No discussion about the
French revolution is complete without Marie Antoinette's mention. She was the
lynchpin many say, responsible for the revolution breaking out
as strong as it did .She was unconcerned about the misery of the common man, a spendthrift ,a woman more interested in matters of her corsets than
her country's, immersed in merry making and luxury.That’s what I've heard, that’s probably what you've heard. And then there's what this movie will tell you
.The story has been done and heard a million times ,a million different ways but none receive the treatment that this one does in the hands of the very capable Sofia Coppola .Sofia takes all the conventions associated with a period film and throws them out the window one by one. Maybe its just me and my biased opinion about my favourite director but I think everyone agrees that there are a lot of words that can be used to describe Sofia Coppola's style but conventional will never be one of them .The story is not a chronological biography - instead of a birth to death routine it focuses on her stay at the court of Versailles - Her first introductions to the life of a Dauphine, her struggles to get along both emotionally and physically with her husband and finally her transformation into the queen that we have heard so much about, often nicknamed 'Madame Deficit'
A lady in waiting draws open the curtains letting in the morning sunshine, introducing us to a sleepy Antoinne (a bare faced Kristen Dunst) as she wakes up, taking in the daylight . As she lies there lazing in bed , cuddling with her pet in a white virginal nightdress ,everything about her and her surroundings scream Youth ,even as the voice over tells us that the friendship between Austria and France needs to be cemented and Antoinne the youngest daughter of the queen of Austria, Marie Teresse,is going to be queen of France.14
years old,rest assured the giddy teenager looks like anything but the queen.
Soon she is packed off to france to fulfill her duties as the future queen -to -
be of a rival country, a duty that will consume her till her very end.
Everything about this
movie is unique - right from the bold pink beginning credits to the subtle satire poking
fun at the ways of the monarchy .There are few movies that manage to combine comedy
and drama as well as this one does.This subtle brand of humour adds a different flavour to the
movie - from Madam Du barry's eccentricities to Marie's brother Joseph
explaining to Louie the techniques of lovemaking in terms of locksmithing " Well you know sometimes when a key does not fit a lock. . ." Gone are the
boring mile long dialogues, the over dramatic acting, the classical music. Sofia's
version is much hipper and not because it deliberately tries to be but because
it just is. Allow me to quote a gem -
Marie Antoinette: (about Du Barry) Where
does she come from?
Aunt Sophie: (chuckling) From every bed in Paris.
There is nothing here that
Sofia gets wrong ,from the casting - a talented Kirsten Dunst perfectly portrays
both the naivety of a teenager and the confidence of a young women who revels
in her sexuality ; Jason Schwartzman ,who takes Louie the XVIth ,quite frankly
a pumpkin of a king ,as weak and as naïve as his young bride and manages to
evoke a few laughs and a great deal of sympathy for his character at the very same
time ; Jamie Dornan, as Count Fersen, a soldier in the king's army, Marie's
lover ,notoriously complex in his own right. Even the choices for the supporting cast are inspired - Asia
Argentine as Madam du Barry ; Rose Bryne as Duchess de Polignac ,Marie's main
confidante ; Rip Torn as Louie the XVth are all a perfect fit.
Right from the beginning the
characterization of Marie Antoinette is beautifully handled. While every single
development in her character is obviously highlighted she never quite turns
into the evil queen you might expect her to.She isn't selfish or obnoxious and definitely
not the woman whose most famous words are perhaps "let them eat cake" (Ironic
fact though : She never actually said those words).Instead we see her as a girl
treated as a mere object exchanged in a peace treaty only to be later referred to as an ' Austrain spy'.Someone charming, funny,
heartbreakingly vulnerable, breathtakingly genuine, someone trying to get by,
trying to make the best of the raw deal that she was dealt .She never choose
this life for herself ,she was thrown into the middle of the chaos and asked to
adapt. She chose decadence over depression.
Sofia has clearly spent a huge amount of time working out every single aspect of this movie and the result is for all to see in its exquisite attention to detail .The cakes look like edible
pieces of art,the costumes are over the top ; the sets
are larger than life,extravagant . It's almost like every tiny bit of these extra details manage to make their royal life
seem shinier,somehow brighter .Look a little harder and this honestly makes a bigger point than just serve as aesthetic pleasure. Marie immersed herself in this opulent lifestyle to
compensate for her lack luster personal life, her inability to convince her
husband to consummate their marriage ,in her own words - her "greatest
unhappiness".
There is a gradual shift
that we see in her, from despising the royal protocol to finally
accepting it, choosing to revel in the little pleasures that her royal life can
bring her - the shoes, the clothes ,the luxury.(In a later scene while Marie tries on shoes Sofia manages to sneak in a pair of sneakers into the shot,in an rather unconvential nod to Marie's lost childhood) .The same can be seen in her
relationship with her husband ,she comes to accept what he can or rather cannot
provide her with.Over the course of the movie they develop an unlikely
understanding ,a friendship.
She also goes on to find
love.She finds passion missing from her marriage in Count Fersen ,a
soldier that she first meets at a masquerade ball .Their chemistry crackling
even as they barely touch ,the promise of something more looming in the
air and the few words they exchange set
to the background score of 'aphrodisiac' by bow wow wow makes for a heady combination.
Which brings me to another important component of this movie - its music .Sofia uses 80's rock music
to bring the movie alive. music is used not only to complement but take the emotions the characters experience a
notch higher , whether it’s the romance, the pain, the anguish or the thrill of
first love described aptly by "Fools Rush In".
The most astonishing part
about this movie is that there most scenes so delightful ,so bare, for instance take the one
in which Marie along with her whole band of friends and Louie watch the sunset,
bringing an end to an otherwise lavish birthday that could be stripped of all
the adornments -the costumes ,the props ,the
make up ,everything that would be reminiscent of 18th century France
and its emotions would still ring true today .
This movie is a candy
coated confection ,a sinful treat, a combination of all the feelings you could
hope to feel in 2 hours and it leaves you with a lingering sense of nostalgia for
when things were better for Marie.
So was she a callous queen? Or a mere victim of
circumstance? Who knows? And by the end of the movie ,well,who cares. . .
No comments:
Post a Comment