Although not nearly as historically accurate as it could've been, the 1938 version of "Marie Antoinette" still stands as one of the best films of the 1930s and certainly the finest ever made about the late queen of France. The high-powered and second-to-none cast includes Norma Shearer as the tragic queen and Robert Morley as King Louis XVI. Morley's sympathetic characterization of the king almost steals the picture, but there's too much happening in this film for anyone to be able to get away with that. The great John Barrymore plays Morley's father (Louis XV) with an understated cruelty and disdain for humanity. A radiant Gladys George is also on hand as his famous mistress, Madame DuBarry. Norma Shearer, one of the greatest stars of early cinema and wife to MGM production chief, Irving Thalberg, has the role of her life as the title character. Her "Antoinette" runs the gamut between frivolous coquette to protective mother and finally to one of history's most tragic figures. Shearer's silent film techniques are also put to good use near the end of the film when the totally distraught and prematurely aged queen is awaiting execution in her cell. Through her skillful well-honed hand and facial expressions, she's able to project her feelings of dread for the horrors that are about to be unleashed upon her without so much as one spoken word. A young and up-and-coming Tyrone Power is second billed in the film and his part seems more intended for box-office appeal than anything else. That said, he does an adequate job providing the love interest for Ms. Shearer, even though that subplot mostly gets in the way of the historical aspects of the film. Other cast members include an excellent Anita Louise as the queen's best friend, the Princess de Lamballe. Joseph Schildkraut rounds out the leading roles as the unctuous and oily Duke of Orleans. His voice-overs during the early days of the French Revolution give the film some much-needed gravitas and it quickly and effectively alters the mood of the entire proceedings. As any student of history knows, there's no happy ending to this story.<br /><br />What's truly amazing is that most modern film-goers have never even heard of Norma Shearer much less know anything about her work. Her contemporaries (i.e. Joan Crawford, Bette Davis, Greta Garbo) all outlasted her with the general public. That may be because Shearer retired soon after her husband died; her final film was 1942's forgettable "Her Cardboard Lover." The rest of the cast, however, went on to bigger and better things. Robert Morley worked forever in both films and TV as did Schildkraut. Of course, John Barrymore's body of work stands in a class by itself. Tyrone Power became one of the great superstars of cinema, dying too young at the age of 44 in 1958.<br /><br />"Marie Antoinette" is competently directed by W.S. Van Dyke and MGM studios spared no expense for their First Lady (Shearer). The carefully constructed sets for the lavish parties at Versailles are extravagant to the extreme and the total cost of the film was astronomical for its time. Even critics of the film agree that there's an eye for detail in nearly every scene. It's unfortunate that Norma Shearer isn't as well-known as she should be in this day and age. Maybe now is the time for her "revival." The same goes for this excellent film. Compared to Sofia Coppola's modern-day well-deserved flop on the same subject, W.S. Van Dyke's "Marie Antoinette" is a film for the ages.