I don't know why the critics are so hard on this one. Michelle Williams is amazing. I hope she gets nominated for an Oscar. The score is also great. Go see it and take a date!

My Week with Marylin is an amazing movie because it shows that everyone, no matter fame, money or beauty, it is human and it suffers like one, passing through sorrows and glories. The story is about a young man who wants to create his own path in life and because he loves movies, he will try his hand in the film industry. In his first job, he will met Marylin Monroe, and will fall in love despite that everyone tell him to do not get involve to deeply because Marylin will use him and then broke his heart. In this point is when this picture becomes like a chronicle of a death foretold. Another interesting topic of My Week with Marylin is the relation that appear between the female protagonist and the director of the movie (a film inside a film), Laurence Olivier. He fells intimidated by the diva, because Larry is also famous but no one pays attention or wants to take care of him. Then we see the irony when comparing Marylin with Laurence: She is a star that wants to become an actress; and he is an actor who wants to become a star. This movie has an original idea, a beautiful script and performances that leave you open-mouthed; specially the ones of Michelle Williams and Kenneth Branagh.… Expand

This true story is told by a young assistant director (Eddie Redmayne), who had a brief familiarity with Marilyn Monroe (Michelle Williams) during her troubled filming of "The Prince and the Showgirl" in England. His innocence becomes her solace against the pressures of her co-star Laurence Olivier (Kenneth Branagh) and her difficult life in general. This is a quality production all around: the script is engaging, the look is attractive and the performances are compelling. A well-crafted and sweet film.… Expand

Michelle Williams (Blue Valentine) plays the infinite Marily Munroe, along side Eddie Redmayne (Elizabeth: The Golden Age) as Colin Clark a young film student who documents Sir Laurence Olivier's production starring Marilyn. While documenting the film he forms a close bond with Marilyn learning all about her inner securities and fears about becoming a successful actress. This film is heart warming and moving as we see what really happens behind closed doors with one of the most names in history. A definite must-see film starring other famous names such as; Judi Dench and Kenneth Branagh.… Expand

My week with Marilyn. To be honest, I was a little disappointed and bewildered. Michelle Williams is excellent, her ability to capture a slice of Marilyn's vulnerability and be equally captivating at the same time, is special. What I disagreed with was the way it almost skated over her darker side, she looked desperate to get away but so compelled and disgusted by her situation she stayed. I know, I know it was based upon two autobiographical pieces written by Colin Clark, I suppose this is more of a snap shot in time than a real look at Monroe as a complete person. Judy Dench, Kenneth Branagh and Julia Ormond have strong performances as well as Williams. Eddie Redmayne is in the beginning very good, but wanes as he becomes more infatuated with Marilyn, whether this is writing, Redmayne's style or his direction I do not know. Is it a bio-pic or a romance? I think this film failed to satisfy either option, however it had a lightness that left you wanting more of a very tragic story which was already getting closer and closer to its conclusion. 7/10… Expand

Very overrated and very limited plot. A lot of lingering shots of Michelle Williams being coquette-ish and who doesn't look like herself anymore. So if looking at her is supposed to deliver satisfaction rather than plot this is really a homage to fillers I would have preferred much more scenes between Olivier and Marilyn. Not even that atmospheric, An Education did a much better job of capturing a bygone age (albeit a different one to this)… Expand

It's a passable little film dominated by Judi Dench whenever she's on screen. The lead actor also does a darned good job, but the movie as a whole is paper thin. It's an easy miss.

"My Week With Marilyn" is based on the true story of Colin Clark, a young 23 year old, who diaried and recounted his work as a "gofer"in the making of the 50's film "The Prince and the Showgirl" which originally starred Marilyn Monroe and Sir Laurence Olivier. This movie stars Michelle Williams (as Marilyn Monroe), Kenneth Branagh (as Sir Laurence), Eddie Redmayne (as Colin Clark) and other cast members including Julia Ormond, Judi Dench and Emma Watson (HarryPotter). Written by Adrian Hodges and directed by Simon Curtis the film is slow moving and oftentimes trite in its dialogue as it seeks to penetrate the life and psyche of Ms. Monroe. This complicated icon is portrayed by Michelle Williams in an uncanny and extraordinary manner that, regardless of the merits (or demerits) of the film, will certainly earn her Oscar consideration in 2012. Ms. Williams becomes Ms. Monroe and gives the performance of her career as she captures her character's nuances and likenesses to such an extent that even Meryl Streep would be forced to sit up and give a nod of approval. The film, under normal circumstances, deserves only a 7 rating ut because of Ms. Williams' performance, I give it an 8. Movie-history buffs and all who enjoy seeing an actress come of age will like the film. -----Original Message----- From: Tlmgjrpr… Expand

