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A14 PEOPLE & ARTS
Friday 30 december 2022
‘Corsage’ gives a modern edge to Austria’s Empress Elisabeth

By LINDSEY BAHR of anything too nice and opened up her letterbox to rity culture,” Krieps said of makes people feel seen
AP Film Writer perfect. I was too young to find a script from Kreutzer. Elisabeth. “I remember say- and not based on whether
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Things really rationally grasp the “Dear Vicky, I guess you ing to Marie, ‘We are all Sisi they are important or not,”
had gotten a little real on Kreutzer said. “But I sensed
the set of “ Corsage,” but early that this was not good
nobody expected the star, for her as the empress.”
Vicky Krieps, to jump out When it came time to film
the window that day. the fencing scene, Krieps
The scene involved a fenc- was feeling everything
ing match between Krieps, quite deeply.
playing Empress Elisabeth “That was a very sad day.
of Austria, and Florian Teich- It was actually very pain-
tmeister as Emperor Franz ful to me. I thought, really?
Joseph. It’s a straightfor- You make a movie about
ward match and Elisabeth this and this is happening
is supposed to be winning, now,” she said. “That day
in the midst of a tense argu- my pain had overgrown
ment. But Teichtmeister de- anything I could bear and
cided to change the cho- I just needed to go some-
reography in the moment where with it. That’s why I
so he would win instead. went out the window.”
The movie, which is now The only other thought
playing in limited release in her mind was: “I hope
and recently made the there’s no scaffolding be-
shortlist for an Oscar nomi- low.”
nation, was intended to She never really asked her
be an empathetic exami- co-star, whom she loves
nation of a misunderstood and respects and knows
woman, trapped in the is kind, why he made that
prison of her gender, her decision. Maybe it was un-
time, her position, her ce- conscious? Maybe his ego
lebrity and her beauty. This took over? But it made her
was a moment where she This image released by IFC Films shows Vicky Krieps as Empress Elisabeth in a scene from feel connected to some-
got to be a little stronger “Corsage.” thing bigger than the film.
than the man and a man Associated Press Kreutzer had kind of for-
had just taken it away. gotten about the window
It hit Krieps hard. whole thing but I felt relat- were right,” an accompa- now because we have Ins- jump somewhere in the
When Teichtmeister exited, ed to this woman and I felt nying postcard read. tagram and Facebook and blur of filming and postpro-
the scene was technically like she was trapped,” Kri- The film is not your standard we have become our own duction. They had actually
over, but Krieps was still in it. eps said. “They described costume picture, or even victims of our own image.’” even shot another window
The director, Marie Kreutzer, her as being very eccen- a straightforward biopic The filming was quite dif- jumping scene that one
kept the cameras rolling as tric, riding a lot, wearing a for both practical and the- ficult. For one, Krieps de- was scripted. Then, in the
she sometimes does and corset all the time, not eat- matic reasons. cided to wear a corset the edit, she rediscovered it.
suddenly Krieps was crying. ing, using exercise equip- “I knew it would have entire time to really feel The lighting wasn’t perfect,
Then she walked over to ment. I kept thinking, but to have another style,” what Elisabeth was feeling. but it was raw. And in the
the window and jumped. why? I had a suspicion that Kreutzer said. “We wanted This, she admits now, was a end, the unscripted one
Everyone gasped. she was sad or angry but it to look not as decorated mistake, but one she com- made the cut.
“Why is she going out the I couldn’t read anything and more simple.” mitted to. “It was the first movie I hat-
window?” the director of about that. It stayed with “Corsage” begins as Elisa- “I’m that stubborn,” said ed doing, but I love watch-
photography exclaimed. me.” beth turns 40 and the film Krieps, who thanks to ing. When I watch it, I have
She was fine, mind you. The In 2016, after working with has modern flourishes and long days on set ended goosebumps every time
room was on the first floor. Kreutzer on the film “We a soundtrack with music up wearing the corset for because I feel this liberation
But it wasn’t in the script. Used to Be Cool,” Krieps from the likes of French pop many more hours than any that we are all so in need
The film was actually, tech- asked her if she’d want star Camille. Some have woman of the era, even of,” Krieps said. “Women
nically, Krieps’ idea. She to do a Sisi movie of their compared it to Sofia Cop- Sisi, would have. have such deep, deep
had been fascinated by own together. Kreutzer de- pola’s “Marie Antoinette,” It was hard to sit, ride, wounds over the genera-
the 19th century empress clined. though, as one person told fence and breathe. She tions. And we have to talk
since she was a young girl, “Marie thought it was a Kreutzer, “less ironic.” couldn’t eat or drink cof- about it and we have to
when unbeknownst to her very bad idea,” Krieps said. “If I were to put it into music fee with it on and mostly heal it and we have to get
feminist mother who re- “She literally said, ‘What? terms, ‘Marie Antoinette’ stuck to smoothies and out of it.”q
pelled “princess things” she No, that’s stupid.’” is pop and ‘Corsage’ is nighttime eating. She and
watched Ernst Marischka’s Kreutzer, who is Austrian, acoustic,” Kreutzer said. Kreutzer also decided that
“Sisi” trilogy at a friend’s had grown up with the And it came at just at the she should remain a little
house. The 1950s films star- kitschy trilogy and Elisa- right time for Krieps, who isolated and distant from
ring Romy Schneider, re- beth’s face on merchan- had just become much the cast, which was difficult
ferred to by Elisabeth’s dise everywhere. In her more famous after the suc- in different ways.
nickname, are a holiday memory, she wasn’t even cess of “Phantom Thread,” “Normally, she would al-
broadcast staple in Europe. sure Krieps was serious, but and felt like she’d had her ways talk to everybody
As a teenager, Krieps went she did know she wanted own peek behind the cur- and be very close with
a little further and picked to do a period film. So it tain. people. It’s really one of
up a biography. came as a shock to Krieps “To me, she really seemed her strengths. She’s able to
“I was always suspicious when, a few years later, she like the first victim of celeb- connect with people and facebook.com/arubatoday/