(New York) The traumatic scene, bordering on shocking, arrives at the end of the film I Am: Celine Dion (I am: Celine Dion), which lasts 1 hour 42 minutes. The 56-year-old singer meets her physiotherapist, who helps her with the mobility of her feet. Then, a violent crisis begins.
Director Irene Taylor’s camera films everything. And in close-up. Lying on a treatment table, Céline stiffens. His hands crooked, his legs no longer unfolded. Unable to speak or move, she emits a long rattle, she cries, she grunts and her face tenses up like that of a dead woman. Really, I’m not exaggerating. It’s heartbreaking and terrifying to watch.
This face twisted by pain, which stares into space, explains in a few seconds all the devastation caused by stiff person syndrome, from which the diva has suffered for 17 years. It’s terrible what Celine Dion went through. Terrible even.
This extract from the film I Am: Celine Dion, which is released on June 25 on the Amazon Prime Video platform, has never been featured in the television interviews that the performer has given recently. And we understand why. This is the heart of the film, which illustrates in a raw and frontal way how this neurological disease manifests itself on Céline Dion’s body.
I can’t believe the progress Céline has made since the announcement of her diagnosis in the fall of 2022. In the documentary film, Céline is having a hard time. She appears without makeup, with regrowth of gray hair. She painfully recorded songs, where her voice broke and no longer reached the high notes. And she seems terribly alone, lord, locked in her castle house in Lake Las Vegas with her dog Bear, with whom she listens to Maria Callas operas, near the swimming pool.
Monday evening, for the New York premiere ofI Am: Celine Dionit was a glamorous, energetic and sparkling Céline who walked the red carpet, rolled out inside Alice Tully Hall, a concert hall at Lincoln Center, on the Upper West Side.
Dressed in a chic cream-white silk ensemble, the singer stayed for more than an hour with Canadian and American reporters, conducting interviews and smiling profusely for the TV cameras. Always accompanied by her eldest son René-Charles Angélil, who wore a huge ring on his little finger, she then spent a long time with VIP fans, who welcomed her in almost religious silence. She took an incredible number of selfies, while her publicist Jessica Sciacchitano pulled her sleeve for her to enter the screening room. His impresario John Nelson, who plays the role of René Angélil, always remained an arm’s length away.
Before walking the red carpet, Céline also took the time to autograph the vinyl record of an admirer, Carissa Gurgul, from East Berlin, Pennsylvania, who was still pinching herself. “She is more beautiful than ever,” she repeated while her idol gave interviews.
It’s true that the Céline in front of us looked so much healthier than the one on the screen. She has come a long way, Céline. She lived as a recluse for four years in the Nevada desert, overcome by an unknown illness that specialist doctor Amanda Piquet finally identified. Céline Dion also dedicated the film to him on Monday evening and announced the creation of a research fund for this rare disease.
” The DD Amanda Piquet solved the mystery of my health. She replaced my fear with hope,” Céline recalled to the 1,000 spectators seated in front of her. Neurologist Amanda Piquet was in the audience and received warm applause.
“It’s by far the biggest crowd I’ve seen in a few years,” Céline said in an emotional 10-minute speech. Calm and composed, Céline Dion also thanked her three boys, Nelson and Eddy, who are 13 years old, as well as René-Charles, 23 years old, who accompanied her famous mother on stage and who handed her tissues when the tears came. René-Charles Angélil wore a magnificent black and white outfit, top class.
“This film is a love letter to my fans. I hope to see you again soon,” concluded Céline Dion, leaving doubt about the possible date of her return to performance.
I would be lying to you if I wrote that the buzz was immense around Lincoln Center for the presentation of this highly anticipated film. It was very peaceful. Small groups of admirers crowded near the windows of the performance hall, but no crowds, fans waving signs or paparazzi. I saw actress Laverne Cox (Orange Is the New Black) and the author of Sex and the City, Candace Bushnell, as rumors of Kelly Clarkson’s arrival buzzed. I haven’t seen her, unfortunately.
On the other hand, Céline Dion was entitled to a long ovation when she placed herself behind the microphone to present the film. At the end of the screening, the singer returned to the stage and everyone jumped to their feet.
Honestly, she deserves all the kudos in the world, Celine Dion. From a frail, fragile and lonely woman in the film, we find her strong and determined, ready to face this difficult chapter in her life. And never his song I’m alive will have sounded as good.