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Ana de Armas in Blonde
Credit: Netflix |
Now that the 2024 Oscars are over, I can return to catching up on nominated films from previous years. Recently viewed on Netflix were
Blonde, the bizarre adaptation of Joyce Carol Oates' massive novel based on the turbulent life and career of Marilyn Monroe which earned Ana de Armas a Best Actress nomination and Animated Featured nominee
Marcel the Shell with Shoes On. Ironically,
Blonde also won Worst Picture and Screenplay from the Golden Raspberry Awards. It was also nominated for Worst Director and Worst Supporting Actor for Evan Williams and Xavier Samuels who played Charlie Chaplin Jr. and Edward G. Robinson Jr. The film switched from black and white to color. The cinematography was beautiful, creating the look of black and white photography of the 1950s and the super saturated color of the era. de Armas gives a heartfelt performance, but the film is exploitative while condemning the exploitation of Marilyn. There are numerous gratuitous topless scenes.
Marcel was cute as the dickens and very sweet. Mixing animation and live action, Marcel depicts the relationship between a documentary filmmaker and a one-inch shell whose family has disappeared. Sentimental without being cloying.
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Marcel the Shell with Shoes on
Credit: A24 |
