History Film / MarieAntoinette

[[redirect:Film/MarieAntoinette2006]]

[[Redirect:Film/MarieAntoinette2006]]

[[quoteright:220:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/MarieAntionetteFilm_176.jpg]]

''Marie Antoinette'' is a 2006 film by written and directed by Creator/SofiaCoppola, loosely based on the life of UsefulNotes/MarieAntoinette (played by Creator/KirstenDunst). The film follows the fifteen year old princess on her way to the French Court to be married to Louis XVI, her reign as queen, and through the beginning of UsefulNotes/TheFrenchRevolution, when [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Women%27s_March_on_Versailles she and her husband were forced to relocate to Paris]].
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!!Provides Examples Of:
* AltarDiplomacy: Marie of Austria is delivered to Louis [=XVI=] of France at the age of 15 to cement a treaty between the two nations. Neither was really prepared for marriage, and Marie was despised at the French court as "that Austrian whore." Nevertheless, Marie and Louis grew to love each other during their short reign.
* AmbiguousDisorder: Louis's lack of social graces, total cluelessness about sex, and obsessive interest in locks (he is only able to consummate his marriage by his brother-in-law using lock and key metaphors to explain the process) are signs of possible Asperger's Syndrome.
* AnachronismStew: Deliberately invoked. The director used [[AnachronisticSoundtrack modern music]] and a quick shot of Converse sneakers to express that Marie Antoinette was just like any other teenage girl despite the period the film was set in.
* ArrangedMarriage
* ArtisticLicenceHistory: As explained above in AnachronismStew, the film, while it shows Sofia Coppola has done her research, takes many liberties with the clothing in order to follow the film's aesthetic.
** Madame du Barry is dressed in a rather showy, almost gaudy way and lacks manners, mostly to show that she is from a different social class than all the other courtiers. The real Madame du Barry was known to be graceful and well-mannered, which was pretty much a requirement since she used to be a courtesan for noblemen, and her elegance was renowned even by her enemies. She was also genuinely hurt by Marie-Antoinette's snobiness towards her, and was said to have claimed several times she only wished to be her friend. Suffice to say, she would have ''never'' burped during a dinner, especially during the dinner where she would be introduced to the Dauphine.
** Strangely enough, the movie [[AdaptedOut leaves out Princess Adelaide]], the eldest of Louis and Marie's aunts who was still alive and living at Versailles. She was not only considered the prettiest of Louis XV's daughters and therefore resented Marie for stealing her spotlight and her father's affection, but she was also the main force behind pitting Marie against Madame du Barry.
** It was not the Comtesse de Provence who had a child before Marie and Louis, but the Comtesse d'Artois. The Provence couple actually never had any children.
* BitchInSheepsClothing: Aunt Sophie and Aunt Victoire.
* BlitheSpirit: The Duchesse de Polignac.
* TheCameo: French actor Creator/MathieuAmalric as one of the guests at the masquerade ball.
* CastingGag: As Sofia Coppola is the daughter of a famous director, she cast many children of famous film professionals:
** Creator/JasonSchwartzman (Louis XVI) is the son of actress Creator/TaliaShire and producer Jack Schwartzman (and Sofia Coppola's first cousin).
** Creator/AsiaArgento (Madame du Barry) is the daughter of director Dario Argento.
** Mary Nighy (Princess de Lamballe) is Billy Nighy's daughter.
** Katrine Boorman (The English Duchess) is the daughter of director John Boorman.
** Creator/DannyHuston is of course son of Creator/JohnHuston and grandson of actor Walter Huston.
** Io Bottoms, who played one of the ladies-in-waiting, is daughter of actor Sam Bottoms and Susan Arnold.
* CostumePorn: Accentuating the extravagance of Marie Antoinette's court.
* DecadentCourt: Versailles. [[TruthInTelevision Oh yes]].
