Marie adapts to the French court in a frivolous manner, with excessive gambling, partying, and spending. She even has an affair with Count Fersen (Jamie Dornan), a military man more dashing than her husband. Marie's brother intercedes successfully, and she eventually bears Louis four children. A bad case of historical timing denies a happy ending, however. The French people riot, and close in on the royal couple.
How others will see it. Marie Antoinette drew mixed reviews from critics, and it was a box office disappointment. The problem with the film, from a commercial rather than a quality perspective, is that it lacks a payoff.
Compare with Anne of the Thousand Days (1966), A Man For All Seasons (1966), and Mary, Queen of Scots (1971). These films provided the payoff. That is, the blueblood's head was chopped off. Coppola instead ends the story with the Royal family leaving Versailles, certainly a less dramatic resolution. This follows endless scenes of Antoinette in society, which also failed to meet audience expectations.
What the film needed to succeed was early critical praise. This probably could have been accomplished by filling the lead with a respected prestige film actress, e.g. Cate Blanchett, and reworking the second half of the movie to focus on the impact of the French Revolution on her, especially her imprisonment, trial, and execution.
It didn't help matters that the soundtrack was 1980s modern rock instead of classical. To successfully target a film to an audience, e.g. the big city art house, you must give them what they expect.
How I felt about it. Not that a tame classical score would actually improve the movie. It's great nostalgia to hear "I Want Candy," and I'll take Bow Wow Wow's version over the Strangeloves. After all, modern rock and 18th century Versailles society have something in common: fashion, although body piercing, tattoos, and orange hair would have turned Marie Antoinette into a parody.
Let's be fair to the movie. It's pretty good. Kirsten Dunst may have been more appropriate for Coppola's The Virgin Suicides, but she is engaging, and her adoration for her family seems credible. She delights in her husband despite his indifference in the Royal bed, and is quick to form close friendships from the court attendees who, in general, regard her as a foreign curiosity to be stared at and gossiped about. The intrigue lacks sting, since Marie prefers frivolity and intimate friendship. It is all interesting, enough so that I personally don't care that Marie Antoinette is a different movie than what others expected.