Marie Antoinette
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Movie Reviews of Marie Antoinette
Movie Review: Boring
Summary: 2 Stars
Irving Thalberg (1899 -1936) never tired of seeing his beloved wife Norman Shearer (1902-83) in films, especially period pieces. Thalberg rescued her from a reasonably undistinguished though profitable career in silent films when they married in 1927 and he put her in "The Divorcee" (1930) for which she won the Oscar. Despite her successes (6 Oscar nominations), Thalberg's love for her had her playing roles in which she was far too old to be realistic. She played the teenage Juliette in 1936 and in 1938 she plays the teenage Marie Antoinette. It's just plain silly to see a 36 year old woman trying her best to act like an 18th century teenager. BTW - this was Thalberg's last film. He died while it was still in the planning stage.
If Shearer's prancing like an adolescent isn't enough to make you fast forward, the deadly slow pace of the film will. Co-star Tyrone Power (1914-1958) doesn't even show up until 40+ minutes into the film, and then disappears again for quite a while.
Of course the film is not entirely without its merits. The costumes and the music are great, as one would expect in a $2+ million film in 1938. Robert Morley (1908-92) steals the show in his film debut as the shy Louis XVI, although his performance seems more invented than biographical. Morley, of course, was a great actor, and for his role in this film he was nominated for an Oscar (but lost to Walter Brennan in "Kentucky"). He was nominated for a Golden Globe for "Who's Killing the Great Chefs of Europe" (1978), but personally I thought his best performance was as the missionary in "The African Queen" (1951).
It's always good to see John Barrymore (1882-1942) who plays Louis XV, Morley's father... He'd been in Romeo and Juliette with Shearer in 1936 and appears with her again here. This was one of his last films, though he managed to get in "The Great Man Votes" the following year.
Woody van Dyke (1889-1943) directs. Best known for his "Thin Man" films, for which he received an Oscar nomination in 1935, he also received a nomination for "San Francisco" (1936) and directed Nelson Eddy and Jeanette Macdonald in 6 of their films. Van Dyke enjoyed exotic locations and made such films as "Heart of the Yukon" (1927), "White Shadows in the South Seas" (1928), "Eskimo" (1933), "Northwest Passage" (1940) and "Cairo" (1942).
Herbert Stothart (1885-1949) was the composer and often worked with van Dyke. Stothart won the Oscar for "The Wizard of Oz" (1939) and was nominated 9 more times, including for this film. He was often used in period pieces, and his films include "Treasure Island" (1934), Viva Villa" (1934), "David Copperfield" (1935), Anna Karenina" (1935), "Tale of Two Cities" (1935), and "Romeo and Juliette" (1936).
The costumes are great, sets are lavish, and Stothart's music is wonderful. Morley is a hoot. The film received 4 Oscar nominations (Morley, Shearer, Stothart) but didn't win. The big Oscar winner that year was "You Can't Take it With You" (Picture, Director). Marie Antoinette was the 5th top grossing film of the year. The top grossing films were "You Can't Take it With You", "The Adventures of Robin Hood", `Boys Town", "Alexander's Ragtime Band", and "Sweethearts. Other notable films released that year were "Algiers", Cagney and O'Brien in "Angels with Dirty Faces", John Garfield's film debut in "Four Daughters" and Gable and Tracey in "Test Pilot".
Despite the popular and critical reception, Marie Antoinette does not stand up to the test of time. It's far too long and Shearer's antics as a teenager are simply not convincing. Moreover, the goings on at court, while risqué for 1938, seem tame by later standards.
Movie Review: Horrifying Failure
Summary: 1 Stars
Flick is almost unwatchable for someone with an appreciation of acting and a sense of screenwriting and history. Zweig would have been better off by hitting the archives himself and not just relying on the faulty Girard letters and his amateur psychology. Shearer is plain unbearable with her constant sobbing and shrugging. It's painful to watch her at 35 trying to play a 14 year-old girl. Spending 3m and not shooting in Technicolor was another huge mistake MGM made. And it's really great to see Louis XVI and the "mob" both portrayed as retards. Thanks, Hollywood, now the French Revolution finally makes sense.