Tahar Rahim is Charles Aznavour in a new biopic directed by Grand Corps Malade and Mehdi Idir and released on October 23. What did the critics think?
It’s been six years since Charles Aznavour died, and today he becomes a movie character. Mr Aznavour is a biopic of Grand Corps Malade and Mehdi Idir (Patients, School life) which traces the journey of this son of Armenian refugees, who became the icon of French song that we know today. Highly anticipated, the press was however relatively divided by the proposal of the two filmmakers.
The film received a press rating of 3.1/5 on Allociné. Many media outlets said they were won over by this “superb and powerful tribute” (Public), which “is carried by a brilliant trio of actors and once again features unforgettable songs” (The Cross) “without damaging the myth” (Le Figaro). It is especially Tahar Rahim who stands out, who “portrays a vibrant Aznavour” (The Point), in a “remarkable performance” even if “this whole story is told to us in a linear manner without much audacity in the staging” (franceinfo). At Parisian to conclude this torrent of praise by hailing “a rich, moving and rhythmic feature film”.
But other media were much harsher, with some critics criticizing the film for being “a very classic biopic, even too much” (The Voice of the North), which “fails to restore the lyricism of the singer, portrayed as obsessed with success” (Release) and offers “a distressing imitation act” “without any salient vision” (Telerama), who “cruelly lacks critical distance on the perhaps involuntarily antipathetic character that he constructs” (The Unrockuptibles), in “a smooth biopic without point of view” (First). The press is divided, so the public will have the last word.
Tahar Rahim’s crazy physical transformation
To play the leading role, Tahar Rahim was chosen. If his acting talents are indisputable (two Césars obtained for A prophetperformances noted in The Snake And Found guilty), his physical resemblance to Charles Aznavour did not, however, seem obvious on paper. The actor also reveals in an exclusive interview with Parisian to have been “filled with doubts” because of this lack of resemblance.
In addition to the physical resemblance which went through prosthetics and makeup (for 4 hours every day), Tahar Rahim had to take singing lessons (eight hours a week for six months, he reveals to our colleagues). Result: the actor is almost unrecognizable in these first images, where he plays opposite Victor Meutelet (as Johnny Hallyday), Tigran Mekhitarian (as Missak Manouchian), Bastien Bouillon (Pierre Roche) or Camille Moutawakil (Aïda Aznavour) and Marie- Julie Baup (Edith Piaf).
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.