It will be a race to the Oscars this year as Michelle Williams' portrayal of Marilyn Monroe is neck-and-neck with Meryl Streep's portrayal of Margaret Thatcher. What makes both of their performances amazing is that they don't just LOOK like the people whom they are portraying, but they capture the absolute essence, making the viewer believe wholeheartedly that they ARE the person, not just acting the part. Williams doesn't just doll herself up to look like Marilyn. That alone was quite a feat since Michelle Williams is structurally unlike Marilyn. I was very impressed with the makeup and wardrobe. However, what sets her apart as an extraordinary portrayal of Marilyn is how stunning, and I'm truly understating it, of a job Williams does evoking the tortured soul of this woman. I've read a lot about Marilyn over the years and knew about much of the history discussed in this movie, but I've never had a sense of how she was able to be this darling on the screen and for the public while also being so troubled in the background. I absolutely loved watching how Kenneth Branagh's Sir Laurence Olivier struggled with realizing her brilliance, yet making sure he wasn't captured in the web she clearly likes to weave around those who fall prey to her. For a woman who proclaimed to not be loved by her parents or by her many husbands, thus dramatizing and victimizing herself, she creates an air of powerlessness, but those closest to her, especially the men who fall helplessly in love with her, she has all the power in the world. While Marilyn's story has always been told from a sad perspective, the reality shown here, and what seems very natural considering her past and condition, is that Marilyn didn't understand what real love was. No father. An insane mother. A very false sense of love and admiration from Hollywood and her fans. Husbands that wanted her because she was Marilyn. And, in this story, Milton and Colin, two in this movie of probably countless men who succumbed to her charms and story, wanting to care for, love and help her, which she allows, until she doesn't need them anymore. The trail behind her of broken hearts, to which she gives very little thought. The performances by all are amazing in this movie. In the end, Michelle Williams may have the edge over Meryl in the Oscar race simply because the strength of the story and supporting performances are far greater.… Expand

A delicious entertainment from a old fashioned lightweight script that is illuminated by a "once in a lifetime" performance by Michelle Williams. She is the soul of the brittle beauty and like no other performance or impersonation of Marilyn touches your heart. It may help if you are a film fan and have seen "The Princess and The Showgirl" Eddie Redmayne captures the essence of the sweet innocent youth wonderfully. Powerful and funny recreation of Olivier by Branagh, supported by a terrific Judy Dentch and a host of British luminaries.… Expand

A good movie that borders on the regular, not momorable but entertaining. Michelle Williams gives us another excellent interpretation as to Branaght..

The vast majority of film characters who are addicted to pills and alcohol should not be the main characters in movie scripts. These characters are frequently one dimensional and are only required to slur words, stumble over steps, and make a nuisance of themselves. There are exceptions (Nicolas Cage in Leaving Las Vegas) as there are to any rule of thumb, but usually one does not want to rest a movie on a pill-head’s shoulders. My Week with Marilyn does not rely on Marilyn Monroe (Michelle Williams) as the central character, but she is not just a supporting role either. The star of the movie with ‘Marilyn’ in the title is actually Colin Clark (Eddie Redmayne), the young third assistant director on Sir Laurence Olivier’s production of The Prince and the Showgirl. Through amusing perseverance, Colin has wormed his way into his first real job and onto his first real movie set. He fetches coffee, shuffles script copies, and routinely asks the talent what he can do to make them more comfortable. The script chose to follow Colin’s one week on the set with Marilyn Monroe and their brief flirtation/affair which itself is memorialized in his autobiography devoted to that week. However, through a few factors which may not be apparent from the script’s pages, neither Colin nor Marilyn is the most interesting character in the movie. This credit belongs solely to Sir Laurence Olivier (Kenneth Branagh). It is 1956 and Olivier confides to Colin that he no longer feels young and decided to cast Marilyn in his film to recapture some of his lost youth and maybe even engage in his own affair with her. Olivier and Branagh have a lot in common. They are Shakespeare addicts, are widely acknowledged to be seminal actors in their respective generations, and I like to think that if their births were reversed, it would be Olivier playing Branagh in a film. Branagh gives a truly convincing performance as an aging Olivier who begins amused with Marilyn’s quirks before settling with disgust at her pathetic work ethic and ridiculous attempt to define herself as a true acting talent. On set, Marilyn was never on time, held up the rest of the cast for hours, was spoon fed her lines and delivery method from her acting coach Paula Strasberg (Zoe Wanamaker), and sometimes stayed in bed for an entire day because of her pill and alcohol problems. The film blames these problems both on Paula and Marilyn’s agent Milton Greene (Dominic Cooper) as her sycophantic pill-pushers. Colin brushes aside his own worries about Marilyn’s physical and mental health because he has severe love blinders on. When a person is so smitten and in lust as Colin is, the object of their desire can do no wrong. Aside from Michelle Williams, the supporting cast is quite strong. Co-starring with Marilyn is Dame Sybil Thorndike (Dame Judi Dench) who appears just as smitten as Colin sometimes and Olivier’s wife Vivien Leigh (Julia Ormond) gives a brief but telling performance. Dominic Cooper plays a standard high-tension agent protective of his star and makes me question why he still shows up in such minor roles after his fantastic turn as Uday Hussein in this year’s The Devil’s Double. Most of the critical response to My Week with Marilyn focuses on Michelle Williams and fawns about her most certain Oscar nomination. I disagree. Williams looks nothing like Monroe and I was painfully aware of the fake blonde wig and fake teeth. For most of the movie, and especially in the first half, I was watching Michelle Williams play Marilyn Monroe instead of forgetting that and just watching Marilyn. Director Simon Curtis made a mistake in casting a well known actress to play Marilyn; he would have been much better off casting an unknown actress which would have decreased the inevitable distraction. I encourage you to take the time to see My Week with Marilyn for the critically overlooked Branagh performance as Olivier and an overall enjoyable movie. Try and look past the Williams performance and enjoy a 1950’s English period piece.… Expand

