Netflix Blonde (2022) (1 Viewer)

[Citizen87645]

Has anyone seen or remember the TV mini series adaptation with Poppi Montgomery based on Oates's novel? I'm surprised I haven't seen this mentioned at all, even as a quick aside or footnote. The mini series may ultimately be forgettable judging by how no one has brought it up, but I'm always curious about a compare and contrast when there are multiple adaptations of the same source material.

 

[SamT]

Andrew Dominik Blames ‘Blonde’ Backlash on Americans Wanting Marilyn Monroe Portrayed as “Empowered Woman”

Andrew Dominik Blames ‘Blonde’ Backlash on Americans Wanting Marilyn Monroe Portrayed as “Empowered Woman”

The director also said he was "really pleased" the film starring Ana de Armas had "offended so many people."

www.hollywoodreporter.com

Andrew Dominik has addressed the backlash against Blonde, his Marilyn Monroe biopic for Netflix which heavily divided public opinion after its world premiere in Venice.

Speaking at the Red Sea International Film Festival in Saudi Arabia, the director said that the U.S. audiences had the strongest adverse reaction to the film — “they hated the movie!” — and claimed that when it came to iconic Americans such as Monroe, they only wanted to see a celebration.

“Now we’re living in a time where it’s important to present women as empowered, and they want to reinvent Marilyn Monroe as an empowered woman. That’s what they want to see,” he said. “And if you’re not showing them that, it upsets them.” ...

 

[JoeStemme]

No. What "upsets" us who didn't care for it is that it belabors the few points it makes. The acting is good, there is style to burn, but, it wears you out by the end.
Having an "empowered" woman at its center has nothing to do with it

 

[Emcee]

What little I've seen of Blonde has not led me to wish to see any more of it. I will give the movie credit for its visuals and the recreation of many iconic images of Marilyn, but other than that, it's basically garbage (for me, at least).

And, yes, I know the movie is fiction.

 

[Winston T. Boogie]

Andrew Dominik Blames ‘Blonde’ Backlash on Americans Wanting Marilyn Monroe Portrayed as “Empowered Woman”

Andrew Dominik Blames ‘Blonde’ Backlash on Americans Wanting Marilyn Monroe Portrayed as “Empowered Woman”

The director also said he was "really pleased" the film starring Ana de Armas had "offended so many people."

www.hollywoodreporter.com

Andrew Dominik has addressed the backlash against Blonde, his Marilyn Monroe biopic for Netflix which heavily divided public opinion after its world premiere in Venice.

Speaking at the Red Sea International Film Festival in Saudi Arabia, the director said that the U.S. audiences had the strongest adverse reaction to the film — “they hated the movie!” — and claimed that when it came to iconic Americans such as Monroe, they only wanted to see a celebration.

“Now we’re living in a time where it’s important to present women as empowered, and they want to reinvent Marilyn Monroe as an empowered woman. That’s what they want to see,” he said. “And if you’re not showing them that, it upsets them.” ...

Well, I don't know. I think what people probably would not like about the film is they have an image/idea of Monroe in their head and this picture is a sad story about her where you see her as troubled and abused. It's a downer film and downer films are not going to have wide popularity.

It's a good picture but yes, having watched it once, I did not have an urge to return to it right away. It's sad. It's not what I want to think about Monroe going through. However, it is beautifully shot and acted.

 

[JoeStemme]

Well, I don't know. I think what people probably would not like about the film is they have an image/idea of Monroe in their head and this picture is a sad story about her where you see her as troubled and abused. It's a downer film and downer films are not going to have wide popularity.

It's a good picture but yes, having watched it once, I did not have an urge to return to it right away. It's sad. It's not what I want to think about Monroe going through. However, it is beautifully shot and acted.

If Dominik had said that - then fine. But, he seemed to imply that "Americans" wanted some fairy tale where Marilyn becomes a happy well adjusted super-heroine. That's bunk.
And, he's also clearly aiming his statement at critics. French Critics have loved it, while most American ones haven't.
And, that's clear B.S.. Critics very often embrace "downeer films". Very often. They just don't like this one -- and I agree with them as my review earlier in this thread shows. It's not because I wanted an "empowered" Marilyn.

 

[Winston T. Boogie]

If Dominik had said that - then fine. But, he seemed to imply that "Americans" wanted some fairy tale where Marilyn becomes a happy well adjusted super-heroine. That's bunk.
And, he's also clearly aiming his statement at critics. French Critics have loved it, while most American ones haven't.
And, that's clear B.S.. Critics very often embrace "downeer films". Very often. They just don't like this one -- and I agree with them as my review earlier in this thread shows. It's not because I wanted an "empowered" Marilyn.

He says that he intended to offend audiences and seems to have succeeded in the US. I think if you make a picture to offend people and you do...well...probably not going to be very popular. I was not offended by the picture, I just at my age have found enough sad things in the world not to really want to be made sad by a film. In this case, I did like the picture, I don't know if I could say "enjoyed it" as watching Ms. Monroe take more than a couple hours of abuse was not exactly enjoyable. I get what he was after, sort of deconstructing the myth of Marilyn Monroe and forcing us to confront the ugly aspects of her fame and popularity.

I don't think many people like a downer film no matter how brilliantly they are made. Requiem for a Dream is a wonderfully made picture but I have only seen it the one time. It was not really something I had an urge to revisit. I would not recommend that picture or this one to most people.

I have not yet really read reviews of Blonde. I watched it and then, really due to the nature of the story, just was happy when it was over and did not pursue what critics had said.

