French screenwriter and director Benoït Jacquot's twentieth feature film which he wrote with French screenwriter and author Gilles Taurand, is an adaptation of an eponymous novel from 2002 by French author Chantal Thomas. It premiered In competition at the 62nd Berlin International Film Festival in 2012, was shot on locations in France and is a France-Spain co-production which was produced by producers Jean-Pierre Guérin, Kristina Larsen and Pedro Uriol. It tells the story about a French servant and seamstress who lives in a room at the Palace of Versailles in France with a friend named Alice.Distinctly and precisely directed by French filmmaker Benoït Jacquot, this quietly paced fictional tale which is narrated by and mostly from the main character's point of view, draws a gripping portrayal of a person who before the establishment of the French National Assembly, the March on Versailles, a speech by a French attorney named Maxmilien François Marie Isidore de Robespierre (1758-1794) where he articulated a transcending motto which may have appeased the ingrained and unwavering advocates of total equality by adding a word which in all fairness is just as significant and during the beginning of the French Revolution (1789-1799) and the Great Fear when an announcement regarding citizens of the then Kingdom of France (843-1792) who were to be guillotined for the sake of a reform was announced, aspires to serve a Queen of Austrian origins named Marie-Antoinette Joséphe Jeanne de Habsbourg-Lorraine (1755-1793). While notable for its atmospheric milieu depictions, majestically cinematic cinematography by cinematographer Romain Winding, production design by production designer Katia Wyszkop and costume design by costume designer Christian Gasc, this character-driven and dialog-driven story about famine, monarchy, social insurrection and a pivotal time in French history when present political ideologies were being developed and where a royal daughter, sister, wife and mother who did not chose to be a royalist is imprisoned by her passions and a person who isn't of the aristocracy plays on her mistress' passion, using herself as an instrument, to gain her objective, depicts an enigmatic study of character and contains a great and timely score by composer Bruno Coulais.This historic and understatedly romantic silent dance of glances within interior surroundings which is set in the late 18th century in France during the reign of King Louis-Auguste XVI (1754-1793) and where a reader understands whom she has to reach to get to where she is headed, is impelled and reinforced by its cogent narrative structure, subtle character development, rhythmic continuity, comment by Marie-Antoinette: "Have you ever been attracted…?" and the reverent acting performances by French actress Léa Seydoux, German actress Diane Krüger and French actress Julie-Marie Parmentier. A virtuously cinematographic and densely literary narrative feature.

Despite having a great interest in the late 18th century, I have not found many films that strike my particular chords. 'Les adieux à la reine' is one of them, and it does so mainly for two reasons: first, because it nicely shows us the dark underbelly of the lavish gold-plated upper rooms of the French royal palace at Versailles, exposing the system that contradicted the later observation by that inveterate revolutionary Thomas Jefferson, who was the American minister to France from 1785 to 1789, that: 'the mass of mankind has not been born with saddles on their backs, nor a favored few booted and spurred, ready to ride them legitimately, by the grace of God.' Second, because it shows us that for all their faults, the royals and their noble entourage where people too. People who did not voluntarily run for office, who loved their children and friends as much as anyone else would, and whose fears of what might be done to their loved ones and themselves drove them to nightmares and tears. Even if it was true that 'Louis must die that the country may live', as that great butcherer of men, Maximilien Robespierre, later remarked, the violent character of the French Revolution must surely have done great damage to their proclaimed ideals as well.Some have criticized the two main actresses for appearing stiff and lacking spontaneity; and I can certainly see where that is coming from, but rather than seeing this as a negative, I think it works to illustrate the strict protocols and the ever present divides of class and status that permeate life at Versailles. With one notable exception, the personal opinions and whims of Sidonie Laborde (Léa Seydoux) are simply not tolerated by anyone other than her fellow servants. A seeming relaxed and smiling social better instantly turns on her the moment she does anything deemed unacceptable, and when she finally does 'win the love' of Queen Marie Antoinette (Diane Kruger) it is for reasons completely out of line with what Sidonie might have wished for, but should probably have come to expect.Because if there is one thing about the character of Sidonie that I would criticize, it is exactly that: for someone seemingly so inquisitive, so observant of social protocol, and yet so willing to force her will through at certain times, she appears completely unable to assert herself around Queen Marie Antoinette - even when the rats are leaving the sinking ship, to use a Dutch expression. But perhaps this is unfair: perhaps she really did feel unconditional love towards the Queen.Speaking of love, who can fault Queen Marie Antoinette for being completely swept off her feet by Yolande Martine Gabrielle de Polastron, 'la duchesse de Polignac' (Virginie Ledoyen). The movie seems to portray her as a somewhat more recent and distant presence at the court than she was in reality, but regardless, it gives the viewers a peak into the upper layers of society at Versailles. If the adage 'play or be played' is too modern a description, something more contemporary would surely have conveyed the same idea.All in all, I consider this to be a fine film indeed. Diane Kruger gives us one of the more believable portrayals of Queen Marie Antoinette in recent times. If nothing else, acknowledgement of the fact that she was a mother in her mid-30s, and not a frivolous 20 year old, is a good start. But the film goes further, probably in line with the recent trend among historians to view Queen Marie Antoinette in a more positive light.One final note about the supposed pornographic nature of some scenes, pointed out in the reviews of others (mostly Americans); there is nudity, a kiss, and some longing stares. But this is nothing out of the ordinary in French, and indeed most European, films. Don't miss out on this film for fear of seeing a naked torso!

It's July, 1789, and French citizenry is starting to revolt. Queen Marie Antoninette (Diane Kruger) is hold up at Château de Versailles with her court and her book reader (Léa Seydoux). When the news of the storming of the Bastille reaches them, panic sets in and the King's entourage start slipping away.It's fascinating to see the various reaction as rumors start to spread. Léa Seydoux is great as the doe-eyed true believer. It is disconcerting to know her true naivety even though she has no idea. It's the source of the tension, but it's also infuriating. Diane Kruger is fine, but I thought that it wasn't quite big enough. However, the climax was just right.

This is a modern historical drama. Characters are not well-developed, and their motivations are not clear. Why is Sidonie so devoted to the Queen? Why does she suddenly want to have sex with the gondolier? Instead, there is LOTS of atmosphere, which makes for one slow film.You won't learn much about what actually happened in the week that followed the fall of the Bastille, since the story, to the extent that there is a story, is told through the eyes of one of the Queen's domestics. (It does remind you that, in a day not only before computers and the internet, but even television and radio, you could live 30 miles away from momentous events and have no idea what was going on.) Nor will you learn much about Marie-Antoinette or Louis XVI. The latter is a minor character here. MA comes off as very capricious, which she evidently was. But why? Again, there is no character development.And then, finally, the movie stops, and you go "Oh, is it over?" As I said, LOTS of atmosphere. If that floats your boat, you might like this movie.It did nothing for me, and I'm very interested in French history.