The Luminescence of Michelle Williams

My Week with Marilyn is a good film, not a great one, but a good one. Actually, nothing much seems to happen in terms of plot. A movie is being made, and the plot follows the progress of the film within the film. However, that being said, I believe the acting within this particular film is quite phenomenal, especially Michelle Williams who has probably the hardest job of any other actor in the film. Of course, due to the film's subject--Marilyn Monroe--everyone's focus should be on Michelle Williams' performance because Monroe's ability to draw everyone's attention, no matter whatever else was going on, is legendary. Despite the fact that the film's hero is Colin Clark (played by Eddie Redmayne), everyone is waiting for the moment when Monroe graces the audience with her presence, and from the opening song, to her final moment onscreen, Williams evokes the legendary aura of Monroe in such a way that I forgot I was watching Williams act. I, a gay man, wanted to be Clark; I wanted to pick up that vulnerable image of innocence in my skinny little arms and take her away from her troubles. It was a strange experience, to say the least, but from what I hear, that's exactly the kinds of feelings Marilyn Monroe elicited.

Sir Laurence Olivier (Kenneth Branagh), that legend of acting, is directing The Prince and the Showgirl. The stage version starred Olivier's wife, Vivien Leigh (Julia Ormond), but she was deemed too old to play the same character on screen, a sad fact that is made even harder to bare when the most famously beautiful actress in the world is cast to replace her, Monroe. Colin Clark wants so desperately to be in the film business that he works his way into being hired as the Third Assistant Director, which basically means he's the director's (as well as everyone else's) errand boy. Yet, despite his status on set, Monroe grows to trust this young man and they form a relationship.

The film doesn't reveal whether or not the two ever had sex, but that's beside the point. Monroe doesn't need another sexual partner: What she really needs is a friend to support her, one without some ulterior motive. At that point in her career, Monroe was suffering what few people on this planet can truly claim: worldwide adoration and fame. Such recognition comes at a price, and that price is privacy and paranoia. Elvis and Michael Jackson would be able to empathize. Indeed, there is so much pressure on Monroe that I'm surprised it didn't take even longer to complete The Prince and the Showgirl.

The other two performances that stand out are Kenneth Branagh, who stands out in any production he's in, and Dame Judi Dench, who is a joy to watch even when she graces us with her presence for the briefest of spells. Branagh playing Olivier delivering Shakespearean dialogue is like being in Shakespeare-Heaven, I imagine. But aside from that, Branagh brings off the frustration and sexual tension Olivier experienced while working with Monroe quite well. Bouts of explosive anger are coupled with quiet moments of reflection, and Branagh makes Olivier a sympathetic character despite his bullying of Monroe.

There were two memorable scenes for Dench, who plays an old actress who acts as mother to everyone on set. During one scene, Dench is required to deliver a long, rambling bit of dialogue and shows no hint of frustration or anger when Monroe can't seem to get one line out of her mouth. Indeed, she goes out of her way to comfort Monroe and in a later scene berates Olivier for being a bully. These scenes are a reminder why Dench received an Oscar in Shakespeare in Love (despite being onscreen for a short amount of time); and why, aside from Daniel Craig, I eagerly await the next Bond film.

As I wrote before, this is a Michelle Williams' film, much like every film with Monroe in it is a Marilyn Monroe film. My Week with Marilyn doesn't quite deserve a Best Picture nomination, but Williams certainly deserves a Best Actress nomination.