Review #24: Marie Antoinette

Release Date: October 20th, 2006
Writer: Sofia Coppola
Director: Sofia Coppola

Logline: The retelling of France's iconic but ill-fated queen, Marie Antoinette. From her betrothal and marriage to Louis XVI at 15 to her reign as queen at 19 and to the end of her reign as queen and ultimately the fall of Versailles. (Source IMDb)
Bechdel Test: Passed all three tests

Review

I cannot say I've always been a fan of Sofia Coppola's work. She tends to tell character stories about women who are trapped by social boundaries. Something that when done well is a fantastic enveloping experience, but if you're not in the mood for it, her movies can come across as artsy and storyless. I'm very excited that this blog has given us the opportunity to revisit her work as she is one of the only well known female writer/directors.

Marie Antoinette tells the fairy-tale like story of the 14 year old girl who was married into French royalty during the time of the French Revolution. You might as well forget the French Revolution part because this is only about the charmed life of a young naive queen.

Doted on by dozens at every moment, in the monumental palace of Versaille, she is spoken of, never spoken to. She is surrounded by chatter and finds her only ability to express herself and interact with others through dresses, shoes, tea, and of course, gossip. Even then, those who she is able to spend time with are those same people who spread rumors about her being an Austrian spy. Her French husband Louis XVI, portrayed by the hysterical Jason Schwartzman, has no real interest in their marriage. He is happy to continue on as if she was just another maid in the room, setting her up as a failure for her "wifely duties".

Coppola pulls the story of Antoinette out of it's historical context and makes it relevant to contemporary society by stripping away the historical story and focusing in on her experiences. Antoinette is trapped in a sexless marriage. She's being crushed by the pressure to maintain appearances. As she spends money partying, and gambling, their money begins to dry up. She is unfulfilled and falling apart. As you do in the movie, Antoinette becomes immune to the luxuries she is surrounded by and is unaware of the affect she is having on the political situation in France. She is trying to cope with the emptiness she feels in her life. I don't think Coppola had any intention in telling a historical story but instead uses the revolting French people as a physical manifestation of Antoinette's unhappiness.

With this in mind, I'm constantly surprised when a movie like this is criticised for being historically inaccurate, or not sufficiently portraying the French Revolution. That was never the story this movie was going to tell, with it's modern stylistic choices it's clear that this is supposed to be a fictionalized movie. Perhaps the words "Historical Biopic" make any movie sound like a history lesson. That concept needs to be done with in modern movie making. To insist that this film should tell another story completely negates the story this one does tell.

And the story it does tell is fantastic. Almost a modern tragedy. Marie Antoinette is dreamlike, romantic, heartbreaking, and smart. It's colorful world surrounds the senses. The experience of isolation in a sea of people is something Coppola has seemingly made a signature out of.

Portrayal of Women: To many of the movie's we watch, the portrayal of women reflects the writer's tone on women. There are often so few women, that the one's we do see become a representative for that group.

In this case, I think Coppola does the opposite. She puts the audience in the point of view of a woman, and it's a character film about her experiences. The opinion she projects on gender is really the way this character is marginalized by other characters, which is not a defining characteristic but a social construct. Antoinette herself is a person who is trying to come into her own, but cannot find a way how. Let's face it, that's the kind of representation women have been looking for in film, to be a whole character, not a flat stereotype.

Sisterhood Moment: In one of the opening scene's Marie Antoinette arrives in France and all her belongings that came from Austria are stripped away. Her clothes, her friends, and then her poor dog. Don't take the dog! That's heartbreaking.

Rating: 4 creampuffs out of 5 platters.

IMDb - Marie Antoinette (6.4)
Wikipedia - Marie Antoinette
Rotten Tomatoes - Marie Antoinette (55%)