When he talks about people wanting to see a "celebration" of beloved figures, I think that is mainly true. They want to see something that shows them in a good light. When I thought about this picture and considered what Ms. Monroe would have thought about it...I think she would not have liked it nor would she probably want to see her life portrayed the way it was. Not because the film is dishonest nor because it is a bit ugly but because I think we prefer, even in bad times, not to see our lives that way.

I do think he is off with the "empowered" comment but I understand what he is saying. I do think that is the kind of story that today they would prefer to make. I think you can get a picture greenlit easier if you are telling the tale of a strong empowered woman more than telling the story of one that is being used, abused, and exploited.

The way I look at this is, I am glad he made and got released the picture he wanted to make. However, if you look at what is popular in now in the US in terms of pictures...it is not this kind of film. Not at all. So, I am not surprised that people dislike it.

Personally, I do agree with him that people on the whole right now prefer a bedtime story. Something with a simple and upbeat message that leaves nothing to interpret. I think any picture that is designed to be ambiguous, unusual, that you have to think about or ponder and could have different interpretations is going to be lucky, very lucky, if half the audience likes it.

I don't blame people for wanting happier stories right now. We are living in a weird time where we kind of get bombarded with messages about how terrible everything is. So, in the realm of entertainment, I can see people wanting to see something with a more positive outlook.

 

[Emcee]

Here's the thing: Marilyn had a tragic life. She had a lot of crappy stuff happen to her during her life, some dished to her and some self-inflicted. She was a beautiful and talented woman, and arguable the most famous individual of the 20th century.

I'd like to see an even, unbiased account of her life. I mean, she did have a lot of high points as well. Her fast-track to stardom in 1952-53, her touring in Korea, and other times in life, I believe she was genuinely happy.

Holding out for a good, accurate, and unbiased biopic just seems like wishful thinking, though.

 

[Worth]

I haven't seen the film, so I can't comment on its quality, but the narrative of Marilyn as victim has been the predominant one for over fifty years. It hardly seems like something original or groundbreaking.

 

[Emcee]

It is certainly the norm for modern interpretations of Marilyn to present her as a victim. And while I'll agree that she was occasionally a victim, she wasn't always the victim. There were actually several circumstances where Marilyn took charge and got what she wanted.

Take, for example, her relationship with 20th Century-Fox. Sure, they forced her into movies she didn't want to make, underpaid her, and wouldn't let her do the more serious roles she craved. But there were many times she put her foot down. She rebuffed several scripts they handed her way (i.e. Pink Tights and How to Be Very, Very Popular, to name just two) and fled from Hollywood in early 1955 to study at the Actors Studio, publicly walking out on Fox and her bosses there.

She had her own production company called Marilyn Monroe Productions, which she founded in 1955 with Milton Greene to give her more "creative" control over the films she'd like to make.

So, Marilyn wasn't always the victim.

And this is coming from a consistent Marilyn Monroe buff and fan.

 

[Winston T. Boogie]

I haven't seen the film, so I can't comment on its quality, but the narrative of Marilyn as victim has been the predominant one for over fifty years. It hardly seems like something original or groundbreaking.

I think the aspect of the picture that was meant to be unique to this tale was that it was not a biopic, it is an imagining of what may have been going through Marilyn's head at various points in her life. So, I think the picture is not so much just designed to show us her as a victim as to give us a feeling of what it may have been like to be in her headspace. Which we really can't know so you dramatize that and it is fiction. I think because he is not telling the story straight, he is warping and manipulating things to make us feel certain things, well, people don't like that.

This I think becomes the hard part about watching it, it attempts to make you feel and ponder ugly things. Over and over. So, to that extent the experience of watching this can be like being the baby seal getting clubbed.

 

[Polbroth]

It's a feature-length documentary called ROMANTIC MYSTICISM: THE MUSIC OF BILLY GOLDENBERG. I was friends with Billy for 25 years, and had fallen in love with his music 25 years before that. He did almost all of Steven Spielberg's early TV films, including the NIGHT GALLERY pilot with Joan Crawford, DUEL, COLUMBO, etc.. He also scored many great TV movies and miniseries of the '70s and '80s, along with countless TV series themes (KOJAK, HARRY O, RHODA, ALIAS SMITH AND JONES, etc.). BG also did notable work for the big screen (PLAY IT AGAIN SAM, THE LAST OF SHEILA, BUSTING, UP THE SANDBOX, several others), and Broadway (BALLROOM). "Romantic mysticism" refers to a haunting, somewhat perverted, super-melodious style Goldenberg brought to many of his scores, an amazing blend of acoustic and electronic instrumentation. It's on full display in the supernatural thriller RITUAL OF EVIL with Louis Jourdan, and the Columbo pilot RANSOM FOR A DEAD MAN, where it fit Lee Grant's cold-blooded murderess to a T.

I came here to rag on Blonde - de Armas was nominated for an Oscar - but I was just thinking about Billy the other day!

Red Sky at Morning is a masterpiece among others.

 

[Kevin Antonio (Kev)]

Honestly upon rewatch it's not a bad picture if we are talking about filmmaking. Dominick deserves praise in that department but the story still is too fictitious for its own good. Monroe's life was messed up enough to be faithful to that and still be even handed when going through highs and lows in her life. The alternate take on history is something that still leaves a bad taste in my mouth. I had this same issue with Tarantino in inglorious bastards and once upon a time. Regardless of how we wish that alternate history is true its still bs.