Gabriel’s review published on Letterboxd:
And it seems to me you lived your life
Like a candle in the wind
Never knowing who to cling to
When the rain set in
In the gargantuan effort that is Andrew Dominik's Blonde, Ana de Armas is wholly committed as Norma Jean, Chayse Irvin's cinematography is sublime and Nick Cave & Warren Ellis give a truly great score. With all of that said, the film too often straddles the line between artful, inspired genius and smug misery fodder, as if Dominik is holding the audience culpable in Marilyn's trauma just by gawking at her.
Everyone who felt this was exploitative has every right to feel that way, and Dominik's remarks throughout the entire press tour should be held under scrutiny, but I would've rather felt horrified and disgusted than absolutely nothing.
