Marie Antoinette Review
by Steve Rhodes (Steve DOT Rhodes AT InternetReviews DOT com)October 15th, 2006
MARIE ANTOINETTE
A film review by Steve Rhodes
Copyright 2006 Steve Rhodes
RATING (0 TO ****): ***
MARIE ANTOINETTE, a comedy of manners and a historic costume drama, was booed at this year's Cannes Film Festival, and it's easy to see why, since this picture, by an American director and with a mainly American cast, shines an unattractive light on some of France's most famous figures.
Written and directed by LOST IN TRANSLATION's Sofia Coppola, her newest movie is quite a change for her since it is a big budget production that works more because of the production values than the quality of the script. With very little dialogue or narrative drive, MARIE ANTOINETTE drops us into eighteenth century France, where we follow Marie Antoinette from the time she leaves Austria to become the wife of France's heir to the throne until the mob forces the royal family from the palace, as the French revolution gathers steam.
Employing modern music and sensitivities, Coppola re-envisions Marie-Antoinette as a teenager who just stopped hanging out at the mall. It is a technique that I fully expected to hate but didn't, since Coppola goes to great pains to make most of the movie historically accurate.
Given what Coppola wanted to do with the lead, Kirsten Dunst, Spider-man's girlfriend, proves to be a perfect choice to play Marie-Antoinette. When Marie-Antoinette crosses the Austrian-French border, she is forced to leave everything behind, from the clothes on her body to the little dog she is carrying. Comtesse de Noailles (Judy Davis) explains that a proper French dog will be provided for her. (For the record, the difference in the dogs appears to be that French ones are fluffy little fellows that wouldn't fight anyone, while Austrian ones are tough and tenacious little guys. But I digress.)
Once Marie-Antoinette becomes the bride of the man who will become Louis XVI (Jason Schwartzman, in an almost mute part), she learns the rules and regulations of her regime. She has to stand freezing and naked in front of several dozen women, since the highest in rank must be allowed to dress her and higher ranking women keep entering the room.
Marie-Antoinette's main problem is that her husband shows little interest in her or in sex. Without an off-spring, her mother figures that the marriage may be annulled. She eventually wins him over from his hunting and his hobby of making keys.
What won me over to the story of the extravagant woman called "the Queen of Debt" were the sumptuous sets, gorgeous costumes and inviting use of rich colors. I think most people will be bored silly by it, but I rather enjoyed it.
MARIE ANTOINETTE runs 1:58. It is rated PG-13 for "sexual content, partial nudity and innuendo" and would be acceptable for kids around 10 and up.
The film opens nationwide in the United States on Friday, October 20, 2006. In the Silicon Valley, it will be showing at the AMC theaters, the Century theaters and the Camera Cinemas.
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