Marie Antoinette

Sofia Coppola's third feature is a semi-comic portrait of the wife of Louis XVI, the king toppled by the French Revolution, which plays sort of like Clueless transported to 18th-century Versailles. Even though the camerawork is often jittery or blurred for “artistic” effect and the beginnings of the revolution are portrayed through bad piped-in crowd noises and a small band of rebels brandishing torches and pitchforks like a group bussed in from Young Frankenstein, the film looks wonderful overall, with sumptuous costuming and spectacular sets. Covering the period from 1769 (when the 14-year-old Austrian princess was wed to the 15-year-old Louis) to 1789 (when the revolution was stirring to life and the rulers were forced to leave Versailles for Paris), the overriding theme here is one of monarchical insularity, as the young couple remain oblivious to the realities of the world around them. Ergo, the focus here is on purely “domestic” matters—absurdly hidebound tradition, issues of childbearing and inheritance, and unchecked personal spending—all a defensible approach to presenting the subject, but Coppola turns the characters into modern caricatures, with Marie (Kirsten Dunst) a giggly teen and Louis (Jason Schwartzman) shy and introverted. No one attempts to affect an accent or appear as anything other than 21st-century Americans in period dress, with the end result that Marie Antoinette is much like its heroine—rather superficial. Not recommended. [Note: DVD extras include a 26-minute “making-of” featurette, two deleted scenes (4 min.), a four-minute Cribs parody with Louis XVI (costar Jason Schwartzman), and trailers. Bottom line: a decent extras package for a so-so film.] (F. Swietek)