As ‘Blonde’ Goes No. 1 on Netflix, Viewers Lash Out: ‘So Sexist,’ ‘Cruel’ and ‘One of the Most Detestable Movies’ Ever Made

Posted by Eliza Grace September 30, 2022
As ‘Blonde’ Goes No. 1 on Netflix, Viewers Lash Out_ ‘So Sexist,’ ‘Cruel’ and ‘One of the Most Detestable Movies’ Ever Made
As ‘Blonde’ Goes No. 1 on Netflix, Viewers Lash Out_ ‘So Sexist,’ ‘Cruel’ and ‘One of the Most Detestable Movies’ Ever Made

After just one day of being available to stream, Andrew Dominik’s “Blonde,” which stars Ana de Armas as Marilyn Monroe, shot to the top of Netflix’s movie chart. However, the NC-17 drama is upsetting many customers. Although the movie received a 14-minute standing ovation at the Venice Film Festival, critics and moviegoers are labeling it “sexist,” “cruel,” and “one of the most repulsive movies” ever made.

Given all the humiliations and horrors that Marilyn Monroe went through in her 36 years, it is a comfort that she was spared the vulgarities of “Blonde,” the newest necrophiliac amusement to take advantage of her, noted Manohla Dargis, a film critic for The New York Times, in her review.

The movie “Blonde,” which was partially adapted from the Joyce Carol Oates book of the same name, depicts the many heartbreaks and tragedies in Marilyn Monroe’s life and career, from her controlling mother to multiple sexual assaults in Hollywood. Even though Ana de Armas’ performance was universally praised, the movie itself sparked uproar for Monroe’s constant harassment, abuse, and traumatization.

Abortion expert Steph Herold of the University of California, San Francisco commented, “I had the awful misfortune of seeing ‘Blonde’ on Netflix last night, and let me tell you the movie is so anti-abortion, so sexist, so exploitative. “Cannot endorse it any less. Do not observe. The entire movie is awful, but the abortion scenes, in particular are the worst.

Herold continued, “It shows Marilyn being forced to have her first abortion, screaming on the table that she has changed her mind, and then she has a hallucination that she finds a wailing baby in her burning childhood house.”

In his review, the Los Angeles Times’ Justin Chang noted that the movie isn’t actually about Marilyn Monroe. The goal is to make her suffer.

According to Adam Nayman, a cinema essayist and critic for The Ringer, “when a movie is truly shattering or terrible, there’s a residual sense of thankfulness for what you’ve been through: the necessity of being rocked.” “‘Blonde’ is the film that tortures you for three hours before pretending to sigh and saying, ‘You’re welcome.’ Thanks, but no thanks.

Norma/Marilyn is “placed in a box that only permits her to be abused, sexualized, or to call people daddy,” one viewer stated on Twitter. She added, “Maybe we stop letting chauvinist males try to make innovative films about women they know nothing1 .”

Netflix is now streaming “Blonde.”

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Eliza Grace
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Since 2014, Eliza Grace has worked as a reporter covering movies and other forms of media. She is particularly well-known for the humorous way in which she analyses film. On a regular basis, she contributes articles to The Current that are movie reviews as well as articles about the newest movies, video games, and entertainment news. Words from Eliza Grace: "There's a standard formula for success in the entertainment medium and that's: Beat it to death if it succeeds."