"This is ridiculous!" ... "This, Madame, is Versailles!"

Rating: 7/10 (28 July 2007)

Avant-garde, 'revisionist' history, with writer-director Sofia Coppola proving to be adept at capturing the look of 1768 France whilst eschewing the textbook facts (which is both boon and bane). A dimply child-woman from Austria is brought to France to be married to the King's grandson, soon to rule as Queen of France, although royal titles mean little to her other than providing an ample opportunity to spend money and revel in lavish parties. Kirsten Dunst gives an amazing performance as Antoinette: neither lascivious nor pretentious, she strikes a nimble chord between giggly girlishness and patient, perplexed young adult, never pushing her mostly sexless marriage to Louis XVI nor putting him down for being an inattentive lover (their relationship is fascinating, if a bit undernourished as written). Coppola mostly seems interested in displaying the similarities between life in this Royal Court and the wild partying of today's youth; while certainly a good starting point for the film, the inelegant gossip and game-playing, feminine dress-up occasions and catty speculations eventually fall into a somewhat repetitive pattern--we sense Coppola belaboring her points and the obvious irony. There are, of course, different ways Marie Antoinette's story can be brought to the screen, and this is just one filmmaker's vision, however the picture is succinct is capturing the imposing introduction she faced entering this snobbish monarchy, the numerous obstacles (of the human and etiquette variety) she came across while attempting to get her bearings. The movie is impeccably cast and scored with an intriguing mix of operatic and classical pieces, lovely mood music and New Wave rock songs (the only one of which that errs is Bow Wow Wow's "Fools Rush In"--which can be forgiven since it is a great song--but it juts in, sticking out as an artifice). Coppola offers up these anachronisms rather nonchalantly, and her artistic eye never gets in the way of her narrative, which is strongest when centering on the human interaction. Not a great film, but quite a good one. *** from ****