Farewell My Queen Analysis

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In Farewell, My Queen (2012), director Benoît Jacquot employs variations in camera shots and lighting techniques to convey the difference in social class and change in mood throughout the film. A recurring pattern that distinguishes the royal class from the common folk is the movement of the camera. In the beginning of the film, there are fast transitions and the frames move quickly from one character to the other. Fast horizontal pan shots trail Sidonie as she moves across the room and the camera seems to lack stability in its movements. Suddenly thereafter, the shots become much steadier and camera movements more stable as the vertical and horizontal pan shots present a panoramic view of the palace. Instead of moving with the characters, the camera stays at the same location as the marching band parades into the palace. In contrast to this, the scene that follows immediately thereafter has a hand-held news camera immediacy as Sidonie sprints past the trees on her way to the palace. Another noticeable instance that differentiates the royalty from the common folk can be seen in the maids’ interactions with and around the queen. The maids can be heard talking when they are not in the frame and focus is on the queen. These voices don’t seem to matter to the queen and go unheeded, showing that only the characters that the queen can see (i.e are in the frame) matter and others have no significance.
Similarly, effective use of lighting also allows for differentiation between the two classes. Jacquot uses bright fill light in scenes in both inside and in the courtyard to express the opulence and superficial serenity of the royal family. On the contrary, cameo lighting is used in the quarters where Sidonie sleeps where a small window...

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...job of telling the story in a natural and realistic fashion. The cast is largely female and there are recurring vertical pan shots that scan cleavage throughout the film; subtly hinting a lesbian intrigue that would otherwise be perceived as friendship. The costumes of the females close to the queen are overall flesh-revealing and slightly point towards the queen sexual desires for the females around her. The casting of the queen, played by Diane Kruger, is of great attention as well. During the events depicted in the film, Queen Marie Antoinette was almost 34 years old. Kruger was 35 years old during the making of this film. The queen was Austrian; and Krugar is German. Krugar is fluent in French but the mere fact that she is not French represents her as foreigner for the people of France and in this context makes her seem vulnerable even before she utters a word.

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