Venice Diary #9 - "Blonde"

by Elisa Giudici

Today was Blonde day, at least until one of the most iconic royal figure from the last century died, stealing attention and coverage away from Venice movies and all other events. Considering the reviews for the biopic (and the spike in views The Crown will get), Netflix should probably be relieved. So for today's diary, a controversial take on the life and death of Marilyn Monroe and two movies that reiterate how healthy French cinema is.

BLONDE by Andrew Dominik
Overlong, indulgent and hyper-focused on the most tragic aspects of the life of Marilyn Monroe, Blonde as a biopic is a thanks but no thanks...

Dominique has an ambitious and showy directorial style which doesn't always pay off, jumping aspect ratios and switching from black and white to faded color without discernable patterns. 

Blonde then feels like a feverish nightmare. It pieces small fragments of the life of Norma Jeane together, a young beauty whose life is constantly filled with trauma. In the background and on the big screen there is MARILYN, the mask, the alter ego, the double identity that protects Norma. But defense mechanisms only work for so long. Marilyn, the vapid blonde, grows to be a role that Norma Jeane hates. Scarred since childhood by the absence of her father and the abusive and violent behaviour of her mother, the first step Norma takes in Hollywood leads to a rape into a big studio name's office. From there we witness several abortions (and a creepy talking fetus which I found extremely distasteful) and all kinds of pain, abusive behaviour, and psychological manipulation.

Blonde wants us to see the women behind the icon, but Dominik appears to believe that only pain gives Norma credibility. She is a constant victim of both the men she loves and her stardom. Blonde occasionally deigns to note the literacy and the intelligence of the protagonist, but its heart is elsewhere and we mostly get depressive episodes. There are some inspired scenes and images, like a threesome in which naked bodies melt together. But many of the images are unsettling, like a super close-up of Marylin's face and eyes as she holds President Kennedy's genitals in her mouth and pleads. 

For her part, Ana De Armas pours her soul into the giant role. She's convincing, avoiding the trap of pure mimesis. In the end it reminded me of Elvis, another biography this year in which a legendary star is portrayed as a person with very little agency. That movie, though, had its audience well in mind. Who is this one for?

 

ATHENA by Romain Gavras
Athena, which I saw earlier in the festival, makes the perfect double-feature with the next movie so let’s pretend I saw it today. On the Lido there is, in fact, a lot of love for Athena and it could show up in the final Palmares. I dissent. While it offers a spectacular view I roll my eyes every time I read about how "political" it is.

In Athena, a video has gone viral in which French police officers are depicted beating a migrant child to death. The victim lived in the fictional Athena neighborhood and had three brothers. . A group of young men barricades the entrance and plan to take revenge on police for what they have done. The brothers themselves take opposing paths in the wake of the neighborhood battle.

If Ladj Lj’s Les Misérables popped up in your mind, you’re not far off. In fact, he co-wrote Gavras’ movie. Both of them are part of a small group of creatives with similar style and themes. Romain Gavras knows what he is doing behind the camera starting from a magnificent eight minute continuous shot that opens the movie (maybe the best we've seen in this edition of the Mostra). It is an excellent action film, shot in a dynamic and precise style. What's more Gavras is deft enough to move dozens of characters in different layers inside the frame in a complex, realistic way, while still maintaining a high level of legibility to the action.

However the screenplay is far too sly, especially in the final turn. To explain would be too much in the way of spoilers, but I was taken aback . The script spends so much energy and time to create an alternative scenario when the more coherent and plausible reality was right there.  The result is that while Athena starts as a Netflix produced blockbuster rooted in the complex social reality of the banlieues, it undercuts itself. It effectively legitimizes the status quo in order not to upset the audience or to avoid direct answers to politically charged questions. Ly and Gavras have both already proved they can do better than this.

OUR TIES (Les Miens) by Roschdy Zem
Again, three brothers are fighting. This time for less upsetting reasons in this surprising comedy from director/star Roschy Zem (also the male lead of Other People's Children). Les Miens is a perfect example of how vital French cinema continues to be given the number of interesting commercial titles they produce. It's funny but it goes deeper than that since its charged with a healthy dose of family drama.

Les Miens subverts the stereotypical white, postcolonial vision of non-white families in France. This is not a movie about migrants. However, its choice to put a bourgeois family with strong ties to the Maghreb at the center of the scene leaves a lasting impression. Roschdy Zem plays a workaholic sports TV presenter. His brother is working even harder as an accountant. One night, after being out for the birthday of his secretary, his brother Moussa (an amazing Sami Bouajila) falls and hits his head. After a phase of chronic sleep post-accident, he returns as a brutally honest version of his previously meeker self.

It's not that the "new" brother is mean. He is just honest to the point of extremes. This change leads to the most powerful scene of the movie, as he divorces his second wife via webcam. Later he will tell his sons: "My first divorce was a living hell. I prefer it to this virtual hell made of confirmation codes and video calls".

Les Miens has non stereotypical writing and explores its interesting premise via the interpersonal dynamics between brothers, parents, and the younger generation. It proves you don't need a big budget to make a successful movie, just a talented team and a few fine actors;  Sami Bouajila and Roschdy Zem have both entered the Best Actor Volpi Cup race. 

more tomorrow... (the festival closes Sunday)

Also...

#1 - Tár, White Noise...
#2 - Bardo False Chronicle of... 
#3 - Bones and All, Monica, All the Beauty and the Bloodshed
#4 - The Whale, Argentina 1985, Master Gardener
#5 - L'Immensità, Other People's Children, Love Life
#6 - Banshees of Inisherin, Don't Worry Darling, Eternal Daughter
#7 - Saint Omer, Lord of the Ants
#8 - The Son, Beyond the Wall, Dreamin' Wild

Comments

[Philip H.]

Honestly, the first trailer for Blonde immediately made me uninterested bc Ana de Armas is not believable as Marilyn at all. She's cuban / Spanish, which qualifies as white or whatever -- her skin or background is neither here nor there for me, but I could still hear some accent in her voice and it totally took me out of the illusion that this is supposed to be Marilyn Monroe... maybe others can get over this and this is just preference, but I wasn't into it.

Also, just let the woman REST. Jesus Christ do they beat Monroe's spirit like a dead horse. The way celebrities are abused by this leach-y culture even beyond the grave is so sick.

[Charlie G]

A principal rule of writing is that if you are going negative, you absolutely have to get your spelling right. First word, second paragraph of the Blonde review, the director's last name is Dominik, not Dominique.

[Martin]

Reading these reviews I'm overcome by the feeling they are written hasty, with little enthusiasm - to tick them off a list ... sorry - I stopped at some stage ... I know festival viewing can be exhausting - and watching 4 movies a day sometimes doesn't really help to create an atmosphere to take everything in what people created over month ... still I'm expecting a bit more - the personal standards of this site where always high ...