Love, Marilyn

Believe it, or not - Since her tragic death (at the age of 36) back in 1962 - Approximately 1000 books have been published on the life, the loves, the highs, and the lows of Marilyn Monroe.

To this very day, Marilyn Monroe's phenomenal, manufactured screen-charisma has endured like no other Hollywood actor's of her (or any other) generation ever has.

Through vintage footage, stills (as well as drawing on never-before-seen personal papers, diaries, and letters written by Monroe), this celebrity-documentary recaps Marilyn's life in a nutshell as contemporary actors discuss her prevailing appeal and recite (sometimes with too much embellishment) from her writings.

Competently directed by Liz Garbus, "Love, Marilyn" is, most certainly, well-worth a view to all, regardless of whether one is a die-hard Marilyn Monroe fan, or not.

While it's interesting after a fashion to hear these actors read her journals and try to make them come alive, sometimes too empathetically, it becomes repetitive after a while. What could have added an extra needed dimension to this since they gathered such an amazing array of talent is to have these respected thespians, well except for Lohan, tell what value they found in Marilyn's work and what she meant to them. It would have added a more personal touch and since the actors involved are a broad spectrum of ages and techniques it would have shown how someone who was often dismissed as a lightweight had an impact on screen that bridged generations.

Still this is worth seeing, if for nothing else the clips of Marilyn. Only a few are different from the ones that are usually shown but as always she glows with an interior light.

Love, Marilyn (2012)

*** (out of 4)

Nice documentary done on the fiftieth anniversary of the death of Marilyn Monroe. Through diary writings and other words written by the star, we hear these brought to life by various actors playing her as well as playing other people that surrounded the tragic star. A quick look at IMDb will show just how many familiar names were used to bring these words to life and I think for the most part the film is a success, although this technique doesn't quite work as well as I'm sure the producers were hoping. I will start off with the good and that's how the film pretty much starts from Marilyn's early days and leads right up to her death. We get to see everything in between including her personal life, her marriages, her film roles and of course her darker days. Throughout all of this one really gets a good idea of what frame of mind the actress was in whether it was her nerves getting the best of her or when everything came together and she managed to do some incredible work. I've read other reviews that have attacked the film for being too kind on Monroe but I guess this here will be based on the viewer and their opinion on the subject. One case is Monroe's final film, which Fox fired her from because she wasn't getting the work done. This documentary makes it seem that Fox was more to blame than anyone else. There's also the know issues Monroe had working with Lawrence Olivier but this film claims that Monroe was causing all these problems (not knowing lines, being late) not because she wanted to but because she was sticking it to the director for something rude he said to her. Either way, fans of Monroe should at least enjoy seeing the film clips and hearing some of these words that the legend wrote.

This was a very good documentary. I learned a lot about MM and liked seeing old interviews with her and her friends and peers. The story, structure, music and editing were great and it was never dull. My only complaint is that I cringed many times, watching most of the actors read from Marilyn and others' letters and books. I felt that they emoted waaaaaay too much and were showing off. It felt like they agreed to recite the words or "act" for selfish reasons. It was over the top: especially Marisa Tormei, Uma Thurman and Adrian Brody. It called to much attention to the actors and was very distracting. It took me OUT of the film.

The film was about MM not these actors. At the very least, the should have been offscreen, only supplying a voice over. I suppose the director's argument would be that they were trying to convey the emotions of the subjects who had written the books, poetry, etc, but it was embarrassing and self serving. I will not see the film again for this single reason. This is a documentary. I don't want to see Hollywood actors overacting.

If Marilyn Monroe were alive today she'd be 90 years old.

Now 50 years after her death, this well-produced documentary takes yet another look at Marilyn Monroe, as a Hollywood legend, whose image still remains recognizable, even by today's younger generation.

And just like actor Humphrey Bogart, Marilyn Monroe's well-established screen-charisma still continues to endure while so many others of her generation have faded away into obscurity.

Through vintage film clips and countless stills (as well as contemporary celebrities (sometimes annoyingly) reciting passages from Monroe's personal diaries and letters), this fairly insightful documentary is certainly worth watching as it offers the viewer a surprisingly close-up look at all of the glamor and all of the tragedy that was, indeed, Marilyn Monroe (who died in 1962 from a barbiturate overdose).