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Referenced By / Édith Piaf

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References to Édith Piaf and uses of her songs in popular culture. While she's herself a prime example of Small Reference Pools when it comes to French culture in English-speaking works, said references are overwhelmingly limited to two of her songs, "La Vie en Rose" and "Non, je ne regrette rien". Their presence alone in a work almost always qualifies as a Gay Paree cliché.


Advertising
  • A British ad campaign featured real footage of Edith Piaf singing "Non, Je Ne Regrette Rien." Instead of an accurate translation, the subtitles claimed she's singing that there's actually one thing she does regret- she could have got cheap glasses from Specsavers.

Comic Books

  • Wolverine: An instrumental of Piaf's "La Vie en Rose" plays before Javert interrupts.

Film

  • Sabrina: Sabrina sings "La Vie en Rose" to Linus when he's driving her home from their date.
  • Soldiers listen to a recording of her song "Tu es partout" ("You are everywhere") in Saving Private Ryan while waiting for the Germans to arrive. She first sang it in the 1941 film Montmartre-sur-Seine, in which she played and which was made in occupied France, which makes it Artistic License – History since they wouldn't have been able to find a copy of it before landing in France.
  • La Haine: From a window, the guy played by DJ Cut Killer blasts a sampling of a 'Nique la police' ('Fuck the Police') lyric by Suprême NTM along with KRS-One's "Sound of da Police", Assassin's "Je Glisse" and... Edith's "Non, je ne regrette rien".
  • In My Summer of Love, Tamsin (Emily Blunt) talks about her to Mona (Natalie Press) while they listen to "La Foule" and dance on it. Tamsin claims that Edith killed one of her lovers (which isn't true, though whether it's In-Universe Factoid Failure or Tamsin deliberately lying to spice her story up in order to further bond with Mona isn't made clear).
  • "Non, Je Ne Regrette Rien" plays an important part in Inception as a Musical Trigger. Quite hilariously, the troublesome Mal is played by Marion Cotillard, who played Edith in La Vie en Rose.
  • "Non, Je Ne Regrette Rien" is also used as Soundtrack Dissonance during a scene in Princess when August destroys all the pornographic images of his dead sister.
  • Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted: Captain DeBois sings "Non, Je Ne Regrette Rien" to rally up her team while in the hospital.
  • Although "La Vie en Rose" serves as Sebastian Shaw's Leitmotif in X-Men: First Class, the title (which can be roughly translated as "Life Through Rose-Tinted Glasses") is actually an apt description of how the optimistic Charles Xavier perceives the world.
  • She's "that crazy Mexican singer" that Annie listens to in Bull Durham.
  • In Mission: Impossible – Fallout, the bunch of drunk Frenchmen who annoy the hell out of Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) and August Walker (Henry Cavill) in the toilets of the Grand Palais in Paris sing "La Vie en Rose" when leaving.
  • "Non, Je Ne Regrette Rien" is used in the trailer of Stan & Ollie. At one point in the film, Oliver Hardy says "Je ne regrette rien" when talking to Stan Laurel, which makes it kind of an Anachronism Stew given Ollie died in 1957 and the song was first performed by Edith and recorded in 1960.
  • The first trailer of Birds of Prey uses "L'Hymne à l'Amour", mostly to underline Harley Quinn's breakup with the Joker.
  • Napoleon (2023) features her cover of the French Revolution era song "Ah! ça ira", about killing nobles and aristocrats.

Live-Action Television

  • The Falcon and the Winter Soldier: "Le Petit Homme" plays when Sam, Bucky and Zemo are about to meet Selby.
  • Emily in Paris: Of course, this wouldn't be a Gay Paree-sploitation series without Piaf somewhere. Mindy sings "La Vie en Rose" in a park, which impresses the bystanders.
  • How I Met Your Mother: The Mother sings "La Vie en Rose". Ted is revealed to have heard the entire performance having been on his adjacent porch the entire time and is visibly moved.
  • Wednesday: "Non, Je Ne Regrette Rien" plays over the trailer, with the ending instrumental being stretched out in a both triumphant and dark way.

Music

  • Jeff Buckley covered "Je n'en connais pas la fin" on "Live At Sinn-É".

Video Games

  • Bioshock Infinite: "La Vie en Rose" is played at the beginning and the end of Burial at Sea Episode 2.

Western Animation


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