Marie Antionette

Alright, I figure that now would be THE perfect time to get it all off of my chest. This, OBSESSION, that I have with the film Marie Antoinette which has not been aided in anyway by the recent flurry of themes that I have that coincide spectacularly with it.

It has to be THE most beautiful film to ever exsist and until I own it, until I physically hold that awe-inspiring disk in my hand, I don't think my obsession will ever end!
Kirsten Dunst has been my favourite Actress for a long time, but since watching MA (with her staring as Marie herself) I have become devoted -much as I became devoted to Jake Gyllenhaal prior to Donnie Darko-.
Her acting in this film to me, as a non actor and a complete unprofessional, is breath taking. In my opinion, she threw herself mind, body and soul into the role of the Teen Queen and pulled it off flawlessly. From the uncertain, Alice in Wonderland edge, to the Swept Away recklessness, to the Sobbing under Pressure breakdown. Certainly the latter absolutely took my breath away and put tears into my own eyes, she is so uninhibited and soul baring in that scene that you FEEL the sheer misery and frustration that she projects.
You entirely fall in love with her character and even through the 'let them eat cake' and 'queen of deficit' incidents, you stick by her side whole-heartedly. You understand that she was so misunderstood, nobody was on her side of things. All that she had were her friends (who liked to party), advisor (who had a duty) and her husband (who struggled to meet her in the middle). Of course the film is entirely biased, that's what's perfect, you see how the stories are created, the truth, and then the repercussions that are lashed upon her.
Sure she over spent, and that was because the French Aristocracy pushed her from modest to trying her hardest to fit in. From there on it all just fell apart. How else can you expect a teenage girl to react under such extreme situations?

Other characters that I fell in love with include Rose Byrne (as Gabrielle, the Duchesse de Polignac) and Jason Schwartzman (as Louis XVI, Marie's Husband). Both characters being utterly endearing in their own way.
Gabrielle, is the head-turning, party girl who cared not one jot about her social appearance and the approval of the Aristocracy. In the film, her high voice and cheeky nature provide perfect comic relief and you can see the positive effect that it has on Marie, who visibly starts to enjoy herself upon the arrival of the whirlwind Duchess. I love her contrasting lazy words and permentantly excitable expression, making her appear both completely at home and ready to stir things up a bit.
I must say, her favourite moment of mine is when they are rushing to meet the Soldiers that fought for France and she announces "they've been away from women a long time, you know!" which is met by incredulous laughter and the reproachful reprimand of Anne (the comtesse de Noailles and Marie's best friend)
Louis is plain adorable in his shyness, occasional stabs at vague humour, (in the film, his few jokes are often met with failure to laugh) and his blatant youth and boyishness is clearly visable. His almost stoic nature that is shown with Marie can be misconstrued as ignorance, but truly is his way of showing his shy nature towards the opposite sex and his slow maturity. That he struggles to consumate their marriage and with it the Alliance with Austria for many years proves his sexually timid nature.
However, when he begins to warm up to his beautiful wife and truly begins to see her for who she is, a lovely relationship blooms. Not neccesarily one of man and wife, but of great friends who have a momentous duty. My favourite moment of his being when he is playing a game of (billiards?) and scores, he does a little leap of joy and 'YES's, but no one pays him any attention.

Possibly the most stunning part of this film is the visual content. It's a veritable FEAST for the eyes, not only of eye candy (can anyone say Count Fersen?!), but also cakes galore, beautiful scenery, a palate of the most incredible colours and best of all....the dresses.
By GOD the dresses.
Even if you don't care about the characters, plot line and such, you simply MUST see this film for the breath taking wardrobe! It's the main reason that I would have loved to have been involved with anypart of the film at all and why I gasp with every change of scene. The outfits are immense and must have had the blood, sweat and tears of so many poured into them, and boy, believe you me, it was WORTH IT! Each outfit is flawless, so much so that it makes me want to cry...
Malena Canonaro, if you're out there, I LOVE YOU!
And Manolo Blahnik too, of course...
But most of all I love Sofia Coppola for actually writing and directing the entire caboodle, she is stunning and magnificent and could push my face in dirt, ANYTIME!
Not that that means anything...it was just off of the top of my head, you see?!

Anyway, one final mention of praise for the film. The SOUNDTRACK. And what a beauty it is too, featuring a clash of 80s nu wave music and baroque pieces. It perfectly sets the scene of a partying soul, moulded into an Aristicratic society. My favourite songs include Hong Kong Garden (With Strings Intro) by Siousxie and the Banshees as is sums up the film perfectly, I Want Candy (Kevin Shields Remix) by Bow Wow Wow because it backs one of the funnest scenes, and Fools Rush In (Kevin Shields Remix) also by Bow Wow Wow as it is such a dreamy, optimistic song that also makes you want to dance.
It's inspiring!

So as you can see...my favourite film is also one of my greatest chases...and now that I have attempted to get my love for it out of my system, I find myself wanting it even more! T__T Shame on me for being so consumingly WEAK!

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