First things first. Colin Clark's "memoirs" on Monroe are fictitious. Anyone who has ever read more than one MM biography can see what Clark did--cut and paste. Sure, he was a lowly gofer on the set, and no doubt had his observations, but his books are clearly written many years after the fact, and much fleshed out with bits from other books. He claimed they were "diaries" he'd kept hidden for decades. Please.
Okay. Now to "My Week With Marilyn." Has everyone gone mad? Is Michelle Williams so convincing in her interviews, talking about her "multi-layered" performance that almost every critic has swallowed her words whole? What "layers" does Michelle reveal? Her Marilyn is miserable from beginning to end, or an idiot. There is NO change in voice or manner, as she insists, as she plays "real" Marilyn, "fake" Marilyn, and then the role of Elsie in "The Prince and the Showgirl." Miss Williams is a wonderful actress---loved her in "Blue Valentine"--and perhaps she means everything she says and has talked herself into thinking she has given a flattering or incisive portrayal of MM. She has not. Sorry.
Listen, at her worst--"River of No Return" let's say--Monroe is more magnetic and varied than Michelle is for one second in "My Week With Marilyn." This has actually made me re-think Catherine Hick's performance in the TV movie about MM, many years ago.
My suggestion? Watch "The Prince and the Showgirl." The real one. Then tell me Michelle Williams has given an "Oscar worthy" performance. (Although MM would never be nominated for an Academy Award, she did win the French and Italian versions of the Oscar for her turn as Elsie.) Oh, and what a horrible portrayal of photographer Milton Greene in this movie. He was so devoted to MM and co-produced "TPATS." He guided Marilyn to her peak, and is here brushed off like some coarse "player." Ugly.
Marilyn--still viciously exploited almost 50 years after her death.
Okay. Now to "My Week With Marilyn." Has everyone gone mad? Is Michelle Williams so convincing in her interviews, talking about her "multi-layered" performance that almost every critic has swallowed her words whole? What "layers" does Michelle reveal? Her Marilyn is miserable from beginning to end, or an idiot. There is NO change in voice or manner, as she insists, as she plays "real" Marilyn, "fake" Marilyn, and then the role of Elsie in "The Prince and the Showgirl." Miss Williams is a wonderful actress---loved her in "Blue Valentine"--and perhaps she means everything she says and has talked herself into thinking she has given a flattering or incisive portrayal of MM. She has not. Sorry.
Listen, at her worst--"River of No Return" let's say--Monroe is more magnetic and varied than Michelle is for one second in "My Week With Marilyn." This has actually made me re-think Catherine Hick's performance in the TV movie about MM, many years ago.
My suggestion? Watch "The Prince and the Showgirl." The real one. Then tell me Michelle Williams has given an "Oscar worthy" performance. (Although MM would never be nominated for an Academy Award, she did win the French and Italian versions of the Oscar for her turn as Elsie.) Oh, and what a horrible portrayal of photographer Milton Greene in this movie. He was so devoted to MM and co-produced "TPATS." He guided Marilyn to her peak, and is here brushed off like some coarse "player." Ugly.
Marilyn--still viciously exploited almost 50 years after her death.