I finally watched Coco Before Chanel last night and it was about what I expected: More romance than fashion, with lots of montages. It started out pretty well but ended with Chanel being reflected in endless mirrors while models who were 2010-skinny put on a fashion show. I know there was more to the “after” of her career than that.

I enjoyed that the film’s first half presented her as so cynical about love…until “the love of her life” died and the penultimate montage made it seem like she spent the rest of her life mourning him. (What about Stravinsky? Or that German officer she met in WWII? Talk about a pretext for a film.)

But it was enjoyable, if only to see some sewing and fabric on film. My favorite part was near the end, when she unrolled a bolt of powder-pink boucle suiting in that same “my lover is dead and I’m sewing through my grief” montage. I want some of that boucle!