Sofia Coppola Movies Ranked
6. The Bling Ring (2013)
While Marie Antoinette fails as a critique of the shallowness of material wealth, The Bling Ring absolutely nails it.
Based on the 2010 Vanity Fair article “The Suspect Wore Loubitouns” by Nancy Jo Sales, the movie tells the story of the real-life bling ring, a group of fame-obsessed teenagers who burglarized several celebrity homes in and around Calabasas, California. The movie also takes inspiration from the short-lived E! reality show, ‘Pretty Wild’. (If you know, you know.)
The Bling Ring is over the top in the best way. While Marie Antoinette plays things a little too straight, The Bling Ring is an obvious satire on how fandom and reality TV, as well as overconsumption, has rotted our brains. It also features a much better use of pop music. The frequent needle drops, especially “212” by Azealia Banks, infuse the movie with an energy and rhythm that just wasn’t accomplished in Marie Antoinette.
Though it was criticized for not taking a moral stance on the characters’ behaviors and actions, The Bling Ring is obviously not saying that breaking into people’s houses is a good idea. Coppola doesn’t patronize. Instead, she gives us a glimpse at how it feels to live on the edge of fame, caught between being known and being no one. In a lot of ways, The Bling Ring prophesied the current state of popular culture.
5. On the Rocks (2020)
On the Rocks is a departure from Sofia Coppola’s signature visual flair and unconventional story structure. She trades in her usual sun-drenched, washed-out California for the blues and greens and concrete of New York City. As was the case with The Beguiled, cinematographer Philippe Le Sourd adds dimension and shadow. It is probably Coppola’s darkest, moodiest-looking movie yet.
Tonally, though, On the Rocks is rather light-hearted. The story follows Laura (Rashida Jones) as she gradually becomes convinced, with the help of her womanizing father Felix (Bill Murray), that her husband Dean (Marlon Waynes) is cheating on her. The movie covers familiar terrain for Coppola. In a lot of ways, it’s an older, more mature version of Somewhere. The film explores the complex relationship between fathers and daughters, and it deals with similar themes of abandonment as well as the loneliness of loving someone that is just a little too far out of reach.
While the plot is fairly predictable, it is still a joy to watch. Rashida Jones and Bill Murray are excellent together, with each giving quiet, nuanced, and heartbreaking performances. Laura’s monologue toward the end of the film, where she finally blows up at her father and yells at him for his treatment of his family, and women in general, is great.
On the Rocks isn’t as visually compelling as some of its predecessors, but it is a heartwarming story of self-acceptance and the simple pleasures of unconditional love.
Recommended for you: Capturing Modernity: The Challenge of Portraying the Contemporary World
