Is any space more personal than one’s bedroom? Entering a new acquaintance’s bedroom for the first time inevitably elicits a rush of nosiness. Whether it’s posters of their interests, their decorations or the state of their room, every item tells you something. When a film or television show features a spectacular set where every item is purposefully selected to convey something to the viewer, this rush is intensified.
When I watched Sofia Coppola’s The Virgin Suicides (1999) as a young teenager, I couldn’t help but pause scenes of the girls’ bedrooms to pore over all the intentional clutter. The feminine pastel pinks, the soft, flowy fabric draped throughout the room, and the bra cheekily hung from the cross on the bedroom wall were quite aspirational to me, and I’m not alone. The chaos of the rooms shows the youth and innocence of the girls alongside the suppression they face from their religion at the hands of their parents in response to their inevitable maturation. Coppola utilises the bedroom set perfectly, and it is a testament to how accurate this set is as a room that teenage girls would spend their time in when it is a bedroom desired by teen girls everywhere to this day, splashed across many a Pinterest board.
Coppola is particularly noted for the intricate set dressing of her characters’ bedrooms. In her 2006 film Marie Antoinette, the French queen’s bedroom reveals a lot about her character in a different way. The ornate, impersonal luxury of the Queen’s chambers reinforces the motif that she is trapped within a gilded cage. The rooms are still divine to look at, and who wouldn’t want to live in Versailles? But this aspect of the set fortifies the idea that Antoinette has little control over her life. It is hard to deny, however, that living in a room with literal gold all over the walls and furniture is ridiculously cool.
Another bedroom I dream of living in is the family home in Wes Anderson’s Fantastic Mr Fox (2009). Set inside a tree, the film’s domestic interiors are extremely cozy, resembling something straight out of a vintage picture book with warm, welcoming wallpaper, soft armchairs, sturdy oak furnishings, and even a fireplace in Mr Fox’s bedroom built into part of the tree that peeks through the wall. It’s very inviting and snug, reminiscent of homes from the 1960s or 70s. The bedroom fireplace alone is certainly enough temptation for anyone, human or fox, to wish they lived in a tree. Part of the reason Anderson achieves such a homely atmosphere is stop-motion animation. Every piece of furniture, every rug and decoration was meticulously crafted by hand.
Lastly, I cannot forget to mention Regina Georges bedroom in Mean Girls (2004). You can certainly understand why she made her parents switch. It’s pretty indisputable to say her room is desirable as it’s absolutely huge, with its own balcony and a giant four-poster bed (and who wouldn’t appreciate a big princess sign above where they sleep?). It is the most 2000s room ever in the best way possible, and it certainly reminds us that she is a diva.
These bedrooms are powerful storytelling tools, conveying a great deal of a specific character’s personality and narrative arc. The rooms become an extension of their inhabitants. While movies across the decades have wowed us with their attention to detail, it’s worth celebrating that certain directors have a particular reverence for a bedroom’s interiority. Sofia Coppola and Wes Anderson are among just a few who come to mind.
Image by Rose Chase.