* DirtyOldMan: Louis XV. TruthInTelevision, as he was a sex maniac [[EveryoneHasStandards even by French standards]]. Hell, his EstablishingCharacterMoment is to ask one of his ministers about Marie's bosom, and when the minister says he hasn't seen it, he laughs and says it would be the first place he would look at.
* DoomedByCanon: As this is a historical fiction, sadly. Most of the characters (specifically Louis XVI, Marie Antoinette, and all their friends) will either die or be exiled.
* FishOutOfWater: Marie Antoinette when she first arrives at the French Court. Justified because she comes from Austria.
* FluffyFashionFeathers:
** Marie begins wearing huge plumes in her hair. She nearly catches one on a candle at a party.
** One of Marie's outfits is a dress trimmed with pink feathers and a feather muff, while her right hand lady in that scene wears a hat, muff, and dress trimmed with white feathers.
* FoodPorn: The pastries and macarons were made by Ladurée.
* {{Futureshadowing}}: When Marie comes to the balcony to greet the mob, she bows her head, but does it in a fashion where she stoops her head so low that we see her neck and hands spread cross-wise. This alludes to the pose condemned rolled into the guillotine would assume, alluding to her eventual fate in history which the film does not show.
* GoodTimesMontage: [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OZByH4Wai_I I Want Candy by Bow Wow Wow]], played over an orgiastic montage of dresses, shoes, jewellery, champagne, gambling, Ladurée confections and adorable dogs.
** Played with in that it's used to illustrate how unhappy Marie Antoinette is in the restrictive French court and [[NoSparks her marriage]].
* GorgeousPeriodDress: Marie and just about every other character wears huge, beautiful dresses.
* GossipyHens: Most ladies in the court, but especially Princesse Victoire and Princesse Sophie.
%%* HistoricalDomainCharacter: Most of the characters.
* ImprobableHairstyle: Both anachronistic and maintenance. Marie has a modern haircut with layers and obvious highlights - most likely intentional on the director's part (see AnachronismStew above). The film also shows her with some of her more famous over-the-top hairstyles.
* KickTheDog: Along with her clothes and possessions, Marie Antoinette's dog Mops is forcibly taken from her when she enters France.
** The princesses who arrive late to Marie Antoinette's dressing ceremony appear to have done so on purpose, to force her to stand naked in front of the crowd for as long as possible.
* KnightTemplarParent: Empress Maria Theresa, for so much TruthInTelevision.
* LadyInRed: Madame Du Barry, probably to contrast with all of the paler colors of the French Court.
* MarriageBeforeRomance: Starts with the marriage of King Louis XVI of France to Princess Marie of Austria. The two had never met until their wedding, which was made to solidify a treaty between France and Austria.
%%* MasqueradeBall: Mainly an excuse for excessive CostumePorn.
* NeverASelfMadeWoman: SeriousBusiness for a princess. Marie is constantly reminded that if she fails to produce children, then her marriage can be annulled and she can be shipped back to Austria. She's even heckled by members of the French court.
* NiceGirl: The Princesse de Lamballe is especially kind to [[FishOutOfWater gawky foreigner Marie Antoinette]].
* NiceHat: So many to choose from but the [[FluffyFashionFeathers huge feathery one]] belonging to Marie Antoinette is possibly the most ludicrous.
** Although when she's at Louis XVI's celebrations she wears a ship on her head!
* NoAnimalsAllowed: Marie has her beloved dog Mops taken from her upon entering France because it's proof of her original nationality and it would be bad for the marriage. Marie does get other dogs, though.
* PapaWolf: Despite being portrayed somewhat as a wimp and dork, King Louis is fiercely protective of his wife and children. When the revolting peasants descend upon Versaille, while the royal family and their entourage are gathered together in the parlor, after hearing a crash somewhere in the palace, Louis immediately gets up from his chair placing himself as a shield in front of a frightened Marie and their sobbing children.
