MovieChat Forums > Marie Antoinette (2006) Discussion > All Style, no substance

All Style, no substance

posted 10 years ago by cooler56
10 replies | jump to latest

This film was very sensually appealing, from its lavishly decorated sets and costumes to its (questionable) hipster soundtrack. But take all that away and you aren't left with much.

Granted, the narrative in this film is very neutral, and is very stream-of-consciousness at times. But there are very few themes explored, which make it a very bland biopic. It tries to come across as a "coming-of-age" story that see in some 80's classics, such as "The Breakfast Club," which I believe it emulates in some ways. But it is hardly as thought-provoking or as deep.

Any attempt at historical accuracy is muddled with a pretext of ironic humor. It's frustrating. I understand that Coppola didn't want the film to be some "dusty" old biopic, but her attempt at making Marie Antoinette a relatable and sympathetic to modern audiences, but I have mixed feelings about it.

I found that "Marie Antoinette" (1938) gives a much more honest portrayal of the eponymous historical figure. She was hardly a "party girl," she had a special joy for life, and was very pious. There is no proof that she had an affair with Fersen, he was a close friend of the Royal family and helped her (failed) attempt at escaping the revolution. The 1938 movie shows key historical events that led to her downfall, such is the necklace incident.

In my opinion, Marie Antoinette is an enigmatic historical figure that still deserves a proper cinematic portrayal for modern audiences.

[–] kaskait 10 years ago

The fact was, the woman barely had any substance. She was charming but not very smart. She was barely literate in her own tongue much less French (due to being lazy in her schooling). It was far easier for her to spend money then actually understand the political games taking place around her. If she had actually exerted herself to understand them, I have an inkling that her head wouldn't have been chopped off.

And the Count Fersen deal is generally accepted. When renovating Versailles it was discovered that the rooms that Fersen occupied had secret access to Antoinette's. No one pushes this fact, but it was true and they most likely had an affair.

[–] cooler56 10 years ago

That is all a matter of perspective. Any famous historical figure can be cast in a good or bad light.

[–] kaskait 10 years ago

Her very existence, what she represented, was bad for humanity. The French did right.

[–] cooler56 10 years ago

...Again, matter of perspective. The French Revolution was liberating for the lower classes, but at the same time it was very bloody and within less than 30 years they went back to a monarchy.

[–] kaskait 10 years ago

France is not a monarchy today.

The revolution freed the middle class. The Middle Class is the base of the Nation State. A motivated and educated Middle Class on the march (using the lower class as their fist) creates big changes. The French, American and Russian revolutions show this as fact.

Which is why the elites today are so intent on Free Trade policies. Free Trade kills the middle class and as a bonus, kills the nation state.

[–] LetThemEatCake01 10 years ago

Jesus Christ you are an imbecile. No need to talk to you any further.

[–] LetThemEatCake01 10 years ago

What an ignorant thing to say. She may not have had a good education but she was far from not having substance. She had great taste, was an art patron, was very forward thinking in terms of the artists she supported and rather compassionate. And even if she lacked substance, her life is one of the most dramatic lives that ever happened so there is no reason for ANY portrayal of her life to ever be without substance. This movie has no substance because Sofia Coppola herself has no substance as a human being. This movie is far more telling of Sofia Coppola than it will ever be of Marie Antoinette. And she never had a sexual relationship with Axel Fersen. Never. She would never have done that as a Queen and a Catholic, it's simply impossible.

[–] Camelot_2000 10 years ago

I just wished they could have covered her ordeal during the French Revolution instead of her pomp lifestyle as the last Queen of France. There was a lot of heavy drama there during her final days, most notably when she went to the Guillotine.

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[–] MydnightRose 9 years ago

I feel the 1938 film had more style and more substance. They at least made Marie a fairly likable bit naieve person. In this version she was boring which caused me to not sympathize with her and her choices of how to get through her hard life by drowning in clothes gossip and girly stupidity. Even her affiar with Fersen was shallow and made her disgusting; she just slept with him because he was there when clearly there was something deeper considering he tried to help her and her family escape. Everything about this film was shallow and hit you over the head with its imagery: Louis XV bad and immoral because he makes out with his mistress at the dinner table, Madame Du Barry bad because she burps in public and abuses the servants.

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[–] prplayer 8 years ago

true

so many movies, so little time