A teaser for Blonde has finally been released. The controversial Netflix biopic of the American movie icon Marilyn Monroe has caused a bit of buzz and uproar among modern day Monroe fans. This film spent over a decade in production, went through 3 different Marilyns and now is even in a battle with Netflix over the content.
The film stars Bond girl Ana de Armas as the iconic actress and is based on the novel of the same name by Joyce Carol Oates, which was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize. Monroe starred in more than 30 films until her tragic death in 1962 and has been a fixture of classic American cinema ever since.
Several films have focused on the symbolic actress, however this one has caused the most controversy.
So why is everyone finger wagging at Blonde?
7 The Passion Project Of A Famous Filmmaker
The novel Blonde was adapted for film, written and directed by Andrew Dominik, best known for the 2007 film The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford and has also directed a few episodes of Netflix's psychological crime thriller Mind Hunter. Dominik has been through hell and back, working on this film since 2010. Star of the film Ana de Armas told Netflix Queue "Andrew's ambitions were very clear from the start—to present a version of Marilyn Monroe's life through her lens." However, the director has claimed that the film is meant to be experimental, nonconventional, and nonlinear. With the book, in fact, being a work of fiction, the film blurs the lines between fiction and biopic to tell a more dramatic story.
6 What Is Blonde About?
Blonde is a "boldly reimagined private story of the world’s most famous sex symbol, Marilyn Monroe," according to Netflix’s official synopsis. "The film is a fictional portrait of the model, actress, and singer during the ’50s and ’60s, told through the modern lens of celebrity culture."
The director has revealed that the story is a work of fiction, rather than a biopic, the narrative is Monroe's perspective on the world. The film centers around the concept of the actress splitting her private and public selves and explores the disconnect between the two. Dominick states "On the simplest level, it’s about an unwanted child who becomes the most wanted person in the world and can’t deal with all of that desire coming at them."
5 The Journey To Ana de Armas As Marilyn
The Cuban actress was the third Marilyn chosen for the production, auditioning back in 2019 and landing it on the spot. The film previously had Naomi Watts as Monroe back in 2010, who left the production, then cast Jessica Chastain who also later left the film. While fans were shocked by the choice, the director and people who knew Monroe claimed De Armas was perfect. Her Knives Out co-star Jamie Lee Curtis' father, Tony Curtis, an actor who worked with Marilyn Monroe on Some Like It Hot was blown away. Curtis told reports “I remember when she showed me a video of her screen tests for Blonde. I dropped to the floor, I couldn’t believe it. Ana was completely gone. She was Marilyn."
4 Anna de Armas' Experience Filming Was Intense
De Armas has called the experience the most intense she has ever had while filming. Once landing the part, she spent 9 months with a dialect coach to perfect Marilyn's voice, however her voice was dubbed over by an American actress for the film. She spent hours in hair and makeup, becoming completely bald to make her wigs look more realistic. In between her shoots on No Time To Die, she would be watching, listening, and studying Marilyn Monroe, dedicated to becoming her. Despite the hard work and intensity, she was truly honored to receive the role as Monroe calling it "the most beautiful thing" she has ever done.
3 Why Does It Have An NC-17 Rating?
The film has received an NC-17 rating, the highest and rarest one a film can get. Both the book's author and the director confirmed the film has lots of graphic sexual content. Dominik was surprised by the rating, saying the sexual situations are ambiguous. He later gave a more vulgar, honest response saying “There’s something in it to offend everyone, if the audience doesn’t like it, that’s the f****** audience’s problem. It’s not running for public office.”
2 Netflix Wanted A New Cut
When director, Andrew Dominick sent his final cut to Netflix they got more than what they expected. The sexually graphic final cut "totally horrified" the streaming service. The film release was intially delayed, the site wanting a new version but the director refusing. The cut submitted allegedly included "a rape scene and bloody menstrual cunnilingus". The internet was very divided on this subject. Film fans defending the film, saying it's true, experimental, and raw storytelling cinema. Monroe fans calling it disrespectful to her memory.
1 So When Is The Film Being Released?
After some back and forth, Netflix has returned to its release date. The film will be available on Netflix on September 23, 2022. To accompany Ana de Armas, the films all-star cast includes The Pianist actor Adrien Brody as playwright, Arthur Miller, Marilyn Monroe's third and final husband. Bobby Cannavale plays Joe DiMaggio, iconic New York Yankee and Marilyn's second husband.
Other notable cast members are Mare of Easttown's Julianne Nicholson as Monroe's mother, Gladys, and Caspar Phillipson as John F. Kennedy (he also played him in 2016's Jackie).
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