The Secret Life of Marilyn Monroe

The Secret Life of Marilyn Monroe is a 2015 American made-for-TV drama film on Marilyn Monroe. It stars Kelli Garner, Susan Sarandon, Emily Watson, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, and Eva Amurri Martino and was first aired on Lifetime on May 30 and 31, 2015. The (two-hour forty-seven minute) miniseries is based on The New York Times bestseller of the same name by J. Randy Taraborrelli. It was nominated for three Creative Arts Emmy Awards [1]

The Secret Life of Marilyn Monroe
Genre	Drama Bio-pic
Based on	The Secret Life of Marilyn Monroe book by J. Randy Taraborrelli
Screenplay by	Stephen Kronish (teleplay)
Directed by	Laurie Collyer
Starring	Kelli Garner Susan Sarandon Emily Watson Jeffrey Dean Morgan
Composer(s)	David Carbonara
Country of origin	United States
Original language(s)	English
No. of episodes	2
Production
Executive producer(s)	Stephen Kronish Damien Ganczewski Keri Selig Jonathan Koch Steven Michaels
Producer(s)	Joseph Boccia Don Carmody David Cormican
Production location(s)	Ontario, Canada
Cinematography	Christopher Manley
Editor(s)	Ron Wisman Ron Wisman Jr.
Running time	84 minutes
Production company(s)	Intuition Productions Asylum Entertainment
Release
Original network	Lifetime
Original release	May 30 – May 31, 2015 (2015-05-31)
External links
Website

Premise

A chronicle of Marilyn Monroe's family life, her relationship with her mother, Gladys Baker, and how she succeeded in hiding her most intimate secrets from the press and an invasive world.

Cast

Main characters

• Kelli Garner as Marilyn Monroe
• Susan Sarandon as Gladys Monroe Mortenson, Marilyn's mother
• Emily Watson as Grace McKee, Marilyn's foster mother, later called "aunt"
• Jack Noseworthy as Alan DeShields, Marilyn's therapist
• Giacomo Gianniotti as Jimmy Dougherty, Marilyn's first husband
• Jeffrey Dean Morgan as Joe DiMaggio, Marilyn's second husband
• Stephen Bogaert as Arthur Miller, Marilyn's third husband
• Matthew Bennett as Whitey, Marilyn's makeup artist
• Embeth Davidtz as Natasha Lytess, Marilyn's acting coach
• Peter MacNeill as Mr. Schenck, Chairman of Fox Studios
• Tony Nardi as Johnny Hyde, Marilyn's agent
• Barry Flatman as Mr. Zanuck, Studio Head of 20th Century Fox
• Tamara Hickey as Patricia Kennedy Lawford

Supporting characters

• Eva Amurri Martino as Young Gladys Monroe Mortenson
• Gloria Gruber as Ida Bolender, Marilyn's caretaker as a child, also called "aunt"
• Angela Vint as Pat Newcomb, Marilyn's publicist
• Vickie Papavs as Mrs. Murray, Marilyn's housekeeper
• Morgan Kelly as Tom Kelly, photographer
• Michael Rash as Billy Wilder, Marilyn's director
• Norm Owen as Richard Sherman
• Neil Crone as Don Lyon
• Jeff Kassel as Dr. Ennis, Gladys' doctor
• Sarah Booth as Mrs. Kelly
• Carolina Bartczak as Phyllis
• Lindsay G Merrithew as the Beverly Hill Physician
• Ella Allan as young Marilyn Monroe (Norma Jeane)
• Mia Allan as young Marilyn Monroe (Norma Jeane)

