Love Marilyn (2012)

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General		Extras
Category	Documentary	Interviews-Crew-Director Liz GArbus Theatrical Trailer
Rating
Year Of Production	2012
Running Time	103:00
RSDL / Flipper	Dual Layered	Cast & Crew
Start Up	Menu
Region Coding	4	Directed By	Liz Garbus
Studio Distributor	Madman Entertainment	Starring	None Given
Case	Amaray-Transparent
RPI	?	Music	None Given

Video		Audio
Pan & Scan/Full Frame	None	English Dolby Digital 5.1 (448Kb/s)
Widescreen Aspect Ratio	1.78:1
16x9 Enhancement
Video Format	576i (PAL)
Original Aspect Ratio	1.78:1	Miscellaneous
Jacket Pictures	No
Subtitles	None	Smoking	No
		Annoying Product Placement	No
		Action In or After Credits	No

Last year was the 50th anniversary of the death of Marilyn Monroe. A number of her films were shown and there were various documentaries aired leading to the perennial question of why exactly she remains a pop culture icon when plenty of other great (greater?) actors and performers have faded into obscurity?

Is it something to do with the complicated nature of society or is it as simple as that women wanted to be her and men wanted to be with her? Both men and women wanted to save her from her decline and death.

As is pointed out early in this documentary by Liz Garbus there have been over 1000 books about Marilyn Monroe. With her story having been laid out many times before, most recently in semi-fictional terms by Michelle Williams in My Week with Marilyn, what could possibly be new or revelatory in this documentary?

Liz Garbus presents us with two new elements. The first is that there was a recent discovery of a treasure trove of personal letters, diaries and private notes at the home of her acting coach Lee Strasberg. The second is that she has recruited some of Hollywood's top actors to read the excerpts and other contemporary materials. Therefore we have a cast of multitudes including Glenn Close, Paul Giamatti, Uma Thurman and others performing readings.The readings are acted but without anyone trying to dress or act as Marilyn.

The effect is interesting and gives new life to the materials. It is up to the individual to decide whether they are interested in more information about Marilyn. In truth, the comments made in the diaries and the notes obtained are not particularly insightful or controversial. They pretty much show the same troubled woman as has previously emerged from films and documentaries about Marilyn. Nevertheless, this is definitely worth a watch for fans of Marilyn and those with an interest in the pop culture history of cinema.

Video

Love, Marilyn comes to DVD in a 1.78:1 transfer consistent with its original aspect ratio.

It is 16×9 enhanced.

The film consists of a combination of historical footage, which has been brushed up for the film, as well as the new material being the presentations by the actors. These are sharply presented on high-definition digital. The historical materials look good too making this a fairly high quality seamless presentation.

The colours are strong and clear. The flesh tones are accurate.

There are no technical problems with the presentation.

There are no subtitles.

Video Ratings Summary

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Shadow Detail
Colour
Grain/Pixelization
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Film Artefacts
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Audio

The sound for Love, Marilyn is by way of an English Dolby Digital 5.1 track running at 448 Kb/s.

In fact, the documentary really doesn't require a sophisticated sound presentation. This is more than adequate for a film which consists primarily of monologues, voice-over and music.

There is not much for the surround track to do and the sub woofer is not engaged. Nevertheless this is a good sound presentation.

There are no technical defects with the sound.

Audio Ratings Summary

Dialogue
Audio Sync
Clicks/Pops/Dropouts
Surround Channel Use
Subwoofer
Overall

The DVD contains two extras.

Interview with director Liz Garbus(9.42)

In this short series of interviews the director talks about the moment when, through the new documents, she gained a real impression of a flesh and blood woman as opposed to a two dimensional woman.

Theatrical trailer (2.07)

The trailer for the film.

   The UK Region 2 has the same features as our version whereas the Region 1 does not have the extras. Buy local!

That we are still talking about Marilyn Monroe some 50 years after her death indicates that she will probably always be a part of pop culture in a way that is both understandable and inexplicable. This new documentary does not really break any new ground or produce any amazing revelations yet I still found it fascinating.

The addition of actors performing as Marilyn and other people in her life seems gimmicky at first but certainly elevates the film above a mere step-by-step biography. The DVD is of good quality in sound and vision terms.

Video
Audio
Extras
Plot
Overall