Adrien Brody says Blonde is supposed to be a ‘traumatic experience’: ‘It’s fearless filmmaking’

Adrien Brody defended Netflix’s film adaptation of Joyce Carol Oates’ Marilyn Monroe novel, Blonde, amid a divided response.

So far, the movie starring Ana de Armas as the 1950s Hollywood icon has been condemned by some critics for its harrowing portrayal of Monroe’s life.

In a one-star review for The Independent, Jessie Thompson wrote: “Blonde is not a bad film because it is degrading, exploitative and misogynist, even though it is all of those things. It’s bad because it’s boring, pleased with itself and doesn’t have a clue what it’s trying to say.”

In a new interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Brody – who plays Monroe’s third husband, playwright Arthur Miller – called director Andrew Dominik “beautifully brave”.

“I think that since it’s told in this first-person perspective, it works somehow for the film to be a traumatic experience,” Brody explained. “Because you’re inside of her – her journey and her longings and her isolation – amidst all of this adulation.”

“It’s brave and it takes a while to digest,” he continued. “And I think it’s in conflict with what the public’s perception of what her life is.

“And I think that’s where the film triumphs, because – whether it’s an extreme depiction or not – it’s honouring the extreme chasm between the public’s perception of the fame and the glory of Hollywood’s most famous, iconic actor, and the reality of that individual – the loneliness and emptiness and mental turmoil and abuse of that individual.”

“... It’s fearless filmmaking,” Brody concluded.

Blonde is out on Netflix now.