Michelle Williams as Marilyn Monroe is a wonder !

I am overtly amazed by how great this film turned out to be. I thought it would be good, but it surpassed my expectations. Michelle Williams was truly great in portraying Monroe, leaving me mesmerized and guessing at the same time. Branagh was pretty humorous and demanding and was followed by a somewhat also charming and warming supporting cast, as seen in Redmayne. Wouldn't be suprised if Williams walks with the Oscar this year, most deservingly.… Expand

http://themuddoctor.blogspot.com/2012/01/my-week-with-marilyn.html Michelle Williams, perhaps the finest actress working today, gives a stunning performance here and demystifies the legend of Marilyn Monroe, making her painfully human. If only the rest of this film was up to her level.

After you get over the fact that Michelle Williams isn't actually Marilyn Monroe (yes, it actually takes a minute or two due to how the original is burn into our psyche) and get used to her in the role you find a beautifully acted film. Though the film itself is quite mediocre (script and flow are a bit shallow and slow), it is saved by mesmerizing performances by Michelle Williams as a very believable and almost flawless Marilyn Monroe and Kenneth Branagh's fantastic Sir Laurence Olivier, thus turning into quite a nice watch. Not the best film I've seen, but definitely a hefty notch on Michelle Williams' belt taking on one of the most dangerous roles an actress could due to the impossibility of capturing Monroe's "je ne sais quoi". Williams could have easily fallen into Monroe imitation land yet she manages throughout the film to skip along that very thin line that lies between copycatting Marilyn's animated persona and a genuine real-life portrayal of the multi-layered starlet. Not an easy task to say the least and Williams comes out of it in flying colours. In short, a great film if you can admire great acting without the film itself actually going anywhere.… Expand

What made Marilyn Monroe a great star was her magic dust, like Tinkerbell's, that she would suddenly turn on in the middle of an otherwise awkward performance. Her seduction of the camera, and therefore the audience, is so subtle, complex and mystical as to defy effective description. This film, to its great credit, shows Marilyn's brokenness and then her genius, beautifully. I was so resistant to accepting Michelle Williams' performance, but she won me over, massively, in the end, as the film ripens and goes deep, with profound close ups, showing Marilyn as she may have been, must have been, at times, in private, at times deep as the Marianas Trench, at times effervescent and alive as the eternal girl looking for love that Marilyn always was. That Ms. Williams and the director could find and reproduce Marilyn's genius is a stunning cap to an otherwise enjoyable film, and worth every second. I may go back to sit it again... to be with timeless Marilyn, and a great new talent in Ms. Williams.… Expand

Obviously, the reason I bought a ticket (and the reason anyone will buy a ticket, for that matter) is to see Michelle William's performance. In regards to that, I got my money's worth; she was fantastic. The film overall, though is brought down so much by the editing. Continuity is out the window. I have never seen such a poorly edited film that is running for Oscars.

