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.
SYNOPSIS
A long, lavish biopic chronicling the life of the French queen (Shearer) who wanted only a simple life on a farm, but was finally consumed by the French Revolution. Central to the film's story, adapted from the best-selling biography by Stefan Zweig, are the intrigues at Versailles and the scandal of the diamond necklace. Power, on loan from Fox (in exchange for Spencer Tracy's appearance in Stanley and Livingstone), plays Marie's Swedish lover Ferson and Morley is excellent as weak Louis XVI. A big-budget showcase for Shearer's return after a two-year absence while she grieved the loss of husband and MGM production chief Irving Thalberg. While Sidney Franklin spent years preparing to direct the film, studio boss Mayer forced him to stand back and allow no-nonsense Van Dyke to take over.
(Source: available at Amazon AMC Classic Movie Companion).
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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
Count Axel de Fersen: Always, my dear... always.
Marie: ...giving me strength to live... goodbye, my love. (they kiss)
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.
Count Axel de Fersen: When I'm gone you'll be glad that I didn't stand in the path of your destiny making you less than you were meant to be.
Marie: And that other kingdom? The love, the youth, the happiness we might have had... what of that?
Count Axel de Fersen: We shall dream of it more tenderly because we didn't destroy it.
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Facts about
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.
Irving Thalberg originally planned for Charles Laughton to play the role of Louis XVI. Laughton, after lengthy deliberations, finally declined.
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