Coco Before Chanel

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Coco Before Chanel

PG-13

Released Nov 6, 2009

1h 50m

Biography

Comedy

Drama

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Popcornmeter

63%

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131 Reviews

57%

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25,000+ Ratings

Young Coco Chanel (Audrey Tautou) works as a seamstress by day and a cabaret entertainer by night, then she meets a wealthy heir (Benoît Poelvoorde) and becomes his lover and fashion consultant. Tired of the flowery hats, tight corsets and yards of lace that define women's fashion, Coco uses her lover's clothing as a starting point to distill an elegant and sophisticated line of women's clothing that propels her to the top of Parisian haute couture.

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Critics Consensus

Though it doesn't quite capture the complexity of its subject's life, Coco Avant Chanel remains a fascinating, appropriately lovely tribute.

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Ed Koch

The Atlantic

Coco Before Chanel is not a great film, but it is a good one...the joy between Coco and Boy truly dominates the screen and gets your attention.

Jan 17, 2018

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Joe Williams

St. Louis Post-Dispatch

The thread connecting the ambitious girl to the acclaimed woman is enough to make us wish for a sequel titled Chanel No. 2.

Rated: 2.5/4

Nov 5, 2009

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Tom Long

Detroit News

The film is unfailingly funny.

Rated: B

Oct 23, 2009

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Jason Best

Movie Talk

Anne Fontaine's lavish biopic goes back to Chanel's early years to show how, before she invented the century - by revolutionising fashion - she first invented herself.

Nov 23, 2020

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Felicia Feaster

Charleston City Paper

In the end, Coco Before Chanel's woman-before-the-mogul biography is more respectable than rousing, an enlightening but hardly ground-moving tribute to a fashion modernist.

Jan 23, 2020

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Nikki Baughan

Roll Credits

Like Coco's designs, Coco Before Chanel won't appeal to everyone, but for those who fall under it's charms it will prove to be a near-perfect fit.

Rated: 4/5

Oct 30, 2019

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Audience Member

Audrey’s performance in the movie is amazing!

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/06/25

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D T

I loved this movie!! Just watched on the plane home from Paris, thus it caught my eye. Very thoughtfully and beautifully filmed. The story line is real. Life is not a bed of roses and surely wasn't for Coco but seeing her rise to great heights because of her stubbornness, uniqueness and perseverance is heartwarming! Coco was a surviver and OH so talented. I only wish it had been longer.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

11/12/24

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貴大中

Actually I stopped watching this movie in just around 1 hour. It’s not bad, but it was not what I expected. I felt there was so many thing unnatural. I know this is depend on autobiography . but autobiology is not a 100% real because it depend on the only one point of view. This movie represent the that truth

Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars

05/03/24

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nani j

Coco Before Chanel is one of the best movies I have ever watched. If you are like me and like a good romance movie, whilst also having a passion and love for fashion & for Coco herself, I would 1000% recommend tuning in for this film. The emotions you experience throughout this movie are like no other.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

12/17/23

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Ashley H

not extremely exciting, but not too bad. wouldn't watch it again though. but worth watching it once, just to know the history.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

10/30/23

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isla s

I enjoyed this film in terms of the plot and the dialogue - Coco is a quite thoughtful person, an ambitious woman who I admire. As a period drama its reasonably good, with some impressive costumes and settings. It may be a little lsow moving, plot wise, for some people - its certainly not an action packed or constantly drama filled film but as I say, its somewhat thought provoking, perhaps a bit deep in a way, with the titular character questioning why things in society are, how they are. Seeing her frustrations, I felt sorry for her at times and I'd say that Audrey Tatou gives a perfectly decent performance but its not the sort of biopic film I'd be entirely keen to re-watch. Its certainly not a bad film but its not one of the most memorable either, hence my rating. If your interested in the story this film depicts or your a fan of Tatou, then I'd say that yes, I'd recommend it, otherwise perhaps not.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

03/31/23

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Anne Fontaine

Director

Audrey Tautou

Gabrielle 'Coco' Chanel

Benoît Poelvoorde

Étienne Balsan

Alessandro Nivola

Arthur 'Boy' Capel

Marie Gillain

Adrienne Chanel

Emmanuelle Devos

Emilienne d'Alençon

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Synopsis

Young Coco Chanel (Audrey Tautou) works as a seamstress by day and a cabaret entertainer by night, then she meets a wealthy heir (Benoît Poelvoorde) and becomes his lover and fashion consultant. Tired of the flowery hats, tight corsets and yards of lace that define women's fashion, Coco uses her lover's clothing as a starting point to distill an elegant and sophisticated line of women's clothing that propels her to the top of Parisian haute couture.

Director: Anne Fontaine
Producer: Caroline Benjo, Carole Scotta, Philippe Carcassonne, Simon Arnal
Screenwriter: Anne Fontaine, Camille Fontaine, Edmonde Charles-Roux
Distributor: Sony Pictures Classics
Production Co: Ciné@, Haut et Court, France 2 Cinéma, Warner Bros. Entertainment
Rating: PG-13 (Smoking|Sexual Content)
Genre: Biography, Comedy, Drama
Original Language: French (France)
Release Date (Theaters): Nov 6, 2009, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Apr 16, 2012
Box Office (Gross USA): $6.1M
Runtime: 1h 50m
Aspect Ratio: Scope (2.35:1)

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