Movie Review: Marie Antoinette

Thanks to Netflix, I have the opportunity to see a variety of films I never would have considered paying $8-11 to see in the theaters, plus many other documentaries and indies that are difficult to catch on a big screen. Our latest viewing was of Sophia Coppola’s Marie Antoinette, starring Kirsten Dunst and Jason Schwartzman. This film was hyped quite a bit before it premiered at Cannes, and then got a lot of bad press when it was reportedly booed after that screening. But I learned a long time ago to see or read what I want and make my own judgments rather than letting critics, so-called experts, or even friends dictate what’s good or bad. Plus, I love Coppola’s first film, The Virgin Suicides (also starring Dunst, coincidentally), and I also have liked other films that re-imagine familiar or historically-significant stories using unexpected settings and modern music (for example, Romeo + Juliet and Moulin Rouge). So I went into Marie Antoinette with an open mind and expecting to, at the very least, enjoy the spectacle.

And that’s pretty much what I got—a lot of eye candy and not much else. Halfway through, Matt and I remarked how little dialogue there was. Seriously, all of the actors could have been deaf mutes and we would have barely noticed. As for the story, there wasn’t much of that either. As I mentioned to my friend Reynold later, it was like the difference between reading a biography and looking at a child’s picture book telling of the story. A really beautifully illustrated one, but a 2-hour-and-3-minute long picture book nonetheless.

Coppola goes out of her way to make sure we develop a sympathy for Marie, and it’s quite effective. You get a real sense of just how young (only 14 when she left Austria and wed Louis) and inexperienced Marie was, and how she was not only a product of her environment but also a victim of the culture at that time—all of which combined to make her quite misunderstood. And Kirsten Dunst plays the role superbly, in my opinion—letting us see the “real” and vulnerable person behind the perfectly-coifed and ornately-dressed Marie Antoinette we are used to seeing in oil paintings. And that’s the one-dimensional image her subjects had of her as well, so when the mob comes to storm Versailles you do feel for her and wish they could have better understood all sides of the situation—something that is usually possible only after the realities of that moment in time have turned into history.

So there were some interesting characters portrayed, and Marie’s character goes through some development. But the real and lasting impression left by this film is all visual. If you like lush colors, ornate costuming, still life portraiture, frilly shoes, close ups of pastries, and film as artwork all set to a catchy 80’s post-punk soundtrack, then you’ll enjoy looking at this film. But just looking, I’m afraid, as there isn’t a whole lot of substance beyond the surface. And I, personally, prefer my films to stimulate my brain as well as my heart and eyes.

Thankfully Reynold happened to have a copy of the PBS documentary on Marie Antoinette’s life, which he lent to me and that I’m eager to watch in order to balance out my experience.