Film Critique: Marie Antoinette

Marie Antoinette’s Selfishness

        Marie Antoinette does an excellent job at portraying the selfishness of the French Queen during the late 18th century.

        Marie Antoinette is a wasteful spender. Her spending habits cause a stir as France was on the verge of bankruptcy (New World Encyclopedia, 2015). Marie Antoinette effectively shows this quality through the character of the Queen of France played by Kirsten Dunst. In the scene after Marie Antoinette’s birthday party, she walks around the garden and talks to a gardener about planting big trees. While she discusses, a servant says to her that she has spent over 50,000 that month (Coppola, 2006). Although Marie Antoinette is a queen, it is not necessary for her to spend the majority of her money. She spends around 50,000 per month on her clothing and garden decor. Marie Antoinette is careless with her money because she uses it for her own benefit instead of sharing it with France. Placing this scene in the second half of the film shows that Marie Antoinette changed through time. She is more egoistic since she misuses the money she has.

Marie Antoinette does not only waste her money, she also cheats on her husband, King Louis XVI. She has an affair with a Swedish Diplomat Count Axel Von Fersen (Biography, 2014). Marie Antoinette successfully shows immorality through the character of the French Queen played by Dunst. In the scene after the soldiers’ party, Marie Antoinette goes to a room and meets Count Fersen. She has a relationship with him and hides it from her husband, King Louis XVI (Coppola, 2006). Marie Antoinette has an affair with a Swedish Diplomat because she does not feel pleased by her husband. She goes out with another man in order to satisfy herself. Placing this scene in the second half of the film shows that Marie Antoinette is no longer the same as before; she was not loyal anymore. Her relationship with Count Fersen makes her be seen as a self-centred person.

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