Marilyn Monroe - The Final Days (2001)

One last hurrah for Monroe

This DVD is wonderful! It's great to see the last work of Marilyn Monroe, in the edited and remastered film from her uncompleted movie "Something's Got to Give". It is a must have for any MM fan. June 18, 2008

Luminous out-takes and an absolutely magnetic Monroe

This product is pieced together from raw/restored footage, out-takes and the ending partial film is sprite, interesting and Monroe's powerful luminous presence is riveting and almost ethereal.
The commentary unfortunately tends to favor the negative side of the studio issues playing out. They fail to mention or down play that Monroe was the #1 female box office star of the past decade, that her films were keeping 20th Century Fox above water for the past several years and they were paying her approx. 200K due to a loop hole in her early contract. Yet Cleopatra was literally bankrupting Fox after almost 2 years in production and Taylor was receiving 1M for her film. This was the last film under Monroe's old contract, and it was a flimsy B film that she didn't want to do. Fox expected Monroe to complete & release the hit quickly, thus it would help finance the ballooning Cleopatra and the sinking Fox. Monroe resented these facts, the film and didn't want to make it. So she was sick & tardy, they fired her, she made history again at Madison Square Garden, her legal team countered, Dean Martin quit (he refused to work w/ anyone but Monroe as his contract stated), Fox quickly rehired her with a large raise..yes she was dumb like a "Fox".
It's of note to watch her out-takes when she sees her children for the first time in 5 years, her eyes reveal a range as large as the Alps and take you on a journey in mere seconds, many shades of pathos, yearning and love. It's evident her craft had made another substantial jump in development. And Monroe's flesh impact owns the screen like none other - even when someone else is talking your still watching her.
In film class at Yale they devoted a whole class to her, including showing a series of clips with a multitude of famous dignitaries with her: Presidents, Queens, Kings, actors, opera stars, famous scholars and scientist, etc. and at the end the professor asked us to name any of the 17 dignitaries with Monroe, we could name only 4. Such is the power of her flesh impact. In forty some years since her death it's safe to say they'll be no one at this level of screen presence, close but sans that flesh impact that only Monroe delivered soulfully. May 13, 2008

MARILYN MONROE-----THE FINAL DAYS

I FOUND THIS DVD TO BE ABSOLUTELY FASCINATING AND A MUST FOR ALL THE MARILYN MONROE FANS AS IT GIVES YOU MORE OF AN INSIGHT TO THIS VERY TRAGIC ENDING OF A WOMAN WHO HAD THE POWER TO GAIN ANYTHING IN HER LIFE SHE WANTED ---EXCEPTING ONE THING THAT SHE NEEDED, AND THAT WAS PEACE OF MIND......I HAVE SEEN MANY DOCUMENTARIES ON MARILYN BUT THIS ONE WAS THE MOST COMPASSIONATE AND MOST UNDERSTANDING OF ALL......SOPHIE September 28, 2007

Marilyn At Her Very Best

Outstanding DVD. A HUGE Marilyn fan I own every movie in which she appeared from the walk on in "Love Happy" to her final film "The Misfits" and always felt cheated there was no partical release of "Something's Got To Give". I purchased every 8x10 glossy from the production set I could find to fill the void. The wait is now over. Here in this DVD is a look into the production, interviews with the cast, writer and director, fantastic stills and costume takes. The narration is insightful and not judgemental. Best of all it includes a pieced together look from what available footage they had at what "Something's Got To Give" would have looked like had it ever made it to the screen. A real treat. This is a must have for any Monroe fan. She was over weight in her last two films and lost weight for this film and looked better than she had in years. A true must see. Marilyn at her very best! September 17, 2007

Gorgeous at 36

She never looked better. This exquisite, albeit flawed, beauty is beautifully portrayed in this attractive production. What a loss her untimely death was. I highly recommend this film to all MM fans. April 3, 2007

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