Sofia Coppola’s critically acclaimed 2006 film Marie Antoinette is a fun, gorgeously filmed historical drama depicting a fictionalised account of the life of its titular character. The film was inspired by the 2001 sympathetic biography by Antonia Fraser, which argues that the famous “let them eat cake” quote was a common slander misattributed to many foreign queens of France.
Kirsten Dunst is fantastic in the lead role as Marie, bringing both humanity and youthful energy to the character. Dunst and Coppola masterfully characterise Antoinette as a young woman subject to circumstances she cannot control, whilst simultaneously devoted to outrageousness and pleasure.
Though the film received a mixed reception at Cannes film festival in 2006, it was nominated for the Palme d’Or and won the Cinema Prize of the National Education System. It was nominated for the best soundtrack at the 2007 Critics Choice Awards and for both Best Production Design and Best Costume Design at the BAFTAs in 2007.
It finally won the well-deserved Best Achievement in Costume Design at the Academy Awards in 2007. Milena Canonero excelled as lead for Costume Design for the film, with many arguing her Oscar-winning designs the best cinematographic reinterpretation of eighteenth-century clothing ever created.
Kirsten Dunst is fantastic in the lead role as Marie, bringing both humanity and youthful energy to the character.
The film marked the third continuous success in Sofia Coppola’s filmography, after Lost in Translation (2003) and The Virgin Suicides (1999). As critics point out, all three of these films utilise the theme of youth and coming of age, with ‘Marie Antoinette’ charting a young queen’s negotiation of the long-held traditions of the Versailles court. This theme of youth permeates through the costume and lighting choices, giving the film a fantasy, dreamlike quality at times.
The focus on fashion as a centrepiece for the film, conveying the historical period, mood and themes of youth juxtaposed with the traditional setting, is definitely a highlight. Overall, the film is a beautiful showcase of costuming talent whilst maintaining some of the more grounded aspects of historical drama.
