Marie Antoinette
So, it's almost two in the morning on Friday night/Saturday morning and I just got back from a bar that included drinks with friends and lot's of karaoke. lol. It was a lot of fun, actually. Needless to say, I'm still pretty wired so I thought I'd write my review for "Marie Antoinette" which I saw with my sister on Friday afternoon.
I'll post my review under the cut although I promise there will be NO SPOILERS so feel free to read it, even if you haven't see it yet.
MARIE ANTOINETTE
DIRECTED BY: Sophia Coppola
STARRING: Kirsten Dunst, Jason Swartzman
This is movie was on my Most Anticipated Films of the Fall list. I really enjoy Sophia Coppola's work and I find anything to do with Marie Antoinette to be fascinating, so it seemed like a dream combination of quirky director and quirky historical figure. I'm sure you've all heard that it was booed at Cannes and that it's had a rough trip to the big screen due to negative media. Personally, after viewing the film myself I find the bad-mouthing was far too harsh. Coppola has concocted a fun, fantasy-like court of France where people lounge all day and eat chocolates. I don't feel her intention was to create a biopic on Marie Antoinette or the French Revolution. It was simply to be a comedy of manners, of sorts, where we only see the point of view of the young queen, and not the turmoil brewing throughout France.
THE PLOT: It starts with Marie Antoinette leaving her native Austria at the tender age of fourteen to marry Prince Louis XVI of France who is only a year older than herself. The point was for the two to become the alliance between the two nations in a time of war and revolution. By bearing an heir together, Austria and France would be able to, in theory, form an unbreakable bond against enemies. The focus of the film is on Marie Antoinette's introduction to the high court of France and her subsequent amusements. She loves to indulge in candies and clothes, adores her little dogs and wants nothing more than to bear an heir to the throne, despite her husband's cold reception to her in their wedding bed. Only towards the end of the film is any mention of the French Revolution brought up, but by then the audience has seen the arrogant ways of the upper classes of the eighteenth century.
THE CAST: As Marie Antoinette, KIRSTEN DUNST is an absolute delight. She is one of the few young actresses out their in Hollywood who has looks and talent to boot. Although I wasn't sure about her being cast in the role at first, I soon changed my mind upon viewing her performance. Yes, she uses an American accent, but so does the majority of the cast. Plus, it was done in "Amadeus", so I can find no fault with the use of the natural accents of the actors. I know people feared that Dunst would portray the queen as a ditzy bimbo. A sort of eighteenthe century Paris Hilton. I didn't feel this was the case. Dunst portrays her as a young woman who is not only aware of the whispers about her at court but also voices her opinion on the ridiculousness on such issues as having twenty maids in the room while she dresses in the morning. I saw her more as what she truly was...a frightened fourteen-year-old who is thrust into another country, to marry a man she'd never met, with the additional pressures of giving birth to a son and having judgement cast upon her for being an Austrian. She acts as any young person would, by distracting herself from her problems through amusements of all sorts. Dunst is just all-around adorable.
In the smaller role of King Louis XVI, JASON SWARTZMAN is all quiet grace and dignity. He doesn't say much, and when he does, he does so in a soft voice, almost inaudible. Swartzman, despite fewer scenes than Dunst, manages to pull off the role of a confused and overwhelmed young king who struggles to bring himself to consummate his marriage, only to shrink away from her physical touch. He's a young man thrown into an incomprehensable position, when all he wants to really do is hunt every morning and read volumes of books on the invention of locks and keys (yes, you read that right, he's obsessed with making keys). I wish there had been more scenes with Swartzman, but he still makes an interesting king alongside Dunsts' young queen.
VISUALS: As expected the movie looks fantastic. The locations and sets are absolutly beautiful. I wanted to run off to France just to see all the sights for myself. The costumes and make-up were incredible and it's obvious that there was an incredible amount of attention paid to all the little details. In look and feel, the film largely resembled the 1984 Oscar winnder "Amadeus", which Coppola actually stated as one of her influences. And it shows. And looks remarkable.
OVERALL: I thouroughly enjoyed this film. I went into it with a completely open mind, knowing right from the beginning that it was not meant to be a historical biography. Instead, Coppola focuses on the little absurdities of life in the high courts in the eighteenth century. Why is the French Revolution and all the uprisings not mentioned until the very end of the film? Because we are meant to see the world of France through the eyes of young Marie Antoinette. Yes, it's filled with historical inaccuracies, but it's not meant to be taken as a history. Instead, open you mind and enjoy the film for what it is. A beautiful and entertaining look at eighteenth century French celebrities. I can only think of one critic who gave this film as positive a review as I did, and that was Glenn Kenny in "Premiere" magazine. At least I know I have on person on my side.
