![]() Cooper’s documentary and Summers’ research bounce between Monroe’s liaisons with men, like the Kennedy brothers, her marriages to Joe DiMaggio and Arthur Miller, and her worsening mental stability. Like several post-#MeToo streaming documentaries, “The Mystery of Marilyn Monroe: The Unheard Tapes” seeks to contextualize Monroe’s career and life within the context of varying degrees of “bad men” she hung around with. She was also, according to Summers, a paranoid person who feared abandonment at every turn. When she was off, she was plagued by trauma from past abuse, seeking prescription medication to ease her anxieties. When she was on, she was the most likable, enigmatic and charismatic figure in any room, whether she was around a group of journalists or the President of the United States. Summers’ and Cooper’s portrait of Monroe is that of a well-meaning striver, an underdog and an accidental genius, who knew how to turn it on and turn it off. ![]() ![]() In the decades-long fascination with her death and the time leading up to it, it’s almost as if the actual person on screen has been erased. The most engaging parts of the film emerge from the archival footage of Monroe, either from her films or interviews, in which her natural charm and talent shine through. ![]() There is little that’s visually compelling about Cooper’s work, the type of investigation perhaps best listened to in the background of another activity. Given how much of the new material on Monroe is audio-based, one is left wondering why a project like this wouldn’t work better as a podcast. 10 Marilyn Monroe Film Clips That Prove She Had Acting Chops (Videos) ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |