How Sofia Coppola creates her unique films

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

Loners will be charmed by dark romance, music lovers - by the soundtrack, and everyone else - by unobtrusive humor.

Sofia Coppola is deservedly considered one of the main American directors of the generation. In her filmography there are both recognized masterpieces ("Lost in Translation"), and films that have collected unflattering reviews ("Elite Society"). But all these works have one thing in common - the original handwriting, which is difficult to confuse with something.

How Sofia Coppola got her start

Sofia Coppola was born into a famous creative family. Her father is the great Francis Ford Coppola, one of the main directors of the second half of the 20th century. And brother Roman worked in various areas of filmmaking. Sofia, barely born in 1971, has already made her film debut as a baby at a christening in The Godfather. As a child, she could come to the set to her father whenever she liked.

Ironically, the patronage of the famous pope did not at all help the disclosure of Sofia's talents, but even hindered her. Francis Ford, for example, put his beloved daughter in place of the retired Winona Ryder in his final film about Don Corleone's family. But the critics mercilessly smashed the girl, and on this, in general, her acting career ended.

But the failure pushed Coppola to try herself on the other side of the camera, and here her talent turned out to be undeniable. When Sofia released Virgin Suicide in 1999, she was only 28 years old. The film was so good that Coppola Jr. immediately established itself as an independent creative unit.

How Sofia Coppola's directorial style is different

Exquisite color solutions

Sofia Coppola's films are always unmistakably recognizable thanks to their special aesthetics of tenderness, pastel colors and pleasant undertones. First of all, this applies to the early works of the filmmaker. The apogee of the brand "candy" reaches in "Marie Antoinette" (2006), where the setting literally resembles one large pastry shop.

Still from the film "Lost in Translation"

A scene from the film "Virgin Suicides"

A scene from the film "Virgin Suicides"

Still from the film "Marie Antoinette"

Emphasis on small, intimate details

Sofia is renowned for being meticulous in terms of detail. So, in "The Virgin Suicides" the director showed in detail the life of girls living in a sleepy American suburb, and in "Marie Antoinette" she meticulously recreated the luxury of the Palace of Versailles. This technique allows the viewer to feel closer to the character.

The intimacy of Coppola's approach is also evident, for example, in the scenes with the bathroom, which can be seen in almost every other film of her. This is another subtle move designed to convey the fragility and vulnerability of the heroes.

A scene from the film "Virgin Suicides"

A scene from the film "Virgin Suicides"

Still from the film "Marie Antoinette"

A scene from the film "Virgin Suicides"

Still from the film "Marie Antoinette"

Still from the film "Marie Antoinette"

Uncomfortable environment for heroes

Almost all the characters in Coppola's works are united by the fact that they are constrained by some insurmountable circumstances: tight clothing, obligations to loved ones, moral norms or etiquette. For example, in Lost in Translation, the heroes of Bill Murray and Scarlett Johansson come to a country they don't know where even simple actions like eating or taking a shower are uncomfortable.

Young girls from "Virgin Suicides" are literally locked at home under the supervision of a strict mother. The existence of pupils in "Fatal Temptation" is limited by the fence of their boarding house. And Marie Antoinette in the film of the same name is under the gaze of others day and night and, with rare exceptions, is never left alone with herself.

Still from the film "Lost in Translation"

A scene from the film "Virgin Suicides"

Still from the film "Marie Antoinette"

Constant repeats

Coppola's heroes often find themselves hostage to the same life situation, which repeats itself from day to day. For example, the heroine Kirsten Dunst in "Marie Antoinette" is having breakfast in the luxurious hall of Versailles, looking doomedly at her husband. Or actor Johnny Marco from the movie "Somewhere" from time to time calls go-go dancers to him - only their outfits change. This simple technique very accurately allows you to convey the monotony of the characters' existence, all the meaninglessness and emptiness that surrounds them.

