Marie Antoinette (1938) | |
Director(s) | W.S. Van Dyke, Julien Duvivier (uncredited) |
Producer(s) | Hunt Stromberg, Irving Thalberg (uncredited) |
Top Genres | Biographical, Drama, Historical, Romance |
Top Topics | Book-Based, Infidelity, Paris, Romance (Drama), Royalty |
Featured Cast:
Marie Antoinette Overview:
Marie Antoinette (1938) was a Drama - Drama Film directed by W.S. Van Dyke and Julien Duvivier and produced by Hunt Stromberg and Irving Thalberg.
The film was based on the biography Marie Antoinette: The Portrait of an Average Woman written by Stefan Zweig 1932.
Academy Awards 1938 --- Ceremony Number 11 (source: AMPAS)
Award | Recipient | Result |
Best Supporting Actor | Robert Morley | Nominated |
Best Actress | Norma Shearer | Nominated |
Best Art Direction | Cedric Gibbons | Nominated |
Best Music - Scoring | Herbert Stothart | Nominated |
BlogHub Articles:
Marie Antoinette (1938)
By Amanda Garrett on Jun 3, 2016 From Old Hollywood FilmsToday, I'm reviewing the 1938 biopic of French Queen Marie Antoinette, starring Norma Shearer. This article is part of The Royalty on Film Blogathon hosted by The Flapper Dame. Eighteenth century French Queen Marie Antoinette is still a pop culture icon for her over-the-top fashions and her ... Read full article
Marie Antoinette (1938)
By Beatrice on Dec 2, 2013 From Flickers in TimeMarie Antoinette Directed by W.S. Van Dyke Written by Claudine West, Donald Ogden Stewart, and Ernest Vajda based in part on the book by Stefan Zweig 1938/USA Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer First viewing I am not big on 2 1/2 hour-plus costume dramas … especially if Norma Shearer is going to play a tee... Read full article
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Quotes from
Mme. du Barry: I presume I shall not have the honor of meeting his Royal Highness?
Marie: My husband does not care for dancing, madame.
Mme. du Barry: Quite the family man, isn't he? The fireside, the nursing room and all that? To the duc Orleans: Well, here is my old friend and how well he takes the husband's place!
Marie: I'm sorry you feel your triumph incomplete, madame. My husband has better sense than I. He knows where to draw the line.
King Louis XV: (to du Barry) Will you dance, Madame?
Mme. du Barry: (ignoring the King's request) So that's it? I'm dirt, ah? Not good enough for your high and mightiness?
Marie: But, nooo, madame! Royalty loves an occasional roll in the gutter, don't they Grand-pappa?
Marie: You thought of me as something quite wonderful, didn't you? But instead you found an empty-headed, ill-mannered little fool. You see, monsieur, how sadly I am changed.
Count Axel de Fersen: Oh no, madame! You've made pleasure a shield against lonliness and slander, but you could never change so deep a heart, so eager to be loved. Everyone, even the highest, has some dream of love in his heart and unless he achieve it he must fill that emptiness with noise, fame, excitement, pleasure.
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Facts about
According to Wikipedia, the movie had thousands of costumes and lavish set designs. Adrian visited France and Austria in 1937 researching the period. He studied the paintings of Marie Antoinette, even using a microscope on them so that the embroidery and fabric could be identical. Fabrics were specially woven and embroidered with stitches sometimes too fine to be seen with the naked eye. The attention to detail was extreme, from the framework to hair. Some gowns became extremely heavy due to the embroidery, flounces and precious stones used. Norma Shearer's gowns alone had a combined weight of over 1,768 lb., the heaviest being the wedding dress.
During principal photography, portions of the film were shot on location at the recently completed Hollywood Park Racetrack in Inglewood, CA. The racetrack's facade was decorated to stand-in for the exterior of the Palace at Versailles.
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