* PerfectlyArrangedMarriage: Though their marriage was a diplomatic one, Marie and Louis genuinely do come to love each other.
* PhallicWeapon: "Look at that ''sword''."
* PimpedOutDress: Given the setting, loads are worn, by Marie and other ladies.
* PrettyInMink: When getting the du Barry situation dealt with, Marie wears a black coat with ermine cuffs and collar.
* PrinceCharmless: Louis XVI to begin with. Then he gets more likable and becomes more of a HopelessSuitor.
* PrincessesPreferPink: Marie Antoinette wears a few pink dresses. She even says in one scene that she likes a bolt of pink cloth because it looks like candy.
* ProtagonistTitle: The movie is unsurprisingly about the life of Marie Antoinette.
* TheQueensLatin: Averted, despite the location and period the film was set in. The actors speak in their normal accents: Kirsten Dunst (Marie Antoinette) speaks in a General American accent, Rip Torn (Louis XV) speaks in a mild Texas accent, Steve Coogan (Ambassador Mercy) speaks with a British accent, Jason Schwartzman speaks with a General American accent.
** But played straight for the Australian Rose Byrne (Duchess de Polignac) and Judy Davis (Comtesse de Noailles); they both use British accents.
* RedOniBlueOni: Marie Antoinettes friends, the [[FieryRedhead Duchesse de Polignac]] and the [[TrueBlueFemininity Princesse de Lamballe]].
%%* RequisiteRoyalRegalia
* RunningGag: Marie Antoinette's morning routine, each time accompanied by Vivaldi's exhuberant Concerto In G Major.
* SexlessMarriage: Marie Antoinette and Louis XVI don't consummate their marriage for 7 years. Once they do however, Marie gives birth to their first child.
%%* ShoutOut:
%%** ''Theatre/TheMarriageOfFigaro''
* SlutShaming: The French court has an extremely low opinion of Madame du Barry, Louis XV's mistress, because she was born a commoner and used to work in a brothel.
* SpoiledSweet: Marie and her Ladies in Waiting indulge in many luxuries, yet all remain genuinely kind hearted and well meaning people, having no idea of the plight of the peasants. After finally learning how the poor are suffering, she does try to make some concessions to ease her subjects suffering... Unfortunately, by that time, it's too late to save her and her husband.
%%* StandardRoyalCourt
* StraightMan: Ambassador de Mercy-Argenteau tries to explain important state business to disinterested teenage Marie Antoinette, while she tries on dresses, eats macarons, and plays with her dog.
* ShownTheirWork: Sofia Coppola took a few quotes directly from the biography by Lady Antonia Fraser:
** Louis XV's comments about Marie's bosom when she arrives in France.
** When Madame du Barry sends diamonds as a gift, Marie says she already has enough.
** Marie's first words to Madame du Barry being a comment on the amount of people at Versailles.
** When Marie is throwing a party and she explains to Louis that he said she could throw one, but didn't specify how long for.
* TheTalk: King Louis get one by his brother-in-law, no less.
%%* TallDarkAndHandsome: Count Fersen
* TimePassesMontage: Done with paintings, and combined with [[BoredomMontage Boredom]]/SadTimesMontage
* TorchesAndPitchforks: The [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Women%27s_March_on_Versailles Women's March on Versailles]].
* VoiceOverLetter: The letters from Marie Antoinette's mother are read in the mother's voice.
* WakeUpMakeUp: Marie Antoinette's first scene has her fast asleep in bed. Her [[MessyHair hair's slightly messy]] but her makeup is impeccable.
** And in the carriage on the way to meet Louis XVI.
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* DawsonCasting: 14-year-old Creator/KirstenDunst playing a 15-year-old Marie Antoinette.

* FishOutOfWater: Marie Antoinette when she first arrives at the French Court.

* DoomedByCanon: Sadly, most of the characters; specifically Louis XVI, Marie Antoinette, and all their friends will either die or be exiled.

** Danny Huston is of course son of John Huston and grandson of actor Walter Huston.