Review of My Week with Marilyn (2011) by Txrangersfan72 — 22 Jan 2012

It will be a race to the Oscars this year as Michelle Williams' portrayal of Marilyn Monroe is neck-and-neck with Meryl Streep's portrayal of Margaret Thatcher. What makes both of their performances amazing is that they don't just LOOK like the people whom they are portraying, but they capture the absolute essence, making the viewer believe wholeheartedly that they ARE the person, not just acting the part.

Williams doesn't just doll herself up to look like Marilyn. That alone was quite a feat since Michelle Williams is structurally unlike Marilyn. I was very impressed with the makeup and wardrobe. However, what sets her apart as an extraordinary portrayal of Marilyn is how stunning, and I'm truly understating it, of a job Williams does evoking the tortured soul of this woman.

I've read a lot about Marilyn over the years and knew about much of the history discussed in this movie, but I've never had a sense of how she was able to be this darling on the screen and for the public while also being so troubled in the background.

I absolutely loved watching how Kenneth Branagh's Sir Laurence Olivier struggled with realizing her brilliance, yet making sure he wasn't captured in the web she clearly likes to weave around those who fall prey to her.

For a woman who proclaimed to not be loved by her parents or by her many husbands, thus dramatizing and victimizing herself, she creates an air of powerlessness, but those closest to her, especially the men who fall helplessly in love with her, she has all the power in the world.

While Marilyn's story has always been told from a sad perspective, the reality shown here, and what seems very natural considering her past and condition, is that Marilyn didn't understand what real love was.

No father. An insane mother. A very false sense of love and admiration from Hollywood and her fans. Husbands that wanted her because she was Marilyn. And, in this story, Milton and Colin, two in this movie of probably countless men who succumbed to her charms and story, wanting to care for, love and help her, which she allows, until she doesn't need them anymore.

The trail behind her of broken hearts, to which she gives very little thought. The performances by all are amazing in this movie. In the end, Michelle Williams may have the edge over Meryl in the Oscar race simply because the strength of the story and supporting performances are far greater.