La emperatriz rebelde

The danger with fictional accounts of the lives of real people, is that it is frequently all to easy to poke holes in the plot. This is one such film that takes just a little too much creative licence with the the life of the Empress Elisabeth (Vicky Krieps). Wife of the famed Austro-Hungarian Emperor Franz Josef (Florian Teichtmeister), this film follows a supposed year in the life of this curious historical figure who, having suffered a family tragedy and having a rather estranged emotional relationship with her husband, spends much of her life obsessing with her weight and seeking solitude. Krieps is on good form, she creates a persona for her character that is effective to watch, but the mixture of modern and period scenarios (old buildings with modern fire doors; a cross-channel ferry!) seems anachronistic - to what end? The buildings in which she and her family inhabit have none of the opulence and grandeur of the Hofburg or Prague Castle, indeed the British home of her horse-master "Bay" (Colin Morgan) looks little better that a ramshackle ruin - and this is incongruous with the way we know she lived her life. Reclusive, yes, but still in splendour. It is also a particularly unremarkable year in her life to have chosen to illustrate. Not the previous ones where turbulence within the Imperial family reigned, not the famed "Mayerling" period which was ultimately held responsible for the final decline of this lady. There is also an highly speculative portrayal of her relationship with Bavaria's equally famous King Ludwig II (Manuel Rubey). The denouement itself is presented here in a rather too bizarre fashion that rather topped off this interesting but frankly flat and pace-less drama that offers us a glimpse of this intriguing woman, but little more of substance. Pity.

There are several different ways to watch this movie.

You could analyze its historical accuracy, and you would find grounds for criticism.

You could be bothered by the fact that we're expected to sympathize with an empress, and you would find her personal struggles tiny, even pathetic, compared to the realities of her people.

But you could also decide to enjoy the acting, the script and the beautiful settings. And I did. The brilliantly understated acting by Vicky Krieps forms the core of this movie, and she is supported by great performances by almost the entire cast. All in all, writer/director Marie Kreutzer and the actors make this story believable, even surprisingly relatable.

This film was beautifully shot and I enjoyed the aesthetics. The lead actress was entertaining, and sometimes spellbinding. But that's about it.

It can't even be described as a 'slow burn' as that usually includes some ups and downs, but this really didn't. It was such a steady storytelling that I never felt any highs or lows.

I was very confused as this was supposed to be 19th century but had elements of 20th century. That distracted me as I didn't get a sense of place or time to try and plug into the story.

Overall a film that will probably appeal to those more intelligent/informed/interested than I am.

It has been many months since I came across a new film as satisfying as this one. The unusual device of seeding a big-budget costume drama with anachronisms to signal that something applicable across time is being communicated does alas lend itself to misunderstanding. It is good enough for this to be merely a vehicle for Ms. Krieps. That being a woman is complicated no matter the time period or the circumstances is enough for a premise.

To best be able to enjoy Corsage, I recommend finding out as little as possible about its many surprises in advance. But I do recommend finding out about the pertinent history and people, and in particular, to see the old Sissi films with Romy Schneider. This film is intended for German speakers, after all. I can easily imagine the two renditions of Empress Elizabeth as the same personality at different points in her life. Cf. Sisi (2021)

Hint: the secondary dictionary meaning of "corsage" is intended.

Life begins at forty, or so they say, so much living to enjoy from that big day, you can starve yourself to death, injecting drugs, to reduce stress, seduce your cousin, to find he doesn't want to play. As an Empress, you have everything you want, the world outside wants to see what you have to flaunt, but you like to use a double, can't be bothered with the trouble, and you've cut your hair, to ridicule and taunt. It's been observed, that you've become, a little vain, look for compliments, to take away the pain, your husband's disengaged, you often cause him some outrage, you have disdain that you suck in, and then constrain.

Great performance from the wonderful Vicky Krieps but if you're not a huge fan of the character or the era you may find it a little less engaging than you might like.