Marie Antoinette

Sofia Coppola is a rare commodity in the film community, a unique female voice. In her latest film, Coppola tells the story of the famous French/Austrian queen in a way that only another woman could. Marie Antoinette tells the story of a young Austrian princess (Kirsten Dunst) who is married off to the prince of France (Jason Schwartzman) just before the French Revolution. The Revolution is in the back of our minds, if we are familiar with the story, but that major historical event never takes center stage. Instead, the focus is on Marie, and how she copes with leaving her family at a young age.
What is a woman's role in 18th century France. What is a woman's role in the world at any time. The film investigates this idea to a great extent. Marie spends most of her time hanging out with her entourage, trying on clothes, and just frolicking in life. She does have hard times too though, especially the fact that everyone wants her to bear a son but her husband won't sleep with her (at times she is seen as little more than a baby factory). One scene in particular stuck out to me in regards to her search for identity. She had just given birth to her first child, a girl, and is playing with her. Marie wants to nurse her, but Marie's chambermaid takes her away and says "we have a nurse for that." What the crap? She can't be a mother? Marie is on a journey to find purpose, but sees hardly any at all. This brings up the point that our culture doesn't see being a mother as a "good enough" job for a woman to have. But the opposite is true, nothing could be more important than raising children.
Another aspect of French court life that sticks out is the ridiculously complicated ritual system. The servants and maids maintain an elaborate structure of "do's" and "don'ts" nearly every second of every day. It seems incredibly excessive, and this sheds light upon the causes for the Revolution. Even in the end, when the angry mob is outside the palace with pitchforks and torches, ready to skewer the royal family, the servants bring the wine glass of the king over on a silver platter. How often are we caught up in the daily in's and out's of our life, the meaningless rituals we perform, when there are far greater problems growing right outside our door (human suffering, lack of spiritual vitality, etc.). What a great scene, and a sad but great metaphor for our lives sometimes.
Marie Antoinette is a different kind of period piece. It is ornate and beautiful, but moves at a unique pace. It feels different. It feels very down to earth, which is ironic, considering the subject matter. We as the audience care deeply for the queen. We want her to be happy, and we sympathize with her. She is naive, fun, and definitely different than those around her. She brings a fresh voice to the French court. (As an interesting side note, this film would make a splendid comparison/contrast with The Queen) Marie Antoinette is quite enjoyable, even breathtaking at times. Another great outing from a great filmmaker.