Musings On... Sofia Coppola

Sofia Coppola is one of my favorite directors, her films have a timeless elegance and a calm solemness which is beautiful and soothing. Coppola is the daughter of legendary director Francis Ford Coppola, and this is apparent in her films, Coppola spent much of her childhood growing up in hotels, and thus many of her films deal with youth and loneliness. Both Somewhere and Lost in Translation are set in hotels, and deal with the isolation and shut off reality of hotels. Coppola also grew up in a privileged environment, and her films deal with this also.

One of the main themes discussed in her films is that of isolation, The Virgin Suicides is about five sisters who are isolated from society by their mother after one of them commits suicide. The film explores the cost of their isolation, and their loneliness. Her second picture deals with the same themes, and is the story of two tourists who meet in a hotel in Tokyo, and who form an unusual bond. The milieu of the hotel is an expression of their loneliness, as it is a world cut off from reality, and both the characters are lonely and lost in their marriages. Somewhere also deals with loneliness, much in the same way as Lost in Translation.

Other themes discussed in her works are ennui, which is discussed in Marie Antoinette, Lost in Translation and Somewhere, all these films deal with characters who feel despondent and uninterested with life. Her films also deal with characters who are often wealthy and privileged, but who gain little pleasure in their lives, and who feel like their loves are worthless, Marie Antoinette deals with this especially, as Antoine is rich and lives in a palace, yet she longs for a simple life, and loathes the pretense and lavish lifestyle of Versaillles. The Bling Ring stands out among Coppola's works, and it deals with a group of young people who are obsessed with fame and fortune, who long for riches and celebrity, and who steal from those they idolize.

Coppola is a true auteur, her films are highly personal, she wrote all of them, and they are highly inspired by her own life, childhood and experiences, her films mainly deal with loneliness, isolation and solitude, her films are visually stunning and poignant and are of particular significance to me.

Somewhere, somewhere....

Somewhere is a 2010 drama film directed by Sofia Coppola, which follows a famous actor, staying at the Chateau Marmont recovering from a broken wrist. The actor, Johnny Marco is forced to promote a new movie, and he feels as though his life is meaningless, whilst staying at the hotel, he goes through an existential crisis, feeling that life is hollow and pointless. Marcos peaceful stay is abruptly disturbed by the arrival of his daughter. A trip to Milan for a film festival underlines his loneliness, and Marco begins to question the meaning of his success.

The film is set at the legendary Chateau Marmont, a famous hotel in Los Angeles, and Coppola was inspired by trips to the hotel with her father, and the feeling of detachment the fantasy of the Chateau brings. The hotel represents a paradox, in that for many outsiders, it is a paradise of luxury and decadence, and yet for Marco, it represents a lonely, disconnected web of corridors and rooms, where he feels more introspective than gratified. The Chateau Marmont is emblematic of Hollywood, an impenetrable fortress for many outsiders, into which it is so hard to be accepted, but the view from the inside is often shallow and unsatisfying.

One of the main themes of the film, like many of Coppola's other films is that of ennui, here celebrity languor is explored, Johnny Marco is successful and accomplished, however he feels like none of it is meaningful, celebrities are often people who are idolized and worshiped, but Coppola paints an unflattering portrait of life behind the curtain of fame, Marco is shown hiring twin strippers to dance for him, having gratuitous sex with women, taking pills and drinking. All these exploits are unsatisfying to him, and he gleans no pleasure from them. Fame is expected to fix ones problems, but Marco is unhappy despite all his alleged success, and his self imposed seclusion is emblematic ohis depression

The films stars Stephen Dorff as Marco, a newly famous actor going through an existential crisis, struggling to deal with his fame and his otherwise broken life. Elle Fanning plays his daughter, Cleo, from his failed marriage. Her arrival forces Marco to change his lifestyle, and as their time together grows he comes to realize the importance of fatherhood, he sees how all the hedonistic pleasures that were supposed to bring him happiness failed, and that it is his daughter who allows him to see what is important in life. The film was all shot on location at the Chateau Marmont, and the film itself is beautiful, shot in a Kubrick inspired almost documentary style like it's predecessor, Marie Antoinette This style shows a cold detachment from its subject, almost a disinterest. Somewhere is a stylish and beautiful ode to fame and loneliness. Rating: A-

Cleo: Why are you taking a bath next door? Is yours broken?

