The Queen of Versailles

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  • Opened July 20, 2012 
  • 1 hr 40 min
  • PG | Language and Thematic Elements
  • Parents: Common Sense Media says OK for kids 13+. More on child suitability

  • With epic proportions of Shakespearean tragedy, the film follows two unique characters, whose rags-to-riches success stories reveal the innate virtues and flaws of the American Dream. The film begins with the family triumphantly constructing the biggest house in America, a 90,000 sq. ft. palace. Over the next two years, their sprawling empire, fueled by the real estate bubble and cheap money, falters due to the economic crisis. Major changes in lifestyle and character ensue within the cross-cultural household of family members and domestic staff. Full synopsis

  • Cast: David Siegel, Jackie Siegel, Virginia Nebel
  • Director: Lauren Greenfield
  • Genres: Documentary

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Fans say Go
347 fans
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Critics say Go
80 out of 100
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Fan Reviews

Must Go!
The Queen of Versailles

by malibran

This Documentary had me totally agape ! The story is nearly too amazing to imagine even in our time of excess and lack of scruples and morality . It is apt that this family wanted to imitate the...

So-so
Queen of Versailles...been there, done that

by Baby Boomer

It was depressing...know a lot of people like this. Interesting but not worth viewing in my opinion....

Must Go!
Entertaining and Interesting

by CarinaCarina

An interesting and entertaining look at wealth in America and the American Dream. Jackie Siegel, although living in a world of crazy wealth and consumption, is strangely relatable. Her husband, David...

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Critic Reviews

100
Chicago Tribune
| Michael Phillips

An indelible portrait of an American family at its most blithely macabre. Read full review

100
Washington Post
| Ann Hornaday

The Queen of Versailles turns out to be a portrait -- appalling, absorbing and improbably affecting -- of how, even within a system seemingly designed to ensure that the rich get richer, sometimes the rich get poorer. Read full review

100
Entertainment Weekly
| Owen Gleiberman

A succulently entertaining movie that invites you to splash around in the dreams and follies of folks so rich they're the 1 percent of the 1 percent. It's like a champagne bath laced with arsenic. Read full review

88
Philadelphia Inquirer
| Steven Rea

The Queen of Versailles combines the voyeuristic thrills of reality TV with the soul-revealing artistry of great portraiture and the head-shaking revelations of solid investigative reporting. Read full review

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Jackie Siegel in "The Queen of Versailles."