky. And for me, after watching "Coco avant Chanel", I had a hard time believing that "Coco Chanel & Igor Stravinsky" is more pleading a case of verisimilitude.

So, there are things about the film that I did enjoy. David Ungaro's artistic cinematography, the remaking of "The Rite of Spring" and the events that took place on that day in 1913, I felt the set design and costume design were wonderful and I also felt that Anna Mouglalis, Mads Mikkelsen and Yelena Morozova have done a wonderful job but the overall plot seems a bit trite. Also, it's important to note that after the credits are over, there is another scene in the film that should not be missed but perhaps their should have been some mention in the film to those not familiar with Coco Chanel of how much "Boy" meant to her and why she would never ever have any major connection (let alone be married) to another man in the same manner. It would of helped with the overall storyline and helped people understand that final scene at the end of the credits.

As for the Blu-ray release, picture and audio quality are very good, the special features are a little lacking in this Blu-ray release but you do get the 20+ minute making-of featurette.

Overall, "Coco Chanel & Igor Stravinsky" is a visually appealing film but whether or not this biopic is indeed factual, I don't know. While some parts of the film are beautiful and entertaining, I felt the film lacked any major stage of fulfillment. It just kept going and going until its done. The film is not great but nor is it bad, for the most part, its an average film at best.