Marie Antoinette

Marie Antoinette is a 2006 historical drama, written and directed by Sofia Coppola, starring Kirsten Dunst, Jason Schwartzman and Rose Byrne. The film is a highly loose adaptation of the life of the French queen, and represents the life of the queen, from the age of 14 when she was promised to the dauphin, the future king of France, up until the French revolution, when she and her husband were forced to leave Versailles.

The film is a highly loose adaptation, and style clearly takes place over substance in this adaptation. Kirsten Dunst shines as the young and troubled young queen. The film is a highly humanizing portrait of the young queen’s life, and elements of the film are intentionally modernized in order to humanize the characters involved, rather than portraying Marie Antoinette as a selfish and spoilt girl, Coppola presents her as a deeply flawed young woman, entirely cut off from reality, and trapped within a world she had no control over. Jason Schwartzman also stars as Louis XVI. The film also has the distinction of introducing the world to Rose Byrne, who plays Yolande de Polastron, a beautiful and extravagant duchess, a favorite of Marie-Antoinette.

The film is a visually stunning and lavish representation of pre-revolutionary France, and of the court of Versailles, the production had unprecedented access to the court of Versailles and its grounds, and it is of huge advantage to the film. The film is infused with the essence of Versailles, something which could not be achieved if the sets had been constructed for the film. The film is also lavishly costumed, and won an Oscar in 2007 for Best Costume Design. The film often sacrifices historical realism for character development, and the clothes are used intelligently to give us an idea of who these characters really are as people, rather than simply putting them on a pedestal. Marie-Antoinette’s character is developed largely through costume, at the beginning of the film, her costumes are used to show her naiveté and innocence, she wears dresses in blue and pink, with little hats and necklaces, her make-up is also highly subdued at this point, showing that she has not yet reached an age of sexual maturity, and that she is essentially a little girl. Towards the end of the film, as Marie-Antoinette becomes more rebellious and free, her style changes as well. Her make-up becomes darker, more flirtatious, with redder lipstick and more blush, showing her blossoming into a freer and emancipated woman. Towards the end of the film her wardrobe changes also, and she begins wearing darker colors, more daring silhouettes. She also begins to dress in a far freer way; she begins to wear simple, shepherdess dresses, showing her desire for a more liberated, less conservative existence.

Supporting characters are also introduced largely by their wardrobe, Madame Du Barry, a prostitute and favorite of the king is shown with dark defined make-up, and modern avant-garde clothing, looking highly unlike the rest of the nobility, ensuring that she is seen by the audience as an outsider, given that she is not a true member of the nobility. Costume is also used to show the sheer extravagance of the royal family, Manolo Blahnik created hundreds of pairs of shoes for the production, and at one point in the film, we see a pair of modern Chuck Taylor’s, in pale blue under a table, showing that Marie Antoinette is essentially still a young teenager, even if she is the Dauphine of France. Also important in the film are wigs, Marie-Antoinette brought in a fashion for wigs in France, and in the film Marie-Antoinette beginning to wear wigs is a turning point in the film, as her extravagance begins to become inappropriate. Her wigs also show her innocence, that even though she was a grown woman by this point, even though she was queen of France with responsibilities and children, she was still immature and childlike, willing to try odd and even downright ridiculous things.

The film is a highly humanizing portrait of the doomed queen; Marie-Antoinette is portrayed as being entirely cut off from reality, Versailles is depicted as an entirely cut off world, a world in which she was endlessly trailed by courtiers and servants. Marie-Antoinette is portrayed as a woman who couldn’t possibly know about the troubles of the working people of France, because she was entirely cutoff from reality, and as a woman who desperately longed for a simpler life. She is described as essentially a woman who was in the wrong place at the wrong time, and who cannot be blamed for the financial woes of France. Marie-Antoinette is shown to be a woman who cares deeply for her country, despite not having been born in France, and as a woman who accepts the position she has been put in despite it not being her fault.

