Marie Antoinette

          This Sofia Coppola-directed film takes us on the journey of Marie Antoinette's life, the great queen of France who reigned through the beginning of the French Revolution. I do remember learning about her, and it all came back to me as I watched her story in my family room last night. As far as I am concerned, historical accuracy was followed. After seeing Sofia's preceding two movies, The Virgin Suicides and Lost in Translation, I must admit that my expectations for Marie Antoinette were not high, given that Sofia had just come out of making two fine movies. To my lovely surprise, Sofia did not disappoint. In this adaptation, it was evident that Sofia and Kirsten Dunst (as Marie Antoinette) truly understand Marie and why she did the things she did. One of my favorite things about Sofia's work is her talent of evoking strong emotions out of her audiences. Upon Marie's first meeting of her soon-to-be husband, you could distinctly feel the awkwardness and squished dreams. I really loved how the consummation was filmed, as that crowd around the bed was what really happened to the poor young couple. The stunning, vivacious production design and lively hairstyles and costume designs really added to the old, luxurious French feel. Additionally, although the ending was vague for those who do not know the story, I really liked the last shot. It reminded me of one of the ending montages in The Virgin Suicides when various rooms of the girls' house are shown with ominous emptiness. Now I can continue on to watch Somewhere, then being caught up with Sofia's movies until next month's The Bling Ring!