“I enjoyed it but Never I’m doing this again.”
Sofia Coppola says these words near the end of “Making Marie Antoinette,” a feature-length documentary about the making of her late mother Eleanor Coppola’s 2006 film “Marie Antoinette.”
Screening in the Spotlight section of the New York Film Festival, the fly-on-the-wall documentary is compiled from 80 hours of footage Eleanor shot at the Palace of Versailles during the film’s intense production, and follows a young filmmaker coming into her own before our eyes (as well as plenty of in-jokes for stars Kirsten Dunst and Jason Schwartzman, who play King Louis XVI and is also Sofia’s cousin). “Marie Antoinette” was released in 2006 to mixed reviews and modest box office returns, but is now considered a cult classic.
During the film’s post-premiere Q&A at NYFF, Sofia explained that the Coppola family gathered at their family home in Napa Valley and decided to rewatch footage of Eleanor for the first time, which brought back many memories of when she made “Marie Antoinette.” “This is embarrassing for me,” Sofia said after the film. “When I was complaining in the trailer that I didn’t want to talk to my mom and that I wasn’t being nice… but it’s important to show all sides and I get grumpy sometimes!”
Although Eleanor passed away in 2024 at the age of 87, she was “always disappointed that the footage was never put together.” [into a film]”So Sofia – with the help of editor Aaron Matthews – helped turn her vision into reality. Eleanor imagined an observational film in the style of Frederick Wiseman, and the documentary is narrated by actress Diane Lane, a longtime collaborator with the Coppola family who read Eleanor’s diary entries from two decades ago. “There wasn’t a lot of drama, so how do you keep it from being boring?” Sofia mused during the Q&A.
although some drama. We see Sofia and her crew on “Marie Antoinette” at times overwhelmed by the sheer number of extras and how long it takes for the actors to get their hair, makeup and costumes (especially their hair). “The Making of Marie Antoinette” is a celebration of the Sofia monument as well as the work of the film’s costume designer, Milena Canonero. Canonero created over 70 original dresses for Dunst’s Marie Antoinette alone, eventually winning the Academy Award for Best Costume Design.
The most interesting scenes of the movie “Making Marie Antoinette”, which is scheduled to be released on Mubi on October 23, are Sofia’s portrayal of King Louis XVI instead of focusing on Marie Antoinette’s point of view. It’s about Louis bickering with cinematographer Lance Acord, who wants more shots that show his point of view. It’s exciting to see Sofia, then 34, push back on Acord’s demands and stay true to her vision. “It’s hard to believe that twenty years ago women’s perspectives were so extraordinary,” she said during the Q&A. “I’m now more comfortable being assertive about what I want… I was still trying to find a way to be assertive about what I wanted on set.”
We also see Schwartzman fooling around on set, playing the harpsichord and playing pranks on a tiny dog; Dunst tells him everything with a smile; and Asia Argento, who plays the icy Madame du Berry and throws her shoulder at Dunst path very difficult in a confrontation scene. We also see Phoenix frontman and Coppola’s then-boyfriend Thomas Mars being introduced to Eleanor for the first time (Sofia and Thomas are now married with two children).
But mostly we witness Sofia bringing her vision to life with precision and grace. Like this love letter from mother to daughter (and vice versa), it’s a sight to behold. “I get stressed out watching it and seeing how none of us were prepared for a period piece and how long the costume changes are going to take,” Sofia admitted during the Q&A, but added: “I felt very lucky about it. [my mother] You gave this to me and to show him this respect and be with him again.”