August 5th 2012 marked 50 years since the passing of Marilyn Monroe. 50 years on and people still adore her. For me, the fascination lies in the unknown… in not understanding what was really going on behind her doe eyes. Fame is fickle and it feels strange to me that someone I have never met, nor even seen in the flesh, can be so hypnotising. Because of people like me, there’s a market to tell Monroe’s story, along with the stories of other Hollywood personas who reached dizzying infamy.
My Week With Marilyn was a recent cinematic release based on the book The Prince, The Showgirl and Me by Colin Clark. These are Clark’s true recounts of events from a week on set with Marilyn during which he had varying interactions with her. While this movie is not Monroe’s biography, it told her story perfectly. Perhaps this was because Michelle Williams did the role such justice. I’ll be honest, no matter how well written the script, as a fan of Monroe I probably wouldn’t have been able to enjoy this movie if I didn’t believe or enjoy the work of the actress cast in her part. I have always found Michelle Williams to be a captivating and meticulous actress but I was admittedly skeptical. However, she knocked this one out of the park Joe DiMaggio style! It helped that she had incredible support on-screen, including Kenneth Branagh as Sir Laurence Olivier, Julia Ormond as Vivien Leigh and Dougray Scott (pictured with Williams below) flawlessly filling the thick rimmed glasses of Arthur Miller.
It was heart wrenching to witness the obvious emotion and longing shown by Williams, blanketed by the false confidence provided when assuming the role of ‘Marilyn’. In honour of Monroe and Williams’ stellar portrayal of her, I have listed my five favourite Hollywood actors/actresses playing other famous personalities. Williams is obviously my number 1.
frannie loves marie. 