 Coco Before Chanel (Cert. 12, out 23 November) Audrey Tautou, Marie Gillain, Emmanuelle Devos, dir. Anne Fontaine, 2009, cert. 12 Monkey score: 88% What It's About Coco Before Chanel is the story of how poor orphan girl Gabrielle (Audrey Tautou) became Coco, the grande dame of French haute couture. From being brought up with sister Adrienne (Marie Gillain) by nuns she derived a taste for simple elegance. From the men she meets along the way she learns to use her sexuality to her advantage. Coco is not afraid to be true to herself and confidently navigates in a men's world, rejecting the corsets as sartorial ties that bind the women of her time. She does love men, though, and even finds love, but as tragedy befalls her personal life she somehow finds the inner strength to build a fashion empire. As Coco's story unfolds it reveals her modest initial steps in the fashion world and ability to draw inspiration from the world around her. What Movie Monkeys Thought Coco Before Chanel tells a fascinating story. It gives us an insight on what modelled the character of this ordinary country girl. There are mere mortals like most of us, and those who can create a power-house that still rules catwalks 100 years after Coco first opened shop. Audrey Tautou is perfect in the role, taking her Chanel 5 spokesmodel role to the big screen. She has just the right amount of sass to pull it off, and an uncanny resemblance to Coco herself. Coco Before Chanel is like one of the trademark suits created by Coco: simply elegant, stylish and never over-the-top. Classy.  |
 Ice Age 3 (Cert. U, out 23 November) John Leguizamo, Denis Leary, Ray Romano, Queen Latifah, Simon Pegg, dir. Carlos Saldanha / Mike Thurmeier, 2009, cert. U Manny (Ray Romano) and Ellie (Queen Latifah) the mammoths are expecting their first baby, while Diego (Denis Leary) the sabre-toothed tiger feels like he's losing his mojo and Sid The Sloth (John Leguizamo) sets off on his own. To cut down to the nitty gritty, the gang senses an opportunity to play rescuing heroes and go after Sid, who has become the proud step-dad of 3 baby dinos. Enters Buck, a deranged weasel somewhere between John Rambo and Crocodile Dundee. Voiced to sheer perfection by Simon Pegg, his character steals the show of this otherwise average third pre-historical outing. Buck even manages to outshine nutty squirrel Scrat who for the occasion has been given more than his beloved acorn to be concerned with. Cue Scratte, the girl squirrel. Sounds a bit familiar? It's because Ice Age 3 threads Looney Tunes territory, though sadly never quite as successfully as the classic cartoons. It's the weakest of the 3 films, but will keep the kids amused again and again, and then some more. The welcome addition of the deranged weasel to the much-loved motley crew will help grown-ups keep their sanity on Boxing Day.
Boogie (Cert. 15) Dragos Bucur, Anamaria Marinca, dir. Radu Muntean, 2009, cert. 15 Bogdan is married with one kid and another on the way. On a family holiday a chance encounter with old school mates takes him down the memory lane of his wilder days. Director Radu Muntean tells of Boogie's struggle between wanting a last chance at feeling young and free, and life as a grown-up family man - simply and thoughtfully. The result is an intimate, moving film, set against the backdrop of a seaside resort that fell from grace with Ceausescu's regime. Boogie comes with a bonus DVD featuring Muntean's The Paper Will Be Blue, a fictionalisation of the confusion that took Bucharest over after the dictatorship collapsed.
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