Excessive and outrageous, yet providing a unique view of how the ripple effect of the country's economic woes have been felt all the way up to the 1%, "The Queen of Versailles" is a funny and fascinating look at one particular and peculiar family looking to keep it together.
Helmed by Laura Greenfield (who won the U.S. Directing Award for the film at Sundance), the doc follows billionaire timeshare mogul David Siegel and his idealistic housewife Jackie Siegel – who are looking to build a 90,000-square-foot mansion inspired by Versailles – only for America's financial collapse to thwart those plans. The next two years see the family making a tremendous adjustment in their lifestyle as the real estate bubble and more changes their lives in ways they never expected and puts a strain on the relationship between David and Jackie. We caught up with the film at the L.A. Film Festival, and we called it "a comprehensive portrait of the Siegel family" that has "a little heart throw in" as well.
The exclusive TV spot below will give you a pretty good taste of what you're in for, along with some praise for the film. "The Queen of Versailles" opens in limited release this Friday, July 20th.
