Grandson of Armenian immigrants, raised in Paris in a poor family made up of happy artists, the young Charles Aznavour, with his veiled voice, had nothing on paper to reach the top of the bill. And yet, through perseverance and sacrifice, he became this sacred monster of French song that we know. It is the journey of this exceptional personality that traces Mr Aznavourthe new film by the duo Grand Corps Malade and Mehdi Idir, in theaters on October 23.
From childhood to adulthood, the film unfolds in chaptered form the chronology of the events which marked the life and career of Charles Aznavour. The moments of joy in childhood, the bohemian atmosphere of the family, with his parents and his sister, despite poverty. Then adolescence, with a very early start to a career. Then the war, the resistance and the family’s links with the Manouchians.
Then the time of love, with a first marriage and a first child. Friendship and the Quebec years with his stage accomplice Pierre Roche (Bastien Bouillon), the Piaf years (Marie-Julie Baup), then the first days of emancipation, alone on stage, with a redone nose, in front of an audience freezing, in almost empty rooms… Then the success, which arrives and swells, until triumph. And finally, the fear of emptiness once the objectives have been achieved.
Mr Aznavour is an exhaustive biopic, which paints a faithful portrait of a man who started from nothing, with his ambitions, his obstinacy, his desire for revenge, and his capacity to sacrifice everything (especially women and children) to achieve his ends.
The film is punctuated by Aznavour’s songs, which we take pleasure in hearing in their resonance with the artist’s life.
If this whole story is told to us in a linear manner (in successive chapters), without much audacity in the staging, Tahar Rahim’s performance in resembling the singer, his work in capturing his facial expressions and gestures, is on the other hand remarkable. Almost too much: this perfect imitation ends up putting up a screen preventing us from approaching the truth of the character. We don’t watch Aznavour, we watch, amazed, the performance of Tahar Rahim playing Aznavour.
It is finally in the second part of the film, when Aznavour reaches middle age and Tahar Rahim, freed from his false nose and this obsession with perfection in imitation, really makes us get into the skin of the character, melting the varnish of the icon.
When the singer has reached the top and he no longer has anything to prove to himself or to the world and he begins to doubt, then the actor also seems to let go of everything. By becoming himself again, by playing with his soul rather than with performance, he then manages to capture and share with us the invisible, the intimate truth and the humanity that lies behind the legend of this inimitable monument. of French song.
Genre : Biopic, musical
Director: Mehdi Idir, Large Sick Body
Actors: Tahar Rahim, Bastien Bouillon, Marie-Julie Baup
Pays : France
Duration : 2h 13min
Sortie : October 23, 2024
Distributer : Pathé Films
Synopsis : Son of refugees, small, poor, with a veiled voice, it was said of him that he had nothing to succeed. Through hard work, perseverance and extraordinary will, Charles Aznavour has become a monument of song, and a symbol of French culture. With nearly 1,200 titles performed around the world and in all languages, he has inspired entire generations. Discover the exceptional and timeless journey of Mr. Aznavour.
