To my delightful surprise, I gave in and went to see My Week With Marilyn in cinema last week at the Como... than was lucky enough to catch on board my flight to Italy today. I say "gave in" because I cannot count the amount of dud depictions and documentaries I have seen about the life of the most famous actress that ever lived.
The first time I saw Marilyn Monroe was in one of her best films: Some Like it Hot. I was about 13. We didn't have a television in our house growing up, so when we started weekend visits to our dads house we discovered Hollywood for the the first time... old golden Hollywood through TV1.
The world of singing, dancing, actors was revealed - Gene Kelly, Toni Curtis, Jack Lemmon, Jane Russell and the most dazzling - Marilyn Monroe
Her movies opened up the world to me. She has fascinated me on the silver screen. The more I discovered about her, the more I believed that her personal torment and broken childhood contributed to the poignancy of her on screen characters. She had allure and mystery paired with a sort of childish innocence, and of course undeniable physical beauty that made her attractive to both men and woman. Unconsciously over the years I have collected every film she has ever made.
It seems as though noone really knew her, and I think that is because she didnt know herself. A week with Marilyn is a beautiful portrayal of her insecurities. Michelle Williams metamorphosed into the character with a delicate grace, that I found slightly darker than the real Marilyn Monroe - who was a fun bubbly actress that just wanted to be approved of, and loved. Truly a must see.
The Original...
The Re-make
Lovingly hanging in my office space