Review of Marie Antoinette, directed by Sofia Coppola

If you’re new here, and stumbled upon this blog through the mythical powers of the Internet, welcome! I know a lot of visitors to my website are people who randomly come upon this website through search engines like Google, but I also do have a lot of visitors who come back. Regardless: my name is Ashley, and I started this blog in order to keep track of everything I’m coming across in the world.

About a year ago (at the time of typing this) I quit my job as a professional film critic to explore what was out there in the world when it came to publishing about the movies and books I wanted to see, not just what was popular in the moment. Digital media and working within it can be fun and all, but it can be grinding when you’re just chasing after all the latest trends and clicks for SEO.

I started this blog four years ago, during the pandemic, but never really took it seriously beyond the occasional post here and there about what I was up to. In 2023 I began to realize the impact this blog was having on me, and other people were reaching out about reading it, so I expanded. Once I quit my job, I decided to focus on the blog more while job hunting, as I do make a few pennies here and there from the display ads on the screen.

Today’s blog post is dedicated to a movie I’ve actually seen before now, but had no recollection of watching. I’ve seen all of Sofia Coppola’s films over the years because I used to adore the work she did, but only a handful have made it onto the blog, as I started this in 2021 and by that point I had already seen all of her older filmography.

I was bored on a Tuesday after applying to a handful of jobs, and so I booted up my Kanopy account. I am forever grateful that my local library gives us Kanopy, as it’s been a godsend while I’m unemployed. There, on the front page, was Marie Antoinette begging me to watch it.

And so I did! It was trippy seeing a young Kirsten Dunst again on my screen, which is partially why I pressed play to begin with.

Let’s get into the review before I start yapping too much!

The story of Marie Antoinette and how she originally came to France as a ruler.

This movie begins when Marie Antoinette is just a teenager and living in Austria. She’s only fourteen in 1770 when she’s sent off to marry the Dauphin of France, Louis XVI, and forced to leave everything she knows behind, including her beloved dog that the French court refused to let her bring with her.

Her marriage is an important one, as it marks an alliance between Austria and France, who were previously feuding in years prior. Marie is married to Louis quickly after her arrival in France, and they are brought to the Palace of Versailles. Then they are expected to have a child quickly, and, as royal customs during that time dictated, they were watched on their wedding night to see if they had sex.

The king is told the next day though that they didn’t have sex. The days drag on from that point and Marie is dissatisfied with her life in France, as she thinks the French court is uptight and full of too many formalities. The royal family’s retainers are also beginning to blame her for a lack of a pregnancy, as they think she won’t have sex with him (which is actually his fault).

Marie continues to refuse to conform to the French court and makes allies and friends with several other women there. She knows her husband has a mistress, but refuses to acknowledge her existence. When Louis continues to refuse having sex with her, Marie ends up starting to buy expensive nice things for herself and gambles money away, creating a reputation for herself.

It’s after a ball though that the royal couple finds out the king is dying, and Louis’ mistress is sent away. The king dies shortly after, and Marie and Louis XVI are now the king and queen of France. Marie’s brother comes for a visit and tells her she needs to stop spending and partying so much, as her people will not see that too kindly.

He then talks to her husband and tells him about sex in a way that Louis understand (through making locks), and then they have sex for the first time after this. Marie becomes pregnant, but gives birth to a daughter. She then spends her time away at a different chateau and begins an affair. However, France is falling into ruin financially and the people are beginning to get upset with her and the other royals.

It’s then she’s dubbed as a class traitor and someone who spends too much while he people starve. Marie, as she gets older, stops going to parties as much and tries to spend more time with her family, but that will not be enough. She has a son not long after the death of her mother, then has two more children in the years to come.

However, the French Revolution begins and Bastille is stormed by the masses. Marie and her husband decide to stay in France, and they are taken away by the masses to Paris for their trials. The movie then ends with them being taken away, and Marie’s bedroom left destroyed by the people who stormed Versailles.

Overall Thoughts

I can’t speak to the historical accuracy of this film, so I deflect those questions towards those who know more about Antoinette and French politics during this period, but from a filmmaking point of view I find this to be one of Sofia Coppola’s most gorgeous films. To get France right during this time will always include some gorgeous visuals, so I can say that this helps her efforts.

It also fits her aesthetic of focusing on misunderstood women. We see this in The Beguiled and The Virgin Suicides—the girls and women depicted in these movies are often isolated and lonely in the conditions they face, and when a male comes into the equation, they’re either not happy with the man or find they mess up their lives.

This is a movie very much about Marie’s discontent and life within the French court, not about what happened to her. And despite it being fictional in some ways, it offers a new perspective about a literal child who was blamed for many things that were partially out of control.

I recommend watching this one if you haven’t already. It’s certainly quite the treat to watch in a visual sense, and I think that movies are truly meant to be watched, not read about on the Internet.

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