"Marie" is a step down from the throne

Rating: 4/10 (20 November 2006)

I don't know quite what to think if "Marie Antoinette", a meandering slice of self-indulgence that tells the story of the legendary Queen's time in Versailles. Sure, I thought to myself, I must cut a period picture a bit of slack...these are long and drawn out by nature. But in its 2 long hours, never once does this film pick up an inch of momentum. Though director Sofia Coppola may have simply been trying to show the monotony of Marie's life, frankly, that doesn't translate to the screen. Watch Marie being dressed! Watch Marie at the Opera! Watch Marie select shoes, fans, and pastries to the teenybopper tune of "I Want Candy"!But, oh the shoes! Oh, the fans! This may just be the most beautifully designed and shot movie ever. It has a sumptuous, stylized look about it that just barely kept me awake. But, as Marie learned during her tragic final years of her reign, you can't get by on beauty alone.