The movies that inspired Sofia Coppola
After a tenuous start to her career with a poorly received performance in The Godfather Part III, Sofia Coppola soon proved herself to be much more talented behind the camera. Beginning with the short film Lick the Star, a black-and-white tale of middle-school cliques turned sinister, Coppola has become one of the most successful directors of her generation.
Her debut feature, The Virgin Suicides, remains a cult favourite, having found a strong fanbase, particularly among teenage girls and young women, since its release in 1999. The movie is a brutal depiction of girlhood with a focus on the voyeuristic nature of the male gaze, reflected in the neighbourhood boys who cannot stop fantasising and obsessing over the five Lisbon sisters.
According to Coppola, her preoccupation with teenage girls and young women as the protagonists of her films stems from a desire to depict these cinematically misunderstood groups with respect and realism. She told Vogue, “I was really motivated to make something sensitive and accurate to a teenage girl,” adding, “I’m proud I got to make something about teens concerning serious topics where they were complex people and not just kids.”
Coppola found further success with her 2003 film Lost in Translation, which won the filmmaker the Academy Award for ‘Best Original Screenplay’. With movies such as Marie Antoinette and The Beguiled, Coppola has continued to explore the female experience, focusing on themes such as isolation. Naturally, the director has looked to other films as a source of inspiration, with many of her favourites bearing obvious influence on her work.
The filmmaker’s penchant for depicting adolescence is reflected in her love of teenage-centric films such as Sixteen Candles, Bugsy Malone and Rumble Fish. She once revealed to Vogue, “I love the John Hughes movies I grew up with in the ’80s and my dad’s movie Rumble Fish. I always appreciated that he made an art film for teenagers. I thought it was so cool to do something poetic for kids.”
She also cites Stanley Kubrick’s Lolita as one of her favourites, telling Rotten Tomatoes, “I love Kubrick. I love the way he put that film together, the way it’s filmed. Just some of the shots he did there, like the reverse shot in the car window with the monster.” The movie, which explores an adult man’s infatuation with a 14-year-old girl, undoubtedly inspired Coppola’s depiction of female objectification in films such as The Virgin Suicides.
Similarly, Coppola’s love of Jane Campion’s The Piano makes sense, a distinctively feminine film which explores repressed sexuality. Coppola is also a fan of John Schlesinger’s Darling, which stars Julie Christie as a model/actor who is adored by all, especially men, using her beauty to achieve greater success and fortune.
Discover Coppola’s complete list of favourite movies which have inspired her approach to filmmaking.
The movies that inspired Sofia Coppola:
- Sixteen Candles (John Hughes, 1984)
- Rumble Fish (Francis Ford Coppola, 1983)
- Bugsy Malone (Alan Parker, 1976)
- The Piano (Jane Campion, 1993)
- Lolita (Stanley Kubrick, 1962)
- Seven Samurai (Akira Kurosawa, 1954)
- The Last Picture Show (Peter Bogdanovich, 1971)
- The Heartbreak Kid (Elaine May, 1972)
- Purple Rain (Albert Magnoli, 1984)
- Lost in America (Albert Brooks, 1985)
- La Notte ( Michelangelo Antonioni, 1961)
- Tootsie (Sydney Pollack, 1983)
- In the Mood for Love (Wong Kar Wai, 2000)
- Darling (John Schlesinger, 1965)
- Let The Right One In (Tomas Alfredson, 2008)
- Breathless (Jean-Luc Godard, 1960)
- A Place In The Sun (George Stevens, 1951)
