Customer Reviews

Marie Antoinette

5 star:		(50)
4 star:		(12)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

I think it's fair to say that Miss Coppola has superb taste in music.

I first heard this album over Christmas weekend when a friend brought her laptop over. She plugged it into my receiver and let it run through. Meanwhile we were baking and cooking. I found myself really getting into the music, and was even surprised by her taste. Song after song came on, and I even wrote down the names of a few bands I'd never heard of, in hopes of doing further research for prospective purchases or downloads. I was even enjoying the harpsichord interludes which were tastefully woven into the mix.

I asked for a copy of the 2 disc soundtrack and have been listening to it all weekend. It's just one of those kinds of albums with a great mix of songs and sounds that really just take you to another place. I'm not sure they take me to Marie Antoinette's time, heh, but it's great escape music regardless.

This soundtrack will speak to anyone who enjoys 80s dance punk, or low fi indie rock, ala my bloody valentine, yo la tengo, etc.

Like the other soundtracks to the previous Sofia Coppola films, this one proves to be no less dream-like and surreal than the previous two. The first disc has a fun sound to it, sounding almost as if you are hearing the music coming from a room down a long hall. This disc includes 80's favorites Siouxsie & The Banshees, Bow Wow Wow, New Order, Adam & The Ants, The Cure and a few others. Kevin Shields of My Bloody Valentine fame remixes "I Want Candy" as well as another Bow Wow Wow song on the second disc, both add an atmospheric touch to the already classic songs.

The second disc is a much more mellow side with Aphex Twin, The Radio Dept., Squarepusher, etc. This disc is just as surreal as the first, but in a different way. Aphex Twin's prepared piano ballad "Jynweythek Ylow" adds a haunting element to the second half of this soundtrack, Squarepusher's "Tommib Help Buss" which is a different version of "Tommib" featured on the Lost In Translation soundtrack sweetly begins to bring the second and final disc to a close, which ends with The Cure's "All Cats are Grey". Overall this soundtrack is one you can listen to for two different moods and creates excitement for the forthcoming film Marie Antoinette.

Good movie soundtrack, definitely excited about seeing the movie once it's released. My one very minor disapointment was that New Order's "Age of Consent" wasn't on the soundtrack. It's been played in some of the previews and I was hoping to find it here as well. Disc 1 is very upbeat and party like, whereas disc 2 is low key and chill. I love the modern take on this historical figure's life. Reminds me a little bit of the 1996 Romeo & Juliet movie and soundtrack. (which is one of my favorite soundtracks of all time!)

Get it, truly is "music for the party... and the morning after." (that's what it says on the cd!)

I say "bi-polar" becuase this soundtrack alternates, like the mind of a young girl with too much time on her hands (yes, that's you Ms. Coppola), between giddy and rambunctious or contemplative and anguished. Music can tell a lot about the person who chooses to listen to it, much less include it on a soundtrack, and this soundtrack makes it abundantly obvious the tone of which the director was lend to take the film.

Setting aside the artistic choice to contrast a period-piece with new wave music, the songs on this CD stand out on their own as extremely good pieces of music. They have a rather timeless quality, so that more recent entries like The Strokes don't sound out of place next to the more traditional new wave sounds of New Order.

The first half of the disc is largely upbeat. It opens with a fabulous classical intro to Siouxsie and The Banshees' "Hong Kong Garden" and then moves into crazier territory with Bow Wow Wow's "Aphrodisiac." The Strokes' "Whatever Happened" is a common tune but one that grows on you with subsequent listens. Then one of the album's most delightful surprises, a showing by The Radio Dept. for a break in pace with "Pulling Our Weight." After this comes the pensive but bravely inspiring cover of Joy Division's "Ceremony" by New Order. Back at the palace ball, Gang of Four gets the masses riled up with "Natural's Not in It," followed by another Bow Wow Wow classic "I Want Candy" (I'll confess this is one that could have been left out, it's commercial and overplayed as it is; it does work given the context of the film, but not so much on this soundtrack). The party ends with Adam Ant's "Kings of the Wild Frontier" which is a take-it-or-leave-it track.

From there, the first disc turns largely into a contemplative atmospheric set. Anotnio Vivaldi's "Concerto in G" turns a corner with some lush classical, and then the final 3 tracks put us into a subdued melancholy coma. Windsor for the Derby's "The Melody of a Fallen Tree," The Radio Dept.'s "I Don't Like it Like This" and The Cure's "Plainsong" are some of the most reflective, introverted songs you're likely to find on any collection.

The second disc is nearly all mood and atmosphere. It includes unexpected quiet pieces from Aphex Twin and Squarepusher, more from Bow WoW Wow, The Cure, and the Radio Dept., as well as a large number of instrumental renditions and classical pieces by contemporary artists.

