In Rust & Bone, Marion Cotillard plays a killer-whale trainer who loses her legs when one of her orca routines goes tragically wrong. It’s an intense scene in an intense movie. But what’s truly noteworthy is that the routine-gone-wrong is conducted to Katy Perry’s “Firework.” Honestly. And so at last night’s Cinema Society screening, Vulture asked Cotillard what she thought of the song choice.
“I think it’s a good choice for such a horrific event. It’s very expressive.” Okay, but is the song ruined for her now? Like, while the rest of us hear it and think of showing them what we’re worth — does she hear it and think of whale attacks? “Well, I’m not a big Katy Perry fan,” she said, “but the song had a big impact on me. Now when I hear it, I feel uncomfortable. It makes me, not exactly sad, but it’s hard for me to listen to. I tense up, and I feel very emotional.”
Understandable, but let’s back up: You’re not a Katy Perry fan? What about “Teenage Dream”? Does she not listen to it on occasion? “No,” Cotillard laughed. “Not really.” As for whether Perry’s bestie Rihanna is more Cotillard’s speed, she told us, “I don’t listen to Rihanna very much, but I met her once and I think she is stunning. It was very quickly at the Met Ball, and I couldn’t take my eyes off her all night. It’s impossible not to stare at her. But, unfortunately, it’s not my kind of music.”