Still from the film "Marie Antoinette"

Still from the film "Marie Antoinette"

Shot from the movie "Somewhere"

Shot from the movie "Somewhere"

Picturesque camera work

From film to film, Sofia uses the same recognizable visual motifs that help her transform the real world into a kind of dream. Among them are double exposure, reflections in glass, well-caught sunlight, ubiquitous glare. Also Coppola usually shoots in a high key. This is a way of constructing a light scheme in which there are almost no shadows in the image, so that the frame turns out to be especially lyrical, filled with soft light.

Still from the film "Lost in Translation"

Still from the film "Lost in Translation"

Still from the film "Lost in Translation"

Still from the film "Marie Antoinette"

Still from the film "Lost in Translation"

What are other unique features of Sofia Coppola's art

Architecture, design and fashion as full-fledged heroes of the film

Initially, Sofia did not intend to be a director at all, but planned to work in the fashion industry. And the influence of this part of Coppola's personality is noticeable in almost all of her tapes. "Elite Society" revels in the glossy, vulgar aesthetics of the 2000s, "Virgins Suicides" glorifies the classic attributes of 70s style, and shoes for "Marie Antoinette" were invented by the shoe genius Manolo Blahnik. And these are just a few examples.

By the way, Coppola periodically shoots commercial videos for famous brands. So, she is the author of an advertisement for Miss Dior perfume and Daisy perfume by Marc Jacobs, as well as a mini-film in honor of the H&M and Marni collaboration.

Sofia pays no less attention than the clothes of the characters to the environment in which they are. For example, the house of the Lisbon sisters in "The Virgin Suicides" and the mansion of Martha Fartsworth in "The Fatal Temptation" are actually full participants in the events. Be it the aesthetics of hotels in Lost in Translation and Somewhere, or the pompous Versailles in Marie Antoinette, the worlds created by Coppola should be viewed without missing a beat.

Still from the film "Marie Antoinette"

Still from the film "Marie Antoinette"

Still from the film "Marie Antoinette"

Still from the film "Marie Antoinette"

Shot from the film "Fatal Attraction"

Still from the film "Elite Society"

Mystery and understatement

Almost all of Sophia's works are united by some reticence. For example, the director deliberately does not show how Marie Antoinette's short life ended. And people will not get tired of wondering what Bill Murray whispered in Scarlett Johansson's ear in the ending of Lost in Translation (let's reveal a secret: in fact, even the director herself does not know this).

The fact is that in relation to his characters, Coppola always acts as a detached observer. We see people and their actions, but we do not understand the motives. We do not know what thoughts and desires actually move the heroes, but we can only build our own guesses.

Shogaze and post-punk soundtrack

Sofia is a big fan of such musical directions as post-punk and shoegaze. Her love was most evident in Lost in Translation, where Kevin Shields, the leader of the cult band My Bloody Valentine, was responsible for the soundtrack.

This collective became famous as a pioneer of shugese. The essence of this genre is the creation of the so-called wall of sound. The output is rough and noisy, but at the same time, paradoxically, dreamy and gentle music. And this sound, due to the contrast, is the best possible combination with Coppola's aerial video sequence.

In the same tape, you can hear the glamorous avant-garde artists Roxy Music and one of the compositions The Jesus and Mary Chain. The latter are often referred to as the predecessors of the shugaze.

Finally, it should be added that Sofia's husband - Thomas Mars, the vocalist of the French indie band Phoenix, regularly sounds in her films, and for "Somewhere" he recorded a whole soundtrack.

What topics does Sofia Coppola raise in her films?

The motive of loneliness

Almost all of Sofia Coppola's paintings are united by the theme of inexpressible melancholy. And most of all, those characters who, in general, have everything, usually suffer from it. Thus, the director tries to comprehend her childhood loneliness and alienation. After all, she spent all her early years, one might say, in a golden cage.

To emphasize the separateness of his characters, Coppola resorts to a variety of techniques. For example, visually separates them from other people. Or it puts characters in spaces that are disproportionate to them, in comparison with which they look very tiny and insignificant.

