“Marie Antoinette”
Directed By: Sophia Coppola. Starring: Kirsten Dunst, Jason Schwartzman, Steve Coogan, Judy Davis.
We’re all familiar with the infamous line “let them eat cake”. It’s even the tagline of the film. However, Sophia Coppola examines the woman behind those callous, uncaring words, from the point of view that she’s a misunderstood character, mistreated by history. Coppola attempts to paint a fuller, more complete portrait of Antoinette’s life.
In “Marie Antoinette”, the traditional and oftentimes strange life of the young Queen is examined. Married away from her family and country at the age of 15, Antoinette serves the purpose of uniting two countries- her native Austria with France. A scene at the border of the two countries, where Antoinette has to officially hand over all her Austrian possessions, including her adorable pug puppy, is especially heartbreaking.
Kirsten Dunst, as Antoinette, portrays the young character as feeling alone in her new world, even while she’s surrounded by people- nearly constantly. Antoinette tries hard to take on the responsibility that she’s inherited, but deep down she’s just a young girl, oblivious to the world around her. She gets sidetracked in the glamour of her life as Queen, a job she inherits at just 19. Her husband, King Louis XVI, portrayed by Jason Schwartzman, is as inept as she is. But Coppola doesn’t judge these two young rulers; she shows us their situation from their perspective, their reaction to it, and their eventual downfall. Poor advisors and the oblivion of youth are the King and Queen’s worst enemies.
When I first saw the previews for “Marie Antoinette”, I liked the idea of comparing the excesses of the late 18th century monarchy with the 1980’s. It was an interesting comparison and a cool idea. The 80’s music is well used, but the occasional montages, almost music videos, that are thrown in here and there- prove to be a little distracting. It works, but I would have liked that aspect to be a little more consistent throughout.
What I liked most about the film, was how Coppola keeps the audience as blind to the suffering French as Marie and Louis are. From the elegant perspective of the throne we can see how easy it might be to forget that there’s a world outside the gates that may not be doing as fabulously.
Story: C-
Acting: B
Visuals: B+
Originality: B-
Enjoyability: B-
Overall: B-
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