blindlemon

Three stars because it has Emmanuelle Beart, surely the most beautiful actress in cinema today, and talented too, in the right film - but this is not it.

This movie looks and plays like an amateur dramatic production you'd see in a village hall, which is very disappointing given the pedigree of the cast. Beart is always worth watching, sometimes mesmerising; Berling is a fine actor in the right role, but I got the impression after about 3 minutes that both were in this for the paycheck and not much else. A bit embarrassing for both of them, really, especially for Berling who is reduced to running around naked at one point! Check it out if you're a die-hard Beart fan, but don't bother otherwise.

Nothing special about this movie in itself - but worth watching for the remarkably talented Carla Giugino! As an Englishman, I have to say that Ms Gugino manages to pull off the incredibly difficult task (for any American) of acting throughout the film with the most impeccably correct English accent I've heard from any non-native actor, ever. If you thought Meryl Streep's accent was good in The French Lieutenant's Woman, or Gwynneth Paltrow's in any of her 'brit flicks', then take a listen to Carla Gugino in She Creature. Not only is her accent flawless, but it's also the most varied and wide-ranging in expression and tone I've ever heard from an American. While Streep and Paltrow are good, their accents can tend to sound a little one-note at times, as if they are simply repeating a few key sounds to get the effect; Ms Gugino, on the other hand, sounds every bit the native English lady - with so many lights and shadows in her vocal performance that, as an Englishman born and bred, I was reaching for the IMDb trying to figure out where she might have picked up such a varied accent. Prep School? Born in the UK? No, doesn't seem like it. Oh, and by the way, she looks fantastic in this movie too.

I would recommend any English person to check out this movie just for Carla Gugino's English accent. If you can find even a hint of Sarasota anywhere I'll be amazed.

Not a bad biopic - though, not being a fanatic, I can't vouch for the accuracy. Although long (over 3 hours) time passed quickly - borne along by the appealing performance of Poppy Montgomery as MM.

I've never see her before, but will look out for her in the future after this convincing performance. Interestingly, her portrayal of the younger Norma Jean seemed to better capture the essence of Marilyn's fragile appeal than the later scenes when she became "Marilyn".

As for the production itself, the script was effective (if a bit tame) and the inhumanity of the Hollywood Machine was well portrayed. The supporting cast gave workmanlike performances too - but with Poppy on screen in almost every scene, who's going to waste time looking at them?!!