Louis XVI however is portrayed in a highly unsympathetic light; he is shown to be pompous, unfriendly and uncaring towards his wife. His inability to consummate the marriage is of considerable pain to his wife, and yet he makes no attempt to console her, the film also places the financial ruin of France solely in the hands of Louis XVI, given that it was him who sent troops to America to fight the British, a move inspired wholly by ego. The film’s use of music is also superb, as is traditional for Sofia Coppola films; the film uses a soundtrack of new age and post punk music, which although anachronistic, really allows us to empathize with the characters. The use of anachronistic music, which although being de rigueur today, was relatively unheard of in the early 2000’s, allows us to see Marie-Antoinette as a young teen, and gives us a way to relate to the film.

Although being lightweight and frivolous, Marie Antoinette is a well-produced, visually sumptuous and deftly acted drama; the film finds a way to allow us to empathize with these historical characters, by taking them off their pedestals and humanising them greatly. Marie Antoinette is a harrowing and personal view of the doomed queen, a woman who despite being spoilt and selfish, is not guilty of either the financial ruin of France or the downfall of the monarchy, and who has been made to pay for the faults and flaws of the monarchy as an institution. Sofia Coppola shows that she again is a highly capable director with a real voice and opinion, and is successfully able to translate this overly told story to the big screen, giving it a new perspective and enlightenment. Rating: A

Marie-Antoinette: Am I to be Austrian or the Dauphine of France?

The Meta-Racism of American Movies

Well, as with so many of the posts on this blog, the impetus of this article was a conversation i had with a group of friends at a party the other night, this friend was Italian, and had taken offense at a recent Hollywood film which had a sequence set in Rome. The friend found the depiction of Italian culture to be false and stereotyped, and labelled the film racist, the film was Eat Pray Love. This discussion got me thinking about the way in which Hollywood portrays foreign cultures, often with little success or autheniticity. I had a similar discussion with some french friends six months ago about Lost In Translation, a film set in Japan, and one of my absolute favorite films.

Eat Pray Love is a 2010 film starring Julia Roberts about a woman who experienced a breakdown and decides to spend a year in Italy, India and Bali. The first three months she spends in Rome, where she eats and eats. The film ends up portraying the Italians as simplistic, offensive and more than slightly obsessed about food (okay this part may be realistic). However to label the film racist is simply too harsh, the film is intended to be a celebration of Italian culture, and indeed i ended up wanting to go back to Italy (I lived there for a year). Racism is defined by intention, and this film is not at all ill meaning, the film is intended as a celebration of Italian culture, which simply comes off as being an oversimplified version of Rome, so whilst the film is slightly problematic, it's flaws come from the fact that it is an American film about a foreign culture, that cannot even begin to depict the complexities of a foreign culture.

Lost In Translation is a 2003 film about two strangers who meet in a Tokyo hotel. This movie is far more problematic, as it can easily be accused of ridiculing the Japanese people. The title of this film is Lost in Translation, and it describes two people who go to Japan with no real understanding of the culture, and yet who fall in love with the city and with each other, thus, although narratively the film has no real understanding of the Japanese people, as this is loosely a first person narrative. Despite this, the film is also a heartfelt love letter to the city of Tokyo and it's culture, the city looks beautiful and the way Tokyo is portrayed is intensely meaningful.

The inherent problem with any foreign director making a film about a city of a country is that they don't have an implicit understanding of the complexities or the true ambiance of a foreign city or country. Despite this, labeling these films racist fails to justify their intentions, as in many ways these films are meant as celebrations or valentines to the cities where they are set. Whilst a lot of these films are clearly problematic, their good intentions cannot be overlooked.