Sofia's Hamptons Rerun

Rating: 4/10 (28 February 2007)

Although perhaps deserving some applause for the costumes and settings, most everything else about this movie was pretty dreadful. It reminded me strongly of an ugly out-of-body experience in the shoe department of Saks: I was surrounded by a pack of wealthy, privileged Upper East Side (OK-New York) women examining $800 shoes and talking about them as if they were very, very important. I activated my red Converse hi-tops and got out of there.
Thus, when the blond (Mid-western?) Marie/Kirsten Dunst said "Oh Wow" in response to the presentation of an over-abundance of beautiful fabrics and shoes and a ballet of pastries (as "I Want Candy" played in the background), I had a flashback to Saks. I realized that the problem with the movie was that Sofia had created a Versailles that corresponded to life in the richest regions of the late 20th century Hamptons in which she came of age. The American accents were the worst and the choice of Jason Schwartman as a catatonic or special needs Louis the 16th was really a disaster. The acting, as a result of directorial inadequacies or, worse, intent, was pretty abysmal in the context. Enabled by her family fame and money, Sofia Coppola has once again, as in Lost in Translation, brought us another boring memorial to her spoiled rich-girl life.
Luckily, the movie was beautiful to look at. I enjoyed, in the main, the rock/pop background music (there were a couple of places where it got out-of-hand) and liked the occasional camp, whether intentional or accidental.
Comes the revolution, I've got my scythe. And I have an excuse for being in the shoe department at Saks.