Sofia Coppola directs her interpretation of the infamous French queen, Marie Antoinette, in a fresh updated form. This period piece is far from a dry and boring historical film. The opening credits begin with a gritty guitar riff from Gang of Four’s “Natural’s not in it” and immediately it becomes clear that this movie is nothing like history class.
           
Based on the book by Antonia Frasier, “Marie Antoinette: the Journey” the movie revolves around the French queen’s transition into life at Versailles, her life as a young queen and her eventual downfall. Like the book, the movie immerses the audience in the decadent and elaborate traditions of Versailles. Coppola does a great job capturing the foreign atmosphere and gives Antoinette likeable charm.

At only 14, she is sent from Austria to Versailles, with the burden of securing an alliance between the two countries.  There is pressure to bear an heir to the throne and also outside pressure to assimilate into the French court. As the audience watches the film, Antoinette’s overwhelming problems become as grandiose as her style and spending.

Kirsten Dunst plays the role of Marie Antoinette, with Jason Schwartzman as the indifferent and aloof Louis XVI and Rip Torn as King Louis XV.  The cast is filled with a variety of characters, which surround Antoinette’s world with gossip and scandal.
           
Coppola is able to establish an environment without relying on dialogue. There are moments in the movie where mere glances can express an entire monologue. There are many places in the film where there is silence, but rather than feeling awkward, we are able to take in the scenery of the actual Versailles, which had never before allowed a film crew to tape its interiors.

In stark contrast to the rest of France at the time, Antoinette’s life is picturesque and beautiful. Where there is revolt brewing in the country there is defiance by Antoinette who refuses to abide by the multitude of rules in the French court.   
           
Coppola herself admitted to making this movie closer to today’s language and style. She also compared the issues of Marie Antoinette’s lifetime to the ’80s, which had big hair, extravagant style, and social greed as common ground.  This connection is obvious in her choice of music in the film, which leaves a distinct ’80s new wave ring in viewers’ ears.
           
Despite being booed at the Cannes Film Festival, “Marie Antoinette” does more than toss out another period piece atop cinema history; it debunks the myth of a heartless and cruel monarch while giving audiences a movie to please all the senses.