Netflix's 'Blonde' called 'disgusting and cruel' Marilyn Monroe film

Andrew Dominik's "Blonde" topped Netflix's movie chart soon after its release on Sept. 28. However, it also left some viewers so outraged that they had to stop watching it just 20 minutes into the nearly three-hour run.

The film is an adaptation of Joyce Carol Oates' book, which is a fictionalised account of Monroe's trauma-filled life. While the film premiered to a standing ovation at the Venice Film Festival, some of those who saw it on Netflix were not pleased.

Netizens complained that the NC-17 drama left them feeling shocked, disgusted, and outraged. Some called it "sexist," "unwatchable," and "cruel." The Independent quoted one viewer who admitted, "I just started to watch Blonde and I've turned it off after 20 minutes."

Another wrote, "I started to watch it but it was so exploitative that I had to turn it off." Steph Herold, a researcher studying abortion on TV and film, launched a barrage of criticism against "Blonde" and advised others against watching it. She called it "sexist" and "so exploitative" of Monroe. She mentioned the rape scenes in the film are "gratuitous & disgusting."

"I've not heard anything positive about this movie. Still being victimised so many years after her death?? Just wrong," another commented.

Another tweeted, "This film was disturbing- I thought it portrayed how messed up things were at that point in history. I do feel sad for Marylin Monroe. She had a difficult childhood and the film industry abused her. I do believe sexual harassment was rampant at that time."

Meanwhile, one viewer criticised Ana de Armas, who portrayed Marilyn Monroe in "Blonde," as a thin "wanna be" who looked nothing like the Hollywood icon. The netizen shared that it was a "terrible boring movie" that made her fall asleep.

Speaking about the film, Oates told The New Yorker that it is "not for the faint of heart." She admitted that it is "emotionally exhausting" so she had to stop watching it midway through and come back to it after a couple of hours.

However, she also called it "a work of art" and praised Dominik, "a very idiosyncratic director," who "appropriated the subject and made it into his own vision." Oates argued that the vivid depiction of sexual assaults, miscarriages, and abortions in "Blonde" is "probably closer" to what Monroe actually experienced in real life compared to other films made about her.