The Provocative Colette

Goetzinger (Girl in Dior) joyously celebrates a life devoted to the arts in this posthumous biographical portrait of Colette. Colette begins this story as a newlywed barely out of her teen years and ends it as one of the most celebrated writers of the 20th century. The bare facts make for a juicy read, and Goetzinger’s elegant watercolors catapult Colette’s life into the realm of myth: the publishing of her wildly popular Claudine novels, her affairs with everyone from a famously debonair marquise to her own stepson, and even the cutting of her long hair become the actions of a legend. Goetzinger’s use of desaturated color creates a misty dreamscape for the heroine to inhabit, and her fine-lined depictions of fashions, fabric, and natural scenes are lavishly on display, especially when showing Colette performing on stage or flashbacks to her childhood in the country. The translation leaves something to be desired—stiff dialogue like Colette greeting her husband with “what are you doing, my sweet honey?” pairs oddly with languid visuals. But Goetzinger’s art shines throughout. This thrilling and tender look at storytelling and romance at the turn of the century proves a fitting finale to a distinguished cartoonist’s career. (Sept.)