The lone figure of Kirsten Dunst against the backdrop of the vast expanse of the palace. Still from the film "Marie Antoinette"

Sofia Coppola visually emphasizes the loneliness of Scarlett Johansson's character, separating him from the rest. Still from the film "Lost in Translation"

The heroine Scarlett Johansson is in focus, the rest of the characters are not. Still from the film "Lost in Translation"

Female gaze

Often in the center of Coppola's narration is a closed female group ("Virgin Suicides", "Fatal Temptation") or just young girls of an angelic appearance ("Elite Society"). But at the same time, the innocence of the heroines is most often deceptive and closer to the finale turns into something unhealthy or frightening.

Shot from the film "Fatal Attraction"

A scene from the film "Virgin Suicides"

Still from the film "Elite Society"

Father-daughter relationship

A couple of paintings in Coppola's filmography can be called autobiographical to one degree or another. The most obvious example is the Somewhere tape. In her main character, Sofia herself is unmistakably guessed, forced to share a loved one with fans and paparazzi and constantly live in hotels between prestigious festivals.

The father figure also emerges in the full-length film "The Last Stroke". Moreover, Bill Murray in this film even ties a scarf just like Francis Ford Coppola.

Shot from the film "The last straw"

Shot from the movie "Somewhere"

What films of Sofia Coppola are worth watching

1. Virgin suicides

• USA, 1999.
• Drama, melodrama.
• Duration: 97 minutes.
• IMDb: 7, 2.

A group of four children recalls girls neighbors with whom something terrible happened many years ago. First, the youngest of the five Lisbon daughters, Cecilia, is thrown out of the window. After her death, the main school handsome man falls in love with 14-year-old Lux, and this leads the family to even greater problems.

The debut "Virgin Suicides" based on the novel of the same name by Jeffrey Eugenides instantly drew the attention of viewers and critics to Sofia, and also determined her further creative path. Here, Coppola's handwriting manifested itself in all its glory: the world is somewhere on the verge of dream and reality, as if written in watercolors, a melancholic soundtrack and a detached position of the author, who deliberately does not look into the heads of his heroes.

The "Virgin Suicides" are tragic and adorable in equal measure. The picture itself is very light, although it touches on dark themes, including teenage suicide, religious obsession, and domestic violence.

2. Lost in translation

• USA, Japan, 2003.
• Drama, melodrama.
• Duration: 102 minutes.
• IMDb: 7, 7.

Middle-aged actor Bob Harris and student Charlotte find themselves in an unfamiliar city at the same time - Tokyo. They meet by chance at a hotel and spend the shortest but most exciting time of their lives together.

Sofia's real breakthrough was her second feature film. The film won an Oscar in the Best Original Screenplay nomination and collected a whole bunch of awards at various festivals.

Lost in Translation refers to a movie in which, in terms of plot, little happens. But at the same time, almost everything changes for the heroes of Bill Murray and Scarlett Johansson. Both characters face crises: one in middle age, the other in early adulthood. It would seem that, having met, they should find happiness, but Sofia Coppola deceives our expectations and instead of a love story tells the story of a doomed romance.

It is noteworthy that Coppola began to write Lost in Translation when she parted ways with her first husband, Spike Jones (it was he who became the prototype of Charlotte's husband). He began work on his debut "She" at about the same time. So these two works can be viewed as an unofficial dilogy about loneliness.

3. Marie Antoinette

• USA, France, Japan, 2006.
• Biographical drama.
• Duration: 123 minutes.
• IMDb: 6, 5.

Maria Antonia, the youngest daughter of the Empress of Austria, is given in marriage to the future King Louis XVI. So the girl becomes the French dauphine Marie Antoinette, and later the queen. The problem is that their marriage to Louis remains childless for some time, and then the ruler finds solace in hedonism and waste. But for a too luxurious lifestyle, she will have to pay dearly.

Immediately after The Virgin Suicides, Sofia Coppola decided to film the biography of Marie Antoinette, one of the most controversial historical figures, but decided to act in an unusual way. The filmmaker deliberately refused to read the classic biography of the pen of Stefan Zweig, and preferred a more intimate and sensual exploration of Antonia Fraser.

For the main role, Coppola again called Kirsten Dunst, with whom she had already worked in "The Virgin Suicides." There is even a certain connection between the images that the actress has embodied in these two films. In both films, we are talking about girls - victims of their own beauty. Everyone admires the heroines, but no one understands them.

