My Week With Marilyn

My Week With Marilyn tells the story of a young man named Collin Clark, who gets a job as the third assistant director of a film starring Marilyn Monroe and Laurence Olivier. Marilyn's insecurities drive everyone crazy especially Olivier, but Collin falls in love with her.

I don't really know what to think about this movie: It's very much like a T.V movie, it's just not cinematic or big enough of a story. I wanted to see much more, more of the making of The Prince And The Showgirl,more of Marilyn, more of her assistant Paula. And more of Judi Dench!!! I love her, and she's just great in this! Anyway, Michelle Williams is mixed for me. I thought she was good, but the material affects her work and sometimes I thought her Marilyn was an obvious imitation at times. But her performance has a subtle,striking depth to it that makes it worthwhile and I wouldn't say a nominaion is undeserved. I liked seeing Emma Watson as Marilyn's wardrobe lady, knowing that she can do something out of Harry Potter, and Eddie Redmayne was fine as Collin.

So, I was disappointed in My Week With Marilyn mostly because it feels very fake and doesn't ring true as a biography of Marilyn Monroe. As for William's Oscar chances, she has a very good chance given her critics awards,but unless she wins the SAG, I don't think it'll happen yet fort her. WE'll see. The critics choice awards and the Golden Globes awards will be announced in two weeks and then we'll all have a better idea who the frontrunners are.

Best Actress 1965: Julie Christie in Darling

Julie Christie received her 1st Oscar nomination and won for playing Diana Scott, a selfish, manipulative young woman who goes from affair to affair until her actions come back to haunt her.

Darling is a rather dull film. Maybe it was deliberate, given it's point is to show the shallowness of the upper-class, but it is simply not too interesting and it's often confusing and random. But it's all held together by Julie Christie who is the only reason to watch the film.

Diana Scott is, as I've said, is a very selfish character. She cares only about herself, and runs from man to man simply for pleasure. But Julie Christie makes her likeable: Christie brings a certain charm and delicious quality to Diana that makes us like her despite the fact she is a total liar. Christie captures the playful, childlike quality of Diana and gives an extremeley subtle, brilliantly executed performance.It's a very low-key, unusual portrayal and it's a testament to her acting ability that Christie simply becomes Diana.No actress could have played Diana,in fact I don't even consider it a role.It's that believable.

Christie uses her face and her presence on screen to show us every layer of Diana. We see how much she loves manipulating people and the pleasure she gets out of men. We also see how much she likes children, and a great scene is when she has just had an abortion and we see how devastated she is. Despite the fact her co-stars are extremeley boring,Christie is able to succeed with them, especially Harvey. My only complaint is the material sometimes drags her down. There are scenes when she randomly gets angry and they don't seem to work, though they're wonderfully acted. Christie gets better and better,developing the character of Diana so well, it's wonderful to watch.The ending of the film is so powerful and well-played by Christie, it's mesmerizing.

Christie's performance starts on a strong note and builds and builds,resulting in a unique, terrific performance that rises above a mediocre film.

The Artist review

The film which is currently the frontrunner for Best Picture is certainly worth seeing. It's about an actor named George Valentin (Jean Dujardin) who is a famous silent film star.He meets a woman named Peppy Miller who is an aspiring fan of his who soon gets a job at the studio he is working for.They fall in love,but he soon is hampered by the rise of talking pictures and becomes washed up and extremeley depressed.

This film is such a beautiful, sophisticated one. The story isn't too original,but the inventiveness and the creative storytelling makes it brilliant. Valentin's dog is a such a funny and touching aspect to the movie. I was so scared that he would shun the dog or he would be hurt by somehow,thank God he didn't!I just hate seeing animal abuse on screen. Anyway,the film brings up a lot of questions about silent movies, at least for me. Are they still a worthwhile type of film? This one certainly was.it's such an expressive story, the words aren't really needed.And were people really tired of silent films or did they just want to see something new?

The performances in this film were fantastic: Jean Dujardin gives such a suave, powerful performance.He makes his character so well-rounded and magnetic. Bernencie Bejo is terrific, making her character so illuminating and truthful. Both deserve Oscar nominations, and maybe even wins.

The Artist certainly is one of the year's best, though i wouldn't quite call it Best Picture. It doesn't quite have the gut or the magic that I see in a film I think should win Best Picture. I would have no complaints if it won though, and I highly recommend it.