Reception

Critical reception

The Secret Life of Marilyn Monroe garnered mixed reviews. Keith Ulrich of The Hollywood Reporter writes, "There's little that's surprising or inspired in Lifetime's two-part miniseries about iconic Hollywood celebrity Marilyn Monroe."[2] While, Brian Lowry of Variety writes, "What sets this latest rehash of the star's existence apart, marginally, is a knockout performance by Kelli Garner and, to a lesser degree, Susan Sarandon's turn as her mentally disturbed mother."[3] A positive review by Jordan Appugliesi of US Weekly states, "Surprise! It's Actually Good."[4] On Rotten Tomatoes the film has an approval of 55% based on 11 reviews with an average rating of 6/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "Offering few revelations, The Secret Life of Marilyn Monroe treads the same well-worn path as many other Monroe biopics, despite an admirable performance by Kelli Garner".[5] On Metacritic, the film has a score of 55 out of 100 based on 12 critics, indicating "mixed or average".[6]

Accolades

Association	Category	Recipient	Result	Ref
Canadian Cinema Editor's Awards	Best Editing in Television Movie or Miniseries	Ron Wisman Ron Wisman, Jr.	Nominated	[7]
Creative Arts Emmy Awards	Outstanding Cinematography for a Limited Series or Movie	Chris Manley	Nominated
	Outstanding Hairstyling for a Limited Series or a Movie	Cliona Furey Cathy Shibley Jacqueline Robertson Cull Vincent Sullivan	Nominated
	Outstanding Makeup for a Limited Series or a Movie (Non-Prosthetic)	Jordan Samuel Patricia Keighran Susan Reilly LeHane	Nominated
Directors Guild of America	Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Movies for Television and Miniseries	Laurie Collyer	Nominated
Directors Guild of Canada	Picture Editing – Television Movie/Miniseries	Ron Wisman Ron Wisman, Jr.	Won	[8]
	Production Design – Television Movie/Miniseries	Rocco Matteo	Nominated
	Sound Editing – Television Movie/Miniseries	Sue Conley Joe Mancuso David McCallum Steve Medeiros Krystin Hunter Jane Tattersall Claire Dobson	Nominated
Hollywood Makeup Artist and Hairstylist Guild Awards	Best Period and/or Character Makeup – Television Series or Motion Picture Made for Television	Jordan Samuel Patricia Keighran	Nominated	[9]
	Best Period and/or Character Hair Styling – Television Miniseries or Motion Picture Made for Television	Cliona Furey Cathy Shibley	Nominated
Online Film & Television Association Awards	Best Actress in a Motion Picture or Miniseries	Kelli Garner	Nominated	[10]
Prism Awards	Best Actress in a Motion Picture or Miniseries	Kelli Garner	Nominated
Screen Actors Guild Awards	Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Television Movie or Miniseries	Susan Sarandon	Nominated
Women's Image Network Awards	MFT Movie/Miniseries		Nominated	[11]
	Outstanding Film Directed by Woman	Laurie Collyer	Nominated

References

1. "The Secret Life of Marilyn Monroe" emmys.com July 18, 2015
2. Uhlich, Keith (May 29, 2015). "'The Secret Life of Marilyn Monroe': TV Review". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved June 25, 2015.
3. Lowry, Brian (May 28, 2015). "TV Review: 'The Secret Life of Marilyn Monroe'". Variety. Retrieved June 25, 2015.
4. Appugliesi, Jordan (May 31, 2015). "Secret Life of Marilyn Monroe Lifetime Movie Part 1 Recap: Surprise! It's Actually Good". Us Weekly. Retrieved June 25, 2015.
5. Secret Life of Marilyn Monroe, retrieved September 16, 2018
6. The Secret Life of Marilyn Monroe, retrieved September 16, 2018
7. "Canadian Cinema Editors Awards (2016)". IMDb. Retrieved September 16, 2018.
8. "Directors Guild of Canada (2016)". IMDb. Retrieved September 16, 2018.
9. "Hollywood Makeup Artist and Hair Stylist Guild Awards (2016)". IMDb. Retrieved September 16, 2018.
10. "19th Annual TV Awards (2014–15) - Online Film & Television Association". www.oftaawards.com. Retrieved September 16, 2018.
11. "Women's Image Network Awards (2015)". IMDb. Retrieved September 16, 2018.

External links

• The Secret Life of Marilyn Monroe on IMDb
• The Secret Life of Marilyn Monroe at TV Guide