The director looks at the events of the past through the prism of the present. The luxurious toilets of the 18th century are painted in bright colors, atypical for that era. In one scene, Converse sneakers appear in passing. And at the balls they have fun with new wave and post-punk music: Siouxsie and the Banshees, Bow Wow Wow and The Cure.

Such deliberate anachronisms are necessary for the viewer to become closer to the experiences of the heroine, who is lost not only in herself, but also in time. She really does a lot better with modern Converse than Rococo shoes.

4. Somewhere

• USA, 2010.
• Comedy, drama.
• Duration: 99 minutes.
• IMDb: 6, 3.

Hollywood actor Johnny Marco leads a wild and rather pointless lifestyle. But when his ex-wife leaves his 11-year-old daughter in his care for a couple of weeks, communication with the girl helps to understand himself better.

Critics took the tape cautiously, but ordinary viewers did not understand at all. This film is really controversial. For all its subtlety and penetration, "Somewhere" can only be recommended to the most loyal fans of Sofia Coppola. Or those who sincerely love meditative, calm cinema without a plot and visible conflict.

5. Elite society

• USA, UK, Japan, Germany, France, 2013.
• Crime drama.
• Duration: 87 minutes.
• IMDb: 5, 6.

Mark is transferred to a new school, but there he only has a relationship with a girl named Rebecca. One day, out of boredom, she invites the guy to ransack other people's cars in search of valuables, and then also climb around the neighboring houses. The guys get away with this, but their appetites grow, and then the heroes decide to explore the mansions of Hollywood stars.

In the next work, Coppola took on a new genre of social satire. The plot is based on the article The suspects wore louboutins / Vanity Fair from Vanity Fair magazine, which tells about teenagers who brazenly robbed the villas of celebrities and were eventually caught by the authorities.

At the same time, Sophia remains true to herself. She does not look down on, denounces anyone and does not moralize. But at the same time, it paints a portrait of a generation that is striking in its accuracy: lazy, ignorant consumers, convinced that by default they have the right to a luxurious life, for which they did not put a finger on their finger.

6. Fatal temptation

• USA, 2017.
• Drama, melodrama, thriller.
• Duration: 93 minutes.
• IMDb: 6, 3.

American South, 1864. The Civil War is in full swing. Wounded in the leg, Corporal of the Army of the North John McBurney ends up in a boarding house for young ladies, where only the hostess, a young teacher and several pupils remain. At first, the ladies are against the appearance of a stranger in their monastery, but gradually an unequivocal interest in the guest awakens in them.

The sixth feature-length work brought Sofia the main prize for Best Director at the Cannes Film Festival. The director took as a basis the novel "Deceived" by Thomas Cullinan. Don Siegel was the first to film this book in 1971, and the inimitable Clint Eastwood played the main role then.

In the new adaptation, the emphasis has completely shifted from the main character (Eastwood was replaced here by the no less charismatic Colin Farrell) to the women around him. The main roles went to Kirsten Dunst, Elle Fanning and Nicole Kidman. In Fatal Temptation, the picture is more deceiving than ever. And instead of a costume melodrama, a real gothic horror awaits the audience - viscous, eerie and extremely uncomfortable, but still bewitchingly beautiful.

7. The last straw

• USA, 2020.
• Drama, comedy, detective.
• Duration: 96 minutes.
• IMDb: 6, 5.

Successful writer Laura suspects her husband of treason. An elderly womanizer Felix comes to the aid of his daughter, who once walked to the left of his wife himself. He is sure that the nature of a man does not allow him to be faithful in marriage. The father invites the girl to follow her husband in order to catch him at the crime scene.

"The last straw" (in the original On the Rocks, which can be translated as "with ice" and as "family troubles"), Sofia filmed specifically for the Apple TV + service. At first glance, this film falls short of Coppola's other work, but don't underestimate it. This is an extremely sincere and clever story about two different generations, skillfully played by Rashida Jones and Bill Murray, in which it is easy to recognize Sophia herself and her father.

Watch on Apple TV + →