COCO BEFORE CHANEL

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For as much as the camera loves Audrey Tautou (and it loves her a lot), director Anne Fontaine never delivers the particular je ne c'est quoi that rocketed Gabrielle "Coco" Chanel from a gifted hat-maker to one of the most pioneering feminist fashion designers of the 20th century.

Deploying a typical biopic format, Fontaine introduces the orphaned Coco at an early age singing her popular nickname-inspired song busking in cafes alongside her sister.

Coco's fortunes change when she lets herself be seduced by cafe patron Etienne Balsan, (Benoit Poelvoorde) a wealthy, womanizing, racehorse owner whose well-furnished estate allows Coco to live comfortably as a kept, if frequently humiliated, woman.

The film hints at Coco's bi-sexual urges, but never dares to directly address the icon's sexuality.

Coco's proclivity for donning the clothing of her male lovers seems to inform much of her fashion inspiration.

Although beautifully filmed by cinematographer Christophe Beaucarne, Luc Barnier's slack editing contributes to the film's feeling of sleepy-eyed stagnation.

Audrey Tautou's eyes are beguiling, but not even those amazing orbs are enough to tell the story of Coco before Chanel by themselves.

Rated PG-13. 110 mins.