My Week with Marilyn (2011)

Colin Clark, an employee of Sir Laurence Olivier, documents the tense interaction between Olivier and Marilyn Monroe during the production of The Prince and the Showgirl (1957).

Director:

Simon Curtis

Writers:

Adrian Hodges (screenplay), Colin Clark (books)

Stars:

Michelle Williams, Eddie Redmayne, Kenneth Branagh

Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 19 wins & 59 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Michelle Williams	...	Marilyn Monroe
Eddie Redmayne	...	Colin Clark
Julia Ormond	...	Vivien Leigh
Kenneth Branagh	...	Sir Laurence Olivier
Pip Torrens	...	Sir Kenneth Clark
Geraldine Somerville	...	Lady Jane Clark
Michael Kitchen	...	Hugh Perceval
Miranda Raison	...	Vanessa
Karl Moffatt	...	Jack Cardiff
Simon Russell Beale	...	Cotes-Preedy
Toby Jones	...	Arthur Jacobs
Robert Portal	...	David Orton
Philip Jackson	...	Roger Smith
Jim Carter	...	Barry
Victor McGuire	...	Andy

Storyline

Sir Laurence Olivier is making a movie in London. Young Colin Clark, an eager film student, wants to be involved and he navigates himself a job on the set. When movie star Marilyn Monroe arrives for the start of shooting, all of London is excited to see the blonde bombshell, while Olivier is struggling to meet her many demands and acting ineptness, and Colin is intrigued by her. Colin's intrigue is met when Marilyn invites him into her inner world where she struggles with her fame, her beauty, and her desire to be a great actress.

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Plot Keywords:

marilyn monroe character | laurence olivier character | vivien leigh character | jack cardiff character | arthur miller character | 

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Genres:

Biography | Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for some language

Details

Official Sites:

Official site Official site [Switzerland]

Country:

UK USA

Language:

English French

Release Date:

23 December 2011 (USA)

Also Known As:

Mi semana con Marilyn

Filming Locations:

Windsor Castle, Windsor, Berkshire, England, UK

Box Office

Budget:

£6,400,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$1,750,507, 18 November 2011, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$14,600,347

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$35,057,696

Company Credits

Production Co:

The Weinstein Company, BBC Films, Lipsync Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

99 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital Datasat

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Michelle Williams' Best Actress Academy Award nomination was her second consecutive nomination in this category as she had been nominated for Blue Valentine (2010).

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Goofs

In the opening sequence, Marilyn appears singing "Heat Wave" in the screen of a movie theater. She sang that Irving Berlin song in There's No Business Like Show Business with a totally different set and costumes.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Title Card: In 1956, at the height of her career, Marilyn Monroe went to England to make a film with Sir Laurence Olivier. While there she met a young man named Colin Clark, who wrote a diary about the making of the film. This is their true story.

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Connections

Featured in 18th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards (2012)

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Soundtracks

Memories Are Made of This
Performed by Dean Martin
Words and Lyrics by Frank Miller, Rich Dehr (as Richard Dehr) and Terry Gilkyson
Licensed courtesy of EMI Records Ltd
Published by EMI Music Publishing Ltd
Licensed by Montclaire Music Company Limited

User Reviews

Dull

Saw pre-release screening. Never believed that Michelle Williams was Marilyn, which was distracting, always looked like she was an actress portraying Marilyn. The subtext of a woman whose main attribute is her sexuality, who only achieves based on her attraction to men, is sublimated to endlessly dull scenes of a vapid actress trying to recite lines on a movie set, with some lackluster comic relief tacked on gratuitously.

Eddie Redmayne was really good, and he should be someone to keep an eye on. But this film never seems to get going--any film based on MM's life should be sexy, shouldn't it? The end just kind of dumps onto the screen because there is no place else to go. Should have been a lot better, maybe they can tighten it up with some editing.