Marilyn Monroe: Beyond the Legend (1987)

Director:

Gene Feldman

Writers:

Gene Feldman, Suzette Winter

Stars:

Marilyn Monroe, Richard Widmark, Don Murray

Cast

Credited cast:
Marilyn Monroe	...	Herself (archive footage)
Richard Widmark	...	Narrator / Jed Towers
Don Murray	...	Himself - Interviewee / Beauregard 'Bo' Decker
Susan Strasberg	...	Herself - Interviewee
Joshua Logan	...	Himself - Director
Robert Mitchum	...	Himself - Interviewee / Matt Calder
Laszlo Willinger	...	Himself - Professional Photographer
Sheree North	...	Herself - Actress / Friend
Shelley Winters	...	Herself - Actress / Friend
Clark Gordon	...	Himself - Interviewee
Celeste Holm	...	Herself - Interviewee / Karen
John Springer	...	Himself - Publicist
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Lauren Bacall	...	Schatze Page
Scotty Beckett	...	Willy Miller
Eric Blore	...	Mackinaw

Storyline

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Plot Keywords:

actress | character name in title

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Genres:

Documentary

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Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

November 1987 (USA)

Also Known As:

Marilyn Monroe: A legendán túl

Company Credits

Production Co:

Wombat Productions, DeVillier Donegan Enterprizes

Technical Specs

Runtime:

60 min

Color:

Color Black and White

Did You Know?

Connections

Features Some Like It Hot (1959)

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Soundtracks

"Happy Birthday to You"
(1893) (uncredited)
Written by Mildred J. Hill and Patty S. Hill
Sung by Marilyn Monroe for President Kennedy's birthday in archive footage

User Reviews

silk on one side, sandpiper on the other

This Gene Feldman documentary features funny anecdotes and insights from Sheree North and Celeste Holm especially, describing the drive and will behind Monroe's sadomasochistic help-me pose. Holm tells that Monroe studied Betty Grable, in particular, to imitate her, though Monroe only occasionally paralleled Grable's brassy quality.

Feldman edits the song Diamonds Are A Girls Best Friend to footage of Monroe's ascending success at the time of the film it came from, Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, but the narration incorrectly names her last film as Something HAS to Give.

What emerges from this study is the irony of Monroe's celebrity and how her need for publicity and attention to further her career did not come with the respect she so wanted as an actress. The end does not comment on the way Monroe died, with no mention of the Kennedy- associated murder conspiracy theory, and the highlight of Monroe's acting is said to be in Bus Stop. Otherwise, the label 'sex goddess' is repeated to an extent that you would guess that Marilyn herself would feel is reductive.

Actors Clark Gordon and Susan Strasberg all offer impersonations of Monroe, with Strasberg's own natural elegance in counterpoint to Monroe's perceived tackiness.