If you’re anything like me, you’re probably a huge Marilyn Monroe fan. Literally, my first college dorm had a giant poster of Marilyn Monroe from “Diamonds Are A Girl’s Best Friend.” I even went as Marilyn for Halloween in fifth grade. Marilyn was everything I wanted to be – beautiful, confident, classy, and a girl’s girl! Beyond the glamorous starlet, iconic blonde bombshell, and dazzle of Hollywood, there was so much more to Marilyn. Marilyn was an advocate for civil rights, a kind person, and she believed in change- her friendship with Ella Fitzgerald is something that I wish was covered in the media more. When I heard “Blonde” was coming out, I was thrilled. The idea of a Marilyn Monroe biopic was enticing, and it definitely had potential to be a great Netflix watch. Plus, Ana de Armas was a great actress and seemed perfect for the part. Thus, during a long day of studying, I decided to watch “Blonde” on Netflix.
The overall filmography of the movie is stunning, and the aesthetic scenery of the film is beautiful. Ana de Armas is phenomenal as Marilyn and brings a charming aspect to her. However, that is where my praises for “Blonde” pretty much end. Watching the movie felt like a chore. The plot was very scattered, several characters are brought in with no introduction or explanation, and the portrayal of Marilyn was almost offensive, to say the very least.
Watching “Blonde”, it become abundantly clear that this was not accurately portrayal of Marilyn whatsoever. Rather, it was someone’s dirty and messy fantasy and fan fiction that they had pulled together to make this “biopic.” It was gross and offensive to the legacy of Marilyn Monroe. A huge topic of controversy of “Blonde” is the graphic scenes, exploitation of abuse, propaganda, and some scenes that I honestly could hardly sit through. The movie contains a purely fictionalized depiction of Marilyn’s life that is extremely graphic and frankly, disturbing.
One of my biggest issues with “Blonde” is its gross and falsified depiction of a REAL person. Marilyn Monroe was a real person and to falsely add elements to her life and adding fake traumatic occurrences simply is unethical and does not make for a good movie. It is clear that director was aiming to create some sort of movie that fetishizes pain- which is controversial take for a stand-alone movie, let alone a movie that is based on a real person. The plot alone was scattered and difficult to follow and there were many characters that were introduced without introduction. (I still have no idea who half of the characters were)
Thus, comes the question: how does “Blonde” affect Marilyn Monroe’s legacy? My biggest takeaway from “Blonde” is that Marilyn Monroe and her legacy should be allowed to rest (with the exception of honorable work) While I understand art is subjective, “Blonde” was simply tasteless and I hate the way it tackled the legacy of a real person that existed. My main hope is that viewers understand that “Blonde” is merely a fictionalized take- not really about the life of the true Marilyn Monroe. Marilyn was a real person with an incredibly legacy who should be remembered for her accomplishments and the impact she left on pop culture.