Overall this is one of the best soundtracks I've come across, largely lacking widespread commercial appeal but absolutely stuffed full of more obscure gems.

After seeing this spectacular movie, I knew immediately I had to have the soundtrack. It complimented the film so well and enhanced it into an entirely different experience.

Firstly, I was pleasantly surprised to see that this is two disc set with wonderful colors that pop out just as much as the cover art and the music itself. Listening to the first CD was an absolute treat that I have not stopped listening to since. This disc is filled with music that makes you feel as though you missed out on something great in the eighties for a few of them, and then that you should be paying more attention to the present with ethereal tones of recent music. There is an amazing indie feel to the tracks that is reminiscent of finding buried treasure. This CD is very upbeat and leaves you refreshed, much like the beginning/middle of the film where life is going good for the child-Dauphine.

The second disc has a melancholy air about it that settles you down, much like Marie does. When I want to relax, I set these tracks spinning and melt in the echo of Versailles. With the exception of one or two faster songs, this second disc is a perfect companion to the film that ends on a bittersweet note of what is to come.

I reccommend this whole-heartedly to any fan of the Strokes, the Arcade Fire, Air, Bow Wow Wow [and similar eighties singers], The Jesus and Mary Chain, and other indie-esque songwriters. This is a great buy [and I bought another for a friend] and would be money well spent.

The movie left a lot to be desired but the book that it was taken from and the movie soundtrack are both excellent. The soundtrack has a playful exuberance that's truly addictive and I think it captured the mood that the movie failed to elicit.

I love this movie more than I can even describe, and this two-disc soundtrack is just as great for the low price. Disc one, the party platter, features post-punk and new romantic bands from the early 80s when I was in high school. "Hong Kong Garden" by Siousie Sioux & the Banshees is a totally righteous kickoff, and the two Bow Wow Wow songs "Aphrodisiac" and "I Want Candy" are undeniably sweet treats. I must admit, though, having never heard The Radio Dept. before and being totally pleased with all the tracks by them that Sofia Coppola put on this collection. Anyway, disc one is great fun, including the beautiful Concerto in G by Vivaldi.

The second set for the morning after is pleasant and mostly full of classical music, my favorite tracks being those by Dustin O'Halloran and Bow Wow Wow's cover of Johnny Mercer's "Fools Rush In." Any way you cut it, this soundtrack is ALL good, and among the best I've heard along with that of Grace of My Heart. If you love the movie and the music caught your attention as well, I say pick this soundtrack up. You will be royally pleased!

One of the things that makes the movie `Marie Antoinette' so great is the brilliant soundtrack put together by Sophia Coppola who I swear is a modern day genius. This two-disc album offers some great music to just sit back and enjoy, starting with Siouxsie & The Banshees track `Hong Kong Garden' and ending with The Cure's brilliant `All Cat's Are Grey'.

On disc one the standout track and the whole reason I purchased this album is The Strokes `What Ever Happened' which plays in one of the most pivotal scenes in the film, and of course is the track that runs throughout the majority of the trailers promoting this brilliant film. Other choice tracks include both tracks by The Radio Dept., especially `Pulling Our Weight' and of course `I Want Candy'. I love the New Order Track `Ceremony' and `Concerto in G'.

The second disc is full of some of the most peaceful recordings placed together on one album, with Aphex Twin's `Jynweythek Ylow' and `Avril 14th' standing out as favorites with their haunting atmosphere. Dustin O'Halloran's `Opus 17' is just plain stunning as is his `Opus 36' as well. A much different feel than the first disc, this second album serves as such a delightful treat, both albums meshing perfectly together to deliver a one of a kind musical experience.

Worth every penny!

sofia coppola has put together an amazing soundtrack for her new movie. i saw the movie in the netherlands this past summer and it is one of my all time favorites! the soundtrack creates a youthful, haunting combination of 80s hits and classical/atmospheric pieces. i created a mix from the two double discs that i could play at parties, leaving out some of the slower songs...but thats not to say these songs arent wonderful. some of them are just those ones that pull at your heart, especially after seeing the movie, because most of the songs are so well placed in it. who would of thought that Hong Kong Garden by Siouxsie and the Banshees would fit in so well at an 18th century aristocrats ball? i guess sophia coppola. see the movie, buy the album...they are both an absolute wonder to the senses.

When I first read that Sofia Coppola was going to use contemporary music on the "MA" soundtrack,I was skeptical. However,I was wrong,the music she chose fit the action onscreen and even enhanced it,the The 1980's being in a way,as decadent as the 1770's!(in my opinion,anyway..) Also,there is enough 18th century music to satisfy the purists. (Like the wonderful Vivaldi violin concerto as well as the lovely sound of the harpiscord that to me personifies the era as much as the beautiful, elaborate clothing of the time. Give it a listen..!