POTATO ON THE GO REVIEW (Movie):
Marilyn Monroe. She has captivated... and intrigued the world for decades. And although she has passed away for many years already, the public's interest on her never went away. And this exactly was what I witnessed during the press screening of My Week with Marilyn last February 24 in Greenbelt's My Cinema.
Directed by Simon Curtis and written by Adrian Hodges, the critically acclaimed and Oscar nominated My Week with Marilyn is a biographical film based on the books of Colin Clark which depicted the 1957 film The Prince and The Showgirl starring Marilyn Monroe (Michelle Williams) and Laurence Olivier (Kenneth Branagh). The film focuses on the week when Monroe spent time being escorted around Britain by film apprentice Clark (Eddie Redmayne) after her husband Arthur Miller (Dougray Scott) left the country. The week told in the film is the missing part on Clark's diary The Prince, The Showgirl and Me when it was published. It was however revealed several years after the initial publication.
What really led me to watching MY WEEK WITH MARILYN is Michelle Williams. Why? Well, I guess I consider her and her co-stars in Dawson's Creek "my generation" because I somehow grew up with the said series where she was a part of. :) So I feel happy everytime I see the Creek gang explore and grow in their respective careers.
So going back to the movie, Williams was the pull for me and I didn't expect much from the film. In fact I thought it will be boring. But to my surprise, MY WEEK WITH MARILYN is one entertaining and enlightening movie, in a different way.
Seeing Marilyn Monroe alive, move and captivate the audience anew is something worth watching. Her character, complicated as it may seem, fascinated me a lot. Her every scene will hook you to seeing what may be next. The way she smiles, moves, dances and even expresses her emotion is something that fascinated me while watching the movie.
Without biases, I saw another dimension of Michelle Williams as she give life to the character of the timeless beauty of Marilyn Monroe. She was flawless as Marilyn being the sultry singer, the doubtful actress, the insecure woman longing for real love and just the playful girl. Marilyn Monroe is one multi-faceted character and Michelle Williams was able to deliver.
Kenneth Branagh also delivered a superb performance as Laurence Olivier. He was able to depict the extremes of Laurence's amazing character, whether in front and behind the camera. Eddie Redmayne was not left behind in his portrayal as the naive Clark while Judi Dench make a mark in her few scenes as Sybil Thorndike.
As I said, Marilyn Monroe is one complicated character but I believe the week, which the film is all about, was able to let the audience know, understand and accept who the actress is. The movie did not intend to get the audience's approval, rejection or forgiveness, it just tried to tell a story and elicit understanding. And that, for me, is the essence of the movie. Even the world's most popular actress and most esteemed director have their weak and sensitive sides. After all, they are just humans too.
The film's production design, set, costume and make-up, is well polished. Aside from Marilyn, the set and sceneries are the things that made the film more lovely and classic. The movie scored well in Musical Scoring as it was weaved in well to the story. Cinematography is simple yet elegant complementing with the art direction and fine cast.
If you are in love with Marilyn Monroe, curious about what the missing one week journal is all about, and are in to old films, classic music and period settings, My Week with Marilyn is for you. The film is interesting, entertaining and somehow enlightening in a way that will make you understand the different dimensions of a person and how to deal with it.
From a scale of 1 to 10 claps, I'm giving MY WEEK WITH MARILYN seven with kisses. To be shown exclusively at Ayala Malls Cinemas (Glorietta 4, Greenbelt 3 and Trinoma), the movie opens on Feb. 29.
No comments:
Post a Comment