In reality, the seemingly glamorous Empress Elisabeth of Austria, nicknamed Sissi, was an anorexic, chain smoking, heroin user with an anchor tattooed on her shoulder blade. At least, that's what this film suggests.
Or doesn't it? The film includes lots of hints about its lack of historical accuracy. The funniest are the songs made famous by Gladys Knight and Marianne Faithful, which are sung and played by 19th century court musicians. Also, I think Elisabeth giving her dinner party guests the finger is not exactly accurate. So, the tattoo is probably made up as well. And maybe the cigarettes and the heroin too. For your information: the anorexia is historically correct.
Never mind the historical accuracy, the film shows clearly that Elisabeth is lonely and unhappy. There is no love in her marriage with Emperor Franz-Joseph, so she has affairs, but those are also unsatisfactory. She is very fond of one of her court ladies, and even forbids her to marry. Which shows that Elisabeth is not only unhappy, but also very selfish. And perhaps, as we would say nowadays, mentally unstable. She pretends to faint during official happenings, cuts off her hair and takes her 10 year old daughter for a horseriding trip during the night.
The problem with this film is that you can't fully appreciate the fictional character Elisabeth whithout some minimal knowledge of the historical person Elisabeth. I googled her afterwards, and immediately many elements in the film made much more sense.
Anyhow, 'Corsage' is certainly a nice addition to the many films that have been made about Empress Elisabeth. I've never seen the Sissi-movies, but I wouldn't be surprised if Vicky Krieps's character in Corsage comes closer to the real Empress Elisabeth than Romy Schneider's version.
Or doesn't it? The film includes lots of hints about its lack of historical accuracy. The funniest are the songs made famous by Gladys Knight and Marianne Faithful, which are sung and played by 19th century court musicians. Also, I think Elisabeth giving her dinner party guests the finger is not exactly accurate. So, the tattoo is probably made up as well. And maybe the cigarettes and the heroin too. For your information: the anorexia is historically correct.
Never mind the historical accuracy, the film shows clearly that Elisabeth is lonely and unhappy. There is no love in her marriage with Emperor Franz-Joseph, so she has affairs, but those are also unsatisfactory. She is very fond of one of her court ladies, and even forbids her to marry. Which shows that Elisabeth is not only unhappy, but also very selfish. And perhaps, as we would say nowadays, mentally unstable. She pretends to faint during official happenings, cuts off her hair and takes her 10 year old daughter for a horseriding trip during the night.
The problem with this film is that you can't fully appreciate the fictional character Elisabeth whithout some minimal knowledge of the historical person Elisabeth. I googled her afterwards, and immediately many elements in the film made much more sense.
Anyhow, 'Corsage' is certainly a nice addition to the many films that have been made about Empress Elisabeth. I've never seen the Sissi-movies, but I wouldn't be surprised if Vicky Krieps's character in Corsage comes closer to the real Empress Elisabeth than Romy Schneider's version.