Blonde

 Marilyn Monroe was easy on the eyes, but her new biopic, Blonde, isn't. She suffers through nearly three hours of tragedy and abuse. Then there's the stuff that earned it an NC-17 rating. Shockingly enough, it's not that much of a slog to sit through.

Let me explain.

Andrew Dominik (The Assassination of Jessie James by the Coward Robert Ford) wrote and directed this adaptation of Joyce Carol Oates's fictionalized biography of Monroe (which also inspired a far tamer miniseries in 2001). Monroe - real name Norma Jeane Masterson - is played here by Ana de Armas. To cut to the chase, de Armas is why the film isn't a slog. She nails Marilyn's signature voice and never lets the audience lose their sympathy of her. That's essential for what she goes through.

In 1933, Norma Jeane lives with her abusive mother, Gladys (Julianne Nicholson). Norma Jeane is sent to an orphanage after Gladys tries to kill her one night. One montage later, she's Marilyn Monroe, famous model and soon-to-be movie star. She finds an open relationship with Charlie Chaplin Jr (Xavier Samuel) and Edward G. Robinson Jr (Evan Williams). She marries Joe DiMaggio (Bobby Cannavale), who abuses her, and later Arthur Miller (Adrien Brody), who's a bit condescending. All the while, Norma Jeane longs for her father (Tygh Runyon), whom she only saw a picture of as a girl.

Her father frequently writes to her throughout the film. His letters give her some needed hope. What else is there? She is raped by some prominent men, one of whom is JFK (Caspar Phillipson). Let's say the latter scene earns the film its rating. She also has an abortion they won't let her back down from. She grows disconnected from her real and fictional selves. Overall, the world overpowers her and her audience. A climactic twist concerning her father's letters is a punchline to a cruel joke. 

Dominik renders Marilyn's life as nightmarish. Gladys and Norma Jeane's escape from the Griffith Park Fire is apocalyptic. The premiere of Some Like It Hot is a delirious blur save for Joe E. Brown's last line. People crowd around like maniacs as they watch Marilyn film The Seven Year Itch. We also get some auditory scares, including an imagined conversation with Marilyn's second unborn child. Kudos to cinematographer Chayse Irvin and the sound team. On a lighter note, the film perfectly recreates the Diamonds are a Girl's Best Friend number from Gentlemen Prefer Blondes so well I thought it was an actual film clip.

Marilyn finds some happiness with her husbands and lovers. Keyword, some. I'll take them as victories over the trauma conga line she endures in Blonde. Its star saves the film from being a miserable experience. Instead, it's a somewhat indifferent experience. But the climactic twist irks me the more I think about it. It's in theatres and Netflix now; anyone curious about it is welcome to the challenge. It's not for the feint of heart.