Based on the biographical fiction novel by Joyce Carol Oates, although many moments feel close to some kind of a reality that we've all since become aware of, Blonde is a look at the wild and tragic life of Marilyn Monroe. Director Andrew Dominik also took on the job of adapting from the page to the screen, and there are plenty of choices made here that suggest he may not be a fan of the woman at the heart of the story.
Ana de Armas takes on the main role of Norma Jeane AKA Marilyn Monroe. She's first shown as a child (played by Lily Fisher), dragged through a number of painful and tragic moments by her ill mother (Julianne Nicholson). These moments will resonate through her entire life, as will the objectification and abuse that occurs on her journey to becoming one of the most iconic movie stars on the planet. There are various sexual encounters, there are horrible procedures based on the decisions of others treating her body as her only commodity, and there are two very famous marriages depicted (one to Joe DiMaggio, played here by Bobby Cannavale, and one to Arthur Miller, played by Adrien Brody).
I have really enjoyed a number of features from Andrew Dominik. His films generally range from the good to the great (Chopper), and he has made at least one modern masterpiece in the form of The Assassination Of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford. I took my time getting around to Blonde because I heard a lot of negative opinion about it when it first appeared, but I knew I would get around to it one day. After all, it's often important to check out something fully to form your own opinion on it. Well . . . the majority who spoke out against this were correct. It's pretty bad.
De Armas is superb though, and I am surprised that she didn't get even more praised heaped upon her for this performance. She doesn't quite nail the accent, but she mostly delivers an interpretation of Marilyn that is uncannily close to the real person. There are also great performances from Cannavale, Brody, and Toby Huss (playing a friend/enabler as Marilyn starts to spiral into ever-bleaker depressive episodes). Some of the visuals are also worthy of praise, especially during many of the sequences shown in black and white, as are the moments that blur fiction and reality by making use of famous moments from Monroe's filmography. Those are all the compliments I have though.
In a problem similar to the overuse of CGI in modern cinema, or in the way Jurassic Park was created, there are things shown here that feel as if nobody stopped to question them. Dominik was too busy realising what he could do that he didn't wonder about whether or not he SHOULD. The prime example of this is a POV shot from inside our main character's cervix. Yes, you read that right.
I understand wanting to do something that shows the ongoing battle between the beloved figure of Marilyn Monroe and the insecure and sad reality of Norma Jeane Mortenson, and there are things that became known to people only after her tragic death in the early 1960s, but both the icon and the real woman overshadowed by the stardust deserve better than this. A couple of moments come close to making a great point (particularly a sequence showing the famous subway grate updraft in The Seven Year Itch), but things inevitably keep returning to a narrative that makes our central figure an abuse victim with serious daddy issues. That may or may not be an accurate portrayal, and there's certainly truths scattered throughout this, but deciding to show her character as defined ONLY by these elements, and doing that for over two and a half hours, feels unfair and simply malicious.
I'm still glad that I finally watched this for myself, if only for that astonishing turn from De Armas. I'll never watch it again though, and I would actively discourage anyone else watching it if they lack either my compulsive viewing schedule or patience.
3/10
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