This is a small sweet movie, with an electrifying performance by Michele Williams. http://luhathoughts.blogspot.com/2011/12/marilyn-marvelously.html

This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Absolutely charming! I personally don't know much about Marilyn Monroe except that she is an icon and she sang that Happy Birthday song to the President. The film was fascinating to me to learn about her a little bit. I do wonder if the real Monroe was really like the Monroe in the movie. For example, was she really that bad in memorising lines? Was she really that bad in being on time? etc etc... Regardless, the movie kept my attention throughout. Michelle Williams did an excellent job in convincing me that she was Marilyn Monroe. She should be singled out during the Oscar time. This film succeeds big time in giving us a rare and fascinating glimpse into the private live of Marilyn Monroe.… Expand

Another exemplar of a biographic mediocre interpretation, from UK director Simon Curtis, and suffers from its regulatory pressure of acting over the film itself (thinking of last year’s ALBERT NOBBS 2011 and THE IRON LADY 2011 as its likes, a over-crafted female leading performance overshadows the film’s own vitality). The film has little strength to pin down the narrative style because of its less-than-spectacular history-based script, without any subversive conflict within its real-life characters, everything is carefully measured without being over-dramatic or derisive towards these celebrities. A toy boy tailored romantic with Marilyn is abrasively structured, there is skimpy attraction between them apart from raw, lecherous curious from Colin's side and desperate catching a young dude for fun from Ms. Monroe's part. Michelle Williams continuously gives tremendous performances for nearly a decade (three Oscar nominations so far is superior among her peers), her entire outfit nearly resembles an impeccable verisimilitude of Marilyn (she and the team behind knows exactly how to hide her slightly chubby cheek from the camera as much as possible to blight the mimicry), the simple truth is that her big time has not arrived yet. Eddie Redmayne’s role is very bad-written which also may cause his incapacity of proving his uniqueness as the main target. Kenneth Branagh is exerting his theatrical potency in spite of his inadequate similarity of appearance with Sir Laurence Olivier, but barely his career-best, despite of rendering some sizable comedic moments . My only wishful thinking is that if Dame Judi Dench had more screen time, she could have been a serious contender in the supporting category (as the funny-witty Dame Sybil Thorndike). The re-enacting of THE PRINCE AND THE SHOWGIRL (1957) is the most enticing segment of it all, I can not vet the accuracy of the performances or settings, but one major fringe benefit for me is I am so eager to watch Monroe-Olivier’s original version!… Expand

www.unsungfilms.com by Georgia Xanthopoulou First thing’s first. I feel I should mention from the start that I have adored Marilyn Monroe for a very long time. Probably since I first watched Gentlemen Prefer Blondes round the time I was five. I remember playing it over and over again, getting frustrated at how long it took the video player to rewind the tape. She seems so vibrant and lively, it’s like she comes out of the screen into your living room. Apart from her curvaceous body and pouting lips, which I was too young to understand, I still think it’s her smile and shine that make her irresistible to audiences. Because of my admiration towards her, I have watched a lot of films and TV movies about her life and, even though they were informative, they all seem to fade from your memory after a while since they somehow try to humanise a woman who has lasted so many years in the conscience of popular culture exactly because of her iconic status. People are always intrigued by her personal troubles, her love life, her dramatic childhood years and this image of a woman so powerful and vulnerable at the same time. It makes sense that most films about her, since we are used to seeing her on the screen as well, will feel like they are not be able to fully explore such a woman in depth and do her justice. And right when you think I would be disappointed in My Week with Marilyn, I’m going to declare that I liked it a lot. Mainly because the film is not parading as a truthful, biographical account of Marilyn’s life. First of all, it revolves around a week of her life. More significantly, though, Marilyn is not the main character. Colin, portrayed by Eddie Redmayne, is a young inexperienced man thirsty to live and is given the opportunity to do just that as he gets a job as a gofer in the production of The Prince and the Showgirl. His story is a coming of age tale, about that time when you break away from what was until then familiar and ‘join the circus’. It’s about his first love but, as it usually happens with first loves, it’s monumental, exciting and, ultimately, heart breaking. And it is Colin’s story we are watching. So, the things we learn about Marilyn are through his memories. In this way, the film dodges the bullet of even trying to be a comprehensive biography and doesn’t pretend that what we get is the ultimate look deep inside her soul. Marilyn is never seen alone, her actions and words are always what Colin sees or hears, a fact which makes the audience aware of the fact that film is not claiming to know Marilyn, as the narrator doesn’t really know her himself. So, we know Marilyn only to the extent that others have known her. And while there are glimpses of a Marilyn audiences wouldn’t see at the time of her career, as she binge drinks and sees her media image as another part she can play, still there is nothing new that we learn that hasn’t been written and said about her already. There couldn’t be. That might sound like a waste of time, another story about Marilyn with no real insight of the woman herself. However, one must be aware that a real insight is impossible and all biographies that claim they know the artists they revolve around are subject to criticism precisely for this reason. If the film is not based on an autobiography, than no one can really communicate the inner truth of any other person. In this way, the focus of the film is not an objective view on her life but provides us with a perspective of her. Which, to me, is much more interesting. Which brings us to the object of the viewers’ gaze, Michelle Williams. Williams does a very good job at communicating exactly what it is that everyone loves about Marilyn. The fact that when she is happy, smiles and plays around, no one can look elsewhere. She understands Marilyn’s charismatic qualities and highlights them as much as she can, she adopts her mannerisms and facial expressions she had adopted for her films but doesn’t go overboard. She effortlessly portrays the fact that she was much more subdued and scared in real life and that the clueless and always happy blonde was a part she played in films and in front of the press. She is alluring and draws you in, makes you care for her, in the way Colin does for her too. Kenneth Branagh is very entertaining as a Laurence Olivier driven mad by Marilyn’s shenanigans, while he is portrayed as another man who was caught between admiring, envying and not being able to handle her. What is very interesting about this film is this notion of knowing Marilyn only through the media, either as an actress, or through photos or articles in the press, manifests itself in the film’s mise-en-scène as well. A great deal of Michelle Williams’ shots strongly allude... www.unsungfilms.com… Expand