FOUR STARS (out of five)
I'll post my review under the cut although I promise there will be NO SPOILERS so feel free to read it, even if you haven't see it yet.
MARIE ANTOINETTE
DIRECTED BY: Sophia Coppola
STARRING: Kirsten Dunst, Jason Swartzman
This is movie was on my Most Anticipated Films of the Fall list. I really enjoy Sophia Coppola's work and I find anything to do with Marie Antoinette to be fascinating, so it seemed like a dream combination of quirky director and quirky historical figure. I'm sure you've all heard that it was booed at Cannes and that it's had a rough trip to the big screen due to negative media. Personally, after viewing the film myself I find the bad-mouthing was far too harsh. Coppola has concocted a fun, fantasy-like court of France where people lounge all day and eat chocolates. I don't feel her intention was to create a biopic on Marie Antoinette or the French Revolution. It was simply to be a comedy of manners, of sorts, where we only see the point of view of the young queen, and not the turmoil brewing throughout France.
THE PLOT: It starts with Marie Antoinette leaving her native Austria at the tender age of fourteen to marry Prince Louis XVI of France who is only a year older than herself. The point was for the two to become the alliance between the two nations in a time of war and revolution. By bearing an heir together, Austria and France would be able to, in theory, form an unbreakable bond against enemies. The focus of the film is on Marie Antoinette's introduction to the high court of France and her subsequent amusements. She loves to indulge in candies and clothes, adores her little dogs and wants nothing more than to bear an heir to the throne, despite her husband's cold reception to her in their wedding bed. Only towards the end of the film is any mention of the French Revolution brought up, but by then the audience has seen the arrogant ways of the upper classes of the eighteenth century.
THE CAST: As Marie Antoinette, KIRSTEN DUNST is an absolute delight. She is one of the few young actresses out their in Hollywood who has looks and talent to boot. Although I wasn't sure about her being cast in the role at first, I soon changed my mind upon viewing her performance. Yes, she uses an American accent, but so does the majority of the cast. Plus, it was done in "Amadeus", so I can find no fault with the use of the natural accents of the actors. I know people feared that Dunst would portray the queen as a ditzy bimbo. A sort of eighteenthe century Paris Hilton. I didn't feel this was the case. Dunst portrays her as a young woman who is not only aware of the whispers about her at court but also voices her opinion on the ridiculousness on such issues as having twenty maids in the room while she dresses in the morning. I saw her more as what she truly was...a frightened fourteen-year-old who is thrust into another country, to marry a man she'd never met, with the additional pressures of giving birth to a son and having judgement cast upon her for being an Austrian. She acts as any young person would, by distracting herself from her problems through amusements of all sorts. Dunst is just all-around adorable.
In the smaller role of King Louis XVI, JASON SWARTZMAN is all quiet grace and dignity. He doesn't say much, and when he does, he does so in a soft voice, almost inaudible. Swartzman, despite fewer scenes than Dunst, manages to pull off the role of a confused and overwhelmed young king who struggles to bring himself to consummate his marriage, only to shrink away from her physical touch. He's a young man thrown into an incomprehensable position, when all he wants to really do is hunt every morning and read volumes of books on the invention of locks and keys (yes, you read that right, he's obsessed with making keys). I wish there had been more scenes with Swartzman, but he still makes an interesting king alongside Dunsts' young queen.
VISUALS: As expected the movie looks fantastic. The locations and sets are absolutly beautiful. I wanted to run off to France just to see all the sights for myself. The costumes and make-up were incredible and it's obvious that there was an incredible amount of attention paid to all the little details. In look and feel, the film largely resembled the 1984 Oscar winnder "Amadeus", which Coppola actually stated as one of her influences. And it shows. And looks remarkable.
OVERALL: I thouroughly enjoyed this film. I went into it with a completely open mind, knowing right from the beginning that it was not meant to be a historical biography. Instead, Coppola focuses on the little absurdities of life in the high courts in the eighteenth century. Why is the French Revolution and all the uprisings not mentioned until the very end of the film? Because we are meant to see the world of France through the eyes of young Marie Antoinette. Yes, it's filled with historical inaccuracies, but it's not meant to be taken as a history. Instead, open you mind and enjoy the film for what it is. A beautiful and entertaining look at eighteenth century French celebrities. I can only think of one critic who gave this film as positive a review as I did, and that was Glenn Kenny in "Premiere" magazine. At least I know I have on person on my side.
FOUR STARS (out of five)