Vicky Krieps is celebrated for her work in Phantom Thread and Old. But she pushed herself to new places for the film Corsage. She plays Empress Elisabeth of Austria, also known as Sisi, in a bold, irreverent take on the biopic. It manages to have fun with the icon’s image without disregarding Elisabeth’s frustration with the sexist constraints of her position.
Corsage is a star vehicle for Krieps, who is widely hailed for her performance. The actor left no stone unturned in her preparation for the role. This included swimming in ice-cold water to form a connection with the tragic Empress.
Vicky Krieps learned several skills to portray Empress Elisabeth
Principal photography for Corsage began in March 2021, but Krieps’s work for the movie began much earlier. As she explains to Deadline at the Cannes Film Festival, the German actor learned how to fence, ride a horse, and speak Hungarian (Elisabeth was also the Queen of Hungary). Krieps also worked with a movement coach to approximate Sisi’s body language before the production started.
The last step of her training was the most intense. Krieps went ice swimming in the Danube river every day for two months. She also added some dips in Norwegian fjords to continue pushing her limits in the name of art. “I had to lie in the ice cold water for one minute, which you can if you’re not trained for it, but I was trained because of the other movie,” the 39-year-old recalled.
That other movie was More Than Ever, an European drama where Krieps plays Helene, a woman whose life falls into disarray after being diagnosed with a rare lung disease. The actor filmed both movies back to back last summer.
Both are about a woman unsure of her place in the world and how to move forward. But Corsage had the added importance of fulfilling Krieps’ lifelong fascination.
Krieps told Vanity Fair that she watched the Sissi trilogy of movies about Elisabeth starring Romy Schnieder every Christmas as a kid. She also read a biography by Brigitte Hamann about the princess. Krieps went so far as to bring the idea for this movie to its eventual director Marie Kreutzer.
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Stepping into the shoes of Austrian royalty takes a lot of work. Method acting is a divisive topic among actors. But Krieps cared too much about this person to leave any aspect of her performance to chance.
Despite her status, Elisabeth’s life was filled with tragedy
As Tatler reports, Elisabeth Eugenie was born on December 24, 1837, as a member of the Bavarian House of Wittelsbach. At the age of 16, she was married off to the Austrian emperor Franz Joseph. Although she was part of a royal family, Elisabeth struggled to adjust to the more formal life of the Habsburg court.
Her interests in history, philosophy, and literature were disregarded by everyone she was forced to spend time with. This contributed to Sisi’s long-running struggles with depression and body dysmorphia. Sisi developed an eating disorder, adhered to a strict exercise regimen, and was so obsessed with looking young that she refused to have her photo taken after she turned 30.
But the darkest moments of the Empress’ life revolved around her children. Elisabeth’s first two kids were both daughters (Sophie and Gisela). This disappointed her mother-in-law Princess Sophie of Bavaria. She took both babies away from Sisi after their births, refusing to let their mom raise them. Sophie died at two years old, most likely due to typhus.
Elisabeth eventually gave birth to a son, Rudolf, in 1858. But he was found dead in 1889 in what was presumed to be a murder-suicide known as the Mayerling incident. She never fully recovered from that loss. Elisabeth died in 1898 after being stabbed by Italian anarchist Luigi Lucheni.
Most critics agree ‘Corsage’ is one of the best movies of the year
Corsage reimagines its subject’s life in a manner more similar to Spencer or Marie Antoinette than your standard biopic. It marries facts about Sisi’s life and personality with embellished or completely invented scenes. This created a portrait of a woman who tries to playfully circumvent her surroundings in the search for freedom while also leaning in on some beauty standards that restrict her capabilities for most of her life.
It’s a tricky balance, but Corsage seemed to find it. The movie has a 90% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Krieps won the Best Performance Prize at Cannes. The movie is nominated for Best International Film at the Gotham Independent Film Awards and the Independent Spirit Awards.