I found this film enchanting from the opening scene. It isn't overly moving or powerful, but simply pure entertainment and a very well done movie. Just enough intrigue and comedy for a good balance, some excellent performances, especially Michelle Williams, to where you probably wouldn't mind this week turning into a month.

This is a disappointing movie. How can a film about one of history's most iconic, mysterious and enchanting movie stars be so un-enchanting? Even Michelle Williams as Marilyn and Kenneth Branagh as Olivier cannot save this film from the boring direction of Simon Curtis. This is a story that had a chance to me as magical as Marilyn herself. Instead, we get what looks like incredibly staged and uninvolving scenes, a plethora of men swooning at Williams in basically every scene, and the look and feel of a TV movie of the week. There wasn't one scene of real substance here, save for some nice moments with Judi Dench, as Dame Sybil Thorndike, who is authentically sympathetic to Marilyn and defends her from the at times harsh and un-compassionate colleagues on the British movie set where they are working. The characters are little more than cardboard caricatures and lack the true character development of a more distinguished film. Williams tried hard, but had too much working against her here. At the end of the 102 minute running time, I still yearned to learn much more about this charismatic and troubled movie star-icon.… Expand

Charming and delightful. Michelle Williams is a scene-stealer. The range of emotion she conveys as Marilyn is remarkable. All of the actors did a fine job, spare one. I can't for the life of me understand how and why Kenneth Branagh got nominated for an Academy Award. His portrayal of Laurence Olivier was abrasive to me. Like a pumice stone. It ruined the tone of the film slightly. But other than that, the movie was great.… Expand

A solid 4.5/5 stars. Michelle Williams did a wonderful job at capturing the mannerisms of Marilyn, while still adding her own flair to her acting. My favorite part of the film was definitely the songs though. The song list included"Marilyn's Theme," "It's a Wrap, I Found a Dream" and "That Old Black Magic." They were all great throwbacks to the 40s and 50s! http://thecelebritycafe.com/reviews/my-week-marilyn-soundtrack-02-13-2012… Expand

My overall reaction to this film is disappointment. It is filled with a wonderful cast of actors in a period piece that has the look of a very good film.But in my view this film could not work without the actress playing Marilyn character working and Michelle Williams did not do it for me. I had been warned that her resemblance to Marylin was not very good so I was prepared for that, but she projected none of the aura and appeal of the real Marylin Monroe. She did project her voice and mannerisms at times but it was simply not enough. Without her strength to carry the film we are left with caricatures of the others notables portrayed and it becomes a self serving vehicle for Colin, the author, to let us in on his big moments with a sex bomb star he had fantasized with. The sequences are slow moving and boring, and the conflicts between the characters contrived and uninteresting. I am not sure any of the actors could have saved this turkey of a screenplay.… Expand