My week with Mariyln

The portrayal of stardom in 'My Week With Marilyn'


Heyya, this week we watched 'My Week With Marilyn', a film built from the memoirs of Colin Clark, about the life of the one and only Marilyn Monroe.

Today I would like to discuss the portrayal of celebrity life in the film, as I think one of the aspects that struck me the most was the way people perceived and treated Marilyn. Personally, as someone who didn't know much about the life of her before watching the film other than the fact she was very beautiful, the film made clear to the extent of her fame. I know it sounds obvious as she's one of the most famous women who has ever lived who wasn't a monarch, but for me it really hit home that people literally everywhere loved this woman. Although at first this was depicted to be a luxury, with Marilyn having all eyes on her whenever she walks into a room, but as the film goes on it becomes more apparent that there are some unsavoury sides to this extreme fame.

At the beginning of film I wasn't initially too impressed with her as a character, she came across as very fickle and timid even though it as blatant that she was adored by all that met her. The introductory scenes of her being too nervous to even act in her films lacked sincerity and I thought it to be simply attention seeking as my previous assumption of her was that she was the best actor that ever lived, so I found it difficult to buy the whole " I can't do this" shindig. However, once the film began to progress some of the negative aspects of the celebrity life she lived became more clear. From the way people treated and talked about her, it became obvious that they didn't really care about her personal life or character; the only aspect they cared about was the reputation she had gained for herself. This is shown through the frustration of the directors at Marilyn's frequent tardiness, yet they rarely question why she is late, just refer to it as 'just Marilyn', thus demonstrating their lack of care for her as an actual person.

Another part of fame that the film depicts is the complete lack of privacy and personal boundaries that Marilyn faces.  Whenever there is a scene with her out in public, almost immediately she is swarmed by people who want a glimpse at Marilyn Monroe, thus any respect for her personal space is just forgotten.  Her response to this type of attention is always a kind of nervous giggle or flirtatious comment, which makes the potentially traumatic situation seem less invasive, due to this character she reverts to; which you can see in this clip here. The separation of Marilyn Monroe and her personal self becomes more evident throughout, to the point that in one scene when confronted by fans she even asks ' Do you want me to be her?'. However the affect of this dual personalty appears to have detrimental consequences on her personal life, as she reveals in a more emotional moment that 'once people realise I am not her, they run', implying that yet again she is only desirable for her fame and the character that accompanies that, rather than her true self.

For me, the film draws the question can this level of fame actually a be beneficial or even healthy lifestyle for someone to live ? On the basis of Marilyn, I would argue that no would have to be the answer. She is depicted as emotionally vulnerable yet due to her celebrity status no one seems to ever respect that except those closest to her; which are few. Issues like drug addiction are also raised during the film, and this is brushed over by the other characters in the film like it is the norm, suggesting that perhaps the only way to deal with this type of life is to resort to some other substance to help ease the reality of it all. There are people who literally follow her around her every move, so even moments that feel private aren't really as someone is always only a few feet away; again promoting the complete lack of privacy and control that she had over her own life.

Over all the film depicts fame in a negative way for all the reasons above, yet this is counteracted by people's sincere love of Marilyn and her work making some of the issues perhaps seem less extreme, although they are still there.