The guillotine was invented for films like this

Rating: 3/10 (13 May 2008)

This is the kind of film you're allowed to make if your last name is Coppola. If your name is say, Smith or Jones, the studio would laugh in your face. Roger Ebert, whose judgment I usually respect, gave MARIE ANTOINETTE four stars. Maybe he was entranced by the C-name, too.
What a misbegotten mess this is! Here was a chance for a truly talented screenwriter to create an exciting, funny, dramatic script about one of the most tragic eras in history. Instead, we get Coppola's Cliff-notes version of French history, accompanied by an anachronistic soundtrack that keeps reminding the viewer that an immature hack is behind this "entertainment." And the casting! Dunst has a face like a pancake (crepe?) and about as much emotional range. Schwartzmann looks nothing like Louis XVI and is more boring than Louis possibly could have been. And what are we to think about seeing Rip Torn, Molly Shannon, and Steve Coogan in fairly significant parts? Why not Adam Sandler or David Spade? I'm sure they'd look good in powdered wigs, too.
People who hate historical dramas love this film because this is the kind of glitzy sugar-coating they wish ALL history books and films had. It's all about CLOTHES! And SHOES! And HAIR! And BOYS! And...oh yes, occasionally we hear about an invasion, or peasants revolting. But then back to the CLOTHES!
I give this movie 3 out of 10 for:
1. The costumes. As long as it's a movie about clothes, they might as well be great-looking, and they are. The large crowd scenes are visually overwhelming.
2. The sense of court protocol. We do get a glimpse of how fanatical the courtiers were about rank, etiquette, and procedure. Scenes in the queen's bedroom or the dinner table are excruciatingly rule-bound, which does give us a glimpse into Marie's attitude.
3. The locations. Interiors and exteriors are breathtaking. Imagine being given free rein to film all over Versailles. Let's hope this movie doesn't sour the French government on allowing a REAL filmmaker to try this again sometime with better results.