Topic: Modern Women Directors

The New Coppola

            As we have learned there have been great women directors throughout history, but more specifically in recent years. They range from, Penny Marshall, to Jodie Foster, to Barbra Streisand, to one of my favorites Sophia Coppola. Coppola has directed four major studio movies, including “The Virgin Suicides,” “Lost in Translation,” “Marie Antoinette,” and her latest film “Somewhere.” Her young career has been one of hit and miss. She hit critical acclaim with her first two films “Virgin” and “Lost,” the latter being in my top five all time favorite films. Sophia Coppola speaks to a younger, hipper, and perhaps slightly lost generation. Her films reflect a playful femininity and yet a quiet sadness that I feel speaks to my generation, especially to women. She includes current trends into classic stories that make young audiences eager to watch her work.

            Sophia began her career as an actress, or rather the daughter of a major director (Francis Ford Coppola). At the age of 11, she took the stage name “Domino” and appeared in a few unknown films, along with her infamously panned performance in her father’s film “The Godfather III.” She transitioned into the role of director in 1996 with her first short “Bed, Bath and Beyond,” which focuses on a “British bombshell” who is desperate for her husband to cast her in his film as a pop star. Her next short “Lick the Star” came in 1998 and centers on a group of young school girls who devise a secret plan. Her studio feature debut came in the form of “The Virgin Suicides,” based on the book by Jeffery Eugenides. Her father played a key role in landing her the job at Paramount Classics (Paramount’s mini-major studio division) by coming on board as an executive producer. The choice proved successful for Coppola earning her major critical acclaim. Her next film, “Lost in Translation” (2004) was a huge success and earned her an Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay. With “Translation,” she also became the youngest and first American women ever to be nominated for Best Director. (IMDB.com).

(Tagline: "Everyone wants to be found.")

            It seemed as though Coppola was on top of the world and could do no wrong in the eyes of critics and the public, until the release of “Marie Antoinette,” which received very mixed reviews. The film premiered at the Cannes Film Festive, where several members of the audience booed during parts of the film, yet it still received a standing ovation. Sophia’s work seemed to center solely on women and their struggle to find themselves, until her latest film, “Somewhere.” The 2010 film, centers on a rebellious jaded actor who becomes reunited with his young daughter. A similar theme exists in “Translation” with actor Bill Murray playing a burnt-out aging actor lost in his own life and the city of Tokyo. It will be interesting to see how Coppola let’s us peak into the life of another male or will we see mostly through the eyes of the female lead (Elle Fanning)?

            It doesn’t take a close look to see the theme of daughter and father in most of her work. It was rumored that “Translation” was a true story about her and the films star Bill Murray. The two differ in age by more than 30 years, Electra Complex anyone?  Growing up as the daughter of one of Hollywood’s “film school brats” can’t be easy and the thread of privileged women searching for themselves exits in all of her films. Her cinematography is one of her trademark assets, with diffused light and handheld shots that make you feel present in every one of her picturesque moments. Coppola is a director that makes us feel visually, allowing us as the audience to feel present in every frame of her work.

            Her much anticipated film, “Somewhere” will be release later this year and only time will tell if her follow-up to the disappointing “Antoinette” will sit well with audiences and critics. But at the end of the day Sophia is a director that makes studio movies that feel like independent films. They lift us up while making us wonder what we would do if we were in the shoes of one of her characters. Rather than telling us how to feel, she let’s us decide for ourselves, leaving a bit of mystery at the end of each movie. Such as in “Translation,” where Murray whispers something into Scarlett Johansson’s ear, which we the audience are not allowed privy to. It’s moments like this that keep us guessing what Coppola is trying to say, even in those quite moments when she isn't saying anything at all.