Blonde is an upcoming biographical psychological drama film based on the life of Marilyn Monroe. Based on the bestselling novel by Joyce Carol Oates, the film boldly reimagines the life of Marilyn Monroe, exploring the split between her public and private selves. It is written and directed by Andrew Dominik and will be released on Netflix in September.
The stellar cast of the film includes Ana de Armas as Norma Jeane Mortenson/Marilyn Monroe, Lily Fisher as young Norma Jeane, Adrien Brody as Arthur Miller, Bobby Cannavale as Joe DiMaggio, Xavier Samuel as Charles Chaplin Jr, Julianne Nicholson as Gladys Pearl Baker, Caspar Phillipson as John F. Kennedy, Toby Huss as Allan Whitey Snyder, Sara Paxton as Miss Flynn, David Warshofsky as Darryl F. Zanuck, Evan Williams as Edward G. Robinson Jr., Michael Masini as Tony Curtis, Luke Whoriskey as James Dean and many others.
Blonde Trailer Breakdown
The trailer is about 2 minutes and 8 seconds long and starts off with a man knocking on Marilyn Monroe’s vanity room, as she is getting ready to go out. But if you look closely then only the mirror image moves and blows a kiss while the shadow of the person in front is rather still and not doing the same action.
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This could be our first hint at what the film wants to achieve, that is blurring the lines of fact and fiction to explore the widening split between her public and private selves. After a traumatic childhood, Norma Jeane Mortenson becomes an actress in Hollywood in the 1950s and early 1960s. She takes up an alias of ‘Marilyn Monroe’ and becomes world famous under the stage name.
Within the first 20 seconds, we hear the song Diamonds Are a Girl’s Best Friend in Marilyn Monroe’s voice, as Joe Dimaggio played by Bobby Cannavale who became her ex-husband is interviewing her. He asks her, how she started working in the movies. The two were only married for nine months.
And Monroe filed for divorce from DiMaggio citing reasons of mental cruelty. We might be able to see how the two fall out in their relationship and her third marriage with Arther Miller. The scene is mixed with her meeting with President Kennedy as we see a timid Monroe walking to his office, feeling a bit anxious.
Followed by the scenes from the glamourous side of her life, including the numerous paparazzi, film screenings and performances. But a monologue goes on in the background where we hear our lead saying, ‘I know you’re supposed to get used to it. But I just can’t. I’ve played Marilyn Monroe, and can’t face doing another scene with Marilyn Monroe.’
She further reveals that Marilyn doesn’t exist. When she comes out of the dressing room, she’s Norma Jean. This indicates the dilemma or a persona and the persona. As a public figure, you put on a front that makes the masses happy, but does that define you as a person as well? Often this duality of life makes many public figures take help of the drugs and substances to cope.
And someone who is at her level, we can only imagine the craziness that they have to go through. From dealing with the invading paparazzi to acting the parts which you might not be comfortable doing. The iconic flying skirt scene is a pop icon but, it was shot in public view and could have been a traumatising sequence for the actor.
As the trailer also takes a twisted turn and shows the not-so-glamourous, rather destructive life of the Monroe, where she gets dragged by her bodyguards (presumably), has to be drugged and runs away in a hospital gown to crash her car in a tree. Everyone watches the popular persona but nobody actually sees the person behind it.
Marilyn Monroe’s on-screen appearances are in stark contrast to the love issues, exploitation, abuse of power and drug addiction she faced in her private life. Although the film is said to be a fictional reimagined take on her tumultuous life, we could get to see some of the real gritty moments from the pop icon’s life.
Blonde Trailer
The film is scheduled to be released on 28 September on Netflix.
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