C-O-C-O C-H-A-N-E-L

I was never a devoted fan of biographies and biography related productions; books, movies, narrations. Always found it impossible, boring and downright excruciating; stories that revolve around one person. But in a sudden turn of events, I have actually given it a chance, if not made friends with, the lives of the famous, the influential and the successful. Yet, still I never jump onto every significant biography I come across; just the ones I find fascinating or shares particular indulgences I do. That being said, a movie revolving around Coco Chanel, was like a fantasy come true for me…

Coco avant Chanel, so as the title goes, delves into the life of the woman who changed the face of fashion before she was the legendary couturier Chanel… Forget about the plot and the synopsis, nothing groundbreaking of sorts in this movie. But Audrey Tatou, I’d swear she embodied Chanel like no other actress could have remotely pulled off. It was like seeing Coco Chanel herself, and whatever she was described to be in close perfection through this talented French actress.

Again, like I said, biographies like this have been produced before; settings and casts to match the original piece of history. Coco avant Chanel similar. But what makes it stand out was not HOW the movie went about painting the picture; it was about WHAT the movie was trying to convey. Of course undeniably, HOW, helped, and I must agree, very much…

It was an inspiration; she personified eccentricity and embraced liberal thoughts and freedom of expression, never succumbing to judgment. She defied stereotyping not because she wanted to be different, it was because she was; hiding that would have been hypocrisy and the world would have never witnessed the birth of a legend. NO, Coco avant Chanel wasn’t interesting because it had fancy 20’s sets and lovely corset trends, neither was it intriguing because the men where what every women looked for; chivalrous, dashing and rich. Coco avant Chanel was mind-blowing because it captured religiously the life of Gabrielle 'Coco' Chanel. How everything managed to look and feel so real was surreal… So captivating, so poignant, so ethereal…

Cookies and Cakes almost felt sorry for me because I couldn’t hold back my tears… I was sobbing all the way from GSC Cinema in Longstanding Mall to Drag House along Loud Street (a 15 minute drive). Why i cried; God knows, i don't!!!

Myself: I think I better stop crying or else people will start assuming something went wrong between us.

(oh ya, of course, the entire island population think we’re both attached)

Cookies and Cakes: I KNOW!!! Like I dumped you and you’re all sad and teary!!!

Ah yes, I am forever changed!!! We’ll see; most people don’t believe it when I say I have changed until I do turn heads. *winks*

Changed because I felt idiotic because of slowly losing my touch with fashion, (Cookies and Cakes seems to know more about the runways now than i do; fashion was MY thing!), never have I thought an audio-visual perception of what I have read so much about, turn out to be so powerful. I lost myself because it all seemed seemingly impossible yet so evidently true…

Coco Chanel was never married. She was once asked why she hadn't married the well-to-do Duke of Westminster and she replied: 'There have been several Duchesses of Westminster. There is only one Chanel'.