Sofia Coppola's Film, Marie Antoinette,

¶ … Sofia Coppola's film, Marie Antoinette, Marie Antoinette (Kirsten Dunst) is an innocent, who, having been engaged early in life is now, at 14, being wed to her betrothed, the future King Louis XVI (Jason Schwartzman) of France. Coppola portrays Marie Antoinette not just as an innocent, but as being socially, and royally, unsophisticated. Antoine's education, such as it was, was overseen by the easy-going Countess of Brandeis, who cut down the hours devoted to reading and writing when she found that the little girl's interests did not run in that direction.

She preferred playing, as she was to do all her life (History Magazine, 2005, 60)." Coppola is successful in capturing this aspect of the Queen's personality, that she was playful, and happiest at child-like play. A child, Marie was upon her marriage to Louis unable to successful emulate an adult, and as such did what many young girls her age, at least today, do; shop and play with friends.

In the film, it has been suggested that Coppola portrayed the character as very "American," and more as a perhaps a modern day mall-rat, than a royal princess. However, this is, first, probably an accurate portrayal in that Marie was a child, was fascinated by sparkling and beautiful clothes and shoes and furnishings. Second, if there was any suggestion in the portrayal of "American" in the character, the actress portraying the Queen was an American, who physically looked like descriptions of the Queen.

Also, as a film portrayal, it was either the success or failure of the actress in the film role to help the audience suspend disbelief, and get into the character in way that rendered the actress' country of origin a moot and unnoticeable element of the film.

However, to describe the portrayal of the Queen as mall rat, might be an accurate portrayal, using modern language, which is needed to help bridge the gap between the history and the film audience, especially young people that Coppola would want to attract to the film. The film did a wonderful job of conveying Marie Antoinette's lack of understanding about the world around her.

In an effort to better the young Marie Antoinette for her future role as queen, her mother transferred the responsibility for educating Marie to someone supplied by the French King, Louis' father. The Abbe de Vermond duly arrived and was charmed by his pupil.

Though taken aback by her backwardness and ignorance, he formed a high opinion of her intelligence, but he said, 'I cannot accustom her to delve into things, though I feel she is capable of it (History Magazine, 2005, 60)." That Marie Antoinette was senseless about financial matters and unaware of the greater suffering of the population around her, is accurately portrayed by Coppola, albeit in a way that is in some instances metaphorically and probably reflective of creative license.

It took seven years for Louis and Marie to consummate their marriage, and this was a fact followed closely by members of the court, and one that was used to depict, first, the children - because they were children - and, later, the young adults, in a way that work against Louis as a King and certainly against Marie as a woman and a queen (PBS, motion picture documentary, 2006).

While Coppola's film does not show the future queen as refurbishing her compartments at Versailles, Coppola does introduce the 14-year-old future Queen as being amazed by her designated gilded cage, and the young child goes from room to room, throwing up doors and surveying the splendor of her surroundings. Later, Marie is seen in the company of the royal gardener, requesting that fully mature oak trees be planted along the lawns, and is reminded that she has already spent her monthly budget, and has not yet donated to her charities.

To expect a 14, 15 or 18-year-old, as was the learning curve of Marie's early years at court, we would not today expect a child to grasp these concepts, and as has been historically documented, Marie was not herself an avid student of learning. Coppola obviously made a directorial decision not to deal with the issue of the necklace, historically, the link between Marie and accusations that she was a traitor.

Not mentioning the necklace at all seems perhaps Coppola's way of saying that she is not going to put gossip in her film, or put fallacies in the film. The film was meant, it seems, to capture the spirit and personality of the Queen, and Coppola was successful in that; a child-like child queen, who matured in the fishbowl of a royal court where she was used by enemies of self-interest, and was a fatality of bad press.

On the affair of the necklace, historian Brand Whitlock wrote (1929, 403): Many of these vile libels were invented by the Orleanists, and in the autumn of this year, I79o, Madame de La Motte, famous in the affair of the diamond necklace, returned to Paris and was set up in a handsome hotel in the Place Vendome by the Duke d'Orleans in return for more libels on the Queen." The portrayal of the young princess and, later, Queen, did not show her as interested in affairs of state.

She was no Princess Diana. This is a portrayal of Marie Antoinette that is consistent with historical portrayals of her. Just as suggested by the infamous line attributed to her, "Let them eat cake," which Coppola introduces as a falsehood in the film, but it does serve to demonstrate the disassociation between the Queen and the citizens of the country which became her home.

if, and that is a strong "if," Marie had uttered the phrase, "Let them eat cake," in reference to reports that the population of France was starving because there was no bread, that utterance would have been a suggestion, not a condescending remark, since it would have been what the Queen herself would have done had she been out of bread - she would have substituted cake, for the sweetbread.

This is significant of the lack of understanding that a sheltered royal had about the life going on beyond her gilded cage. The film by Coppola does depict the Queen as maturing post marriage consummation, and certainly post partum, and in grief over the loss of a child. It does not, however, depict her as becoming more interested in the affairs of state, and shows Louis as handling those on his own, never discussing those affairs, or problems with his Queen.

This portray is consistent with historic portrayals of Marie Antoinette, in that she is consistently portrayed as not being interested in those affairs. This was used against the Queen, both by her own behavior that indicated a lack of interest, and by her enemies to use her behavior and lack of interest in a way that showed she was indeed interested in affairs of state, but as a traitor.

In the film, Coppola shows that there was a maturing in the relationship between Marie and Louis, but that that relationship was one of friendship, two young children having been thrown together, who grew together, as friends. Louis is not depicted as a jealous or over doting husband, in fact, it shows Louis as more interested in affairs of state, though it does not depict him as being in touch with his subjects by being out amongst them.