This year, we’ve already seen Elvis Presley be given the big screen biopic treatment in Baz Luhrmann's Elvis. Now it’s the turn of Marilyn Monroe in Blonde. But this is an unconventional look at the 1950s Hollywood bombshell whose life — like Presley's — ended in tragedy.
The Netflix-backed film has been adapted from the celebrated book by Joyce Carol Oates, published in 2000, which is a reimagined version of the actress and singer's life.
Playing her is Ana de Armas, the Cuban actress known for Blade Runner 2049 and James Bond movie No Time to Die. She bares her soul as Monroe, the emotionally vulnerable starlet, born born Norma Jeane Baker, who was preyed upon by older, morally bankrupt men.
Blonde
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With its premiere at the Venice International Film Festival on Thursday, it's been a project Australian director Andrew Dominik (The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford) has been trying to make for close to 15 years, but it’ll surely infuriate some looking for a more straightforward take. When the star refers to “a happy ending of a long, confused movie”, she could easily be talking about Dominik’s work.
The very opening scene, with her unhinged mother Gladys (Julianne Nicholson) driving her recklessly amid Californian wildfires to visit the father she never knew, is typical of the director’s approach, a blazing hellish landscape that is, presumably, to represent the world as Norma Jeane sees it. As she whirls through Hollywood, she dreams of playing in Chekhov, not the comic roles that she becomes famous for. Her stage persona is a construct, nothing more. “I’m a slave to this Marilyn Monroe,” she laments, imprisoned by a studio contract system that’ll pay her peanuts for Gentleman Prefer Blondes.
Dominik switches between monochrome and colour, almost at will, further enhancing this idea of the volatile vortex that Monroe is sucked into. Her husbands two and three, ex-baseball player Joe DiMaggio and Death of a Salesman scribe Arthur Miller, are known as "The Ex-Athlete" and "The Playwright". Bobby Cannavale and Adrien Brody, respectively, play these men in Monroe's life, although the impressionistic approach to scenes and dialogue exchanges doesn’t leave them with much room to evolve as characters.
There are breathless moments in Blonde. At the premiere of Billy Wilder’s Some Like It Hot, she arrives to crowds of baying men, mouths open, the scene slowed down, before the film’s classic “nobody’s perfect” pay-off line is delivered on screen to sped-up applause. But clocking in at two-and-three-quarter hours, there’s a lot of fat here too. Like the moment a worse-for-wear Monroe receives a parcel, then ferrets around her apartment for five minutes looking for her handbag to tip the delivery man.
Above all, this is a very primal take on her tragic existence. Her lack of a father figure, her failed desire to have children, and her increasing reliance on alcohol and prescription pills are all accounted for here. It’s frequently like stepping into someone’s nightmare. Or, as she puts it, “Where does dreaming end and madness begin?”
It’s poetic at times, but also portentous; a film that’s often tough to get a grasp on as images blur across the screen. Does it say much new about Monroe? Not really, but it has an artistic vision and it pursues it relentlessly.
As an attempt to live inside the troubled siren, Dominik deserves credit, but it’s a slog through 1950s Hollywood that will clearly leave some cold.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The specs
Price, base / as tested Dh12 million
Engine 8.0-litre quad-turbo, W16
Gearbox seven-speed dual clutch auto
Power 1479 @ 6,700rpm
Torque 1600Nm @ 2,000rpm 0-100kph: 2.6 seconds 0-200kph: 6.1 seconds
Top speed 420 kph (governed)
Fuel economy, combined 35.2L / 100km (est)
UAE squad
Esha Oza (captain), Al Maseera Jahangir, Emily Thomas, Heena Hotchandani, Indhuja Nandakumar, Katie Thompson, Lavanya Keny, Mehak Thakur, Michelle Botha, Rinitha Rajith, Samaira Dharnidharka, Siya Gokhale, Sashikala Silva, Suraksha Kotte, Theertha Satish (wicketkeeper) Udeni Kuruppuarachchige, Vaishnave Mahesh.
UAE tour of Zimbabwe
All matches in Bulawayo
Friday, Sept 26 – First ODI
Sunday, Sept 28 – Second ODI
Tuesday, Sept 30 – Third ODI
Thursday, Oct 2 – Fourth ODI
Sunday, Oct 5 – First T20I
Monday, Oct 6 – Second T20I
Muslim Council of Elders condemns terrorism on religious sites
The Muslim Council of Elders has strongly condemned the criminal attacks on religious sites in Britain.
It firmly rejected “acts of terrorism, which constitute a flagrant violation of the sanctity of houses of worship”.
“Attacking places of worship is a form of terrorism and extremism that threatens peace and stability within societies,” it said.
The council also warned against the rise of hate speech, racism, extremism and Islamophobia. It urged the international community to join efforts to promote tolerance and peaceful coexistence.
The biog
Name: Timothy Husband
Nationality: New Zealand
Education: Degree in zoology at The University of Sydney
Favourite book: Lemurs of Madagascar by Russell A Mittermeier
Favourite music: Billy Joel
Weekends and holidays: Talking about animals or visiting his farm in Australia
Ultra processed foods
- Carbonated drinks, sweet or savoury packaged snacks, confectionery, mass-produced packaged breads and buns
- margarines and spreads; cookies, biscuits, pastries, cakes, and cake mixes, breakfast cereals, cereal and energy bars;
- energy drinks, milk drinks, fruit yoghurts and fruit drinks, cocoa drinks, meat and chicken extracts and instant sauces
- infant formulas and follow-on milks, health and slimming products such as powdered or fortified meal and dish substitutes,
- many ready-to-heat products including pre-prepared pies and pasta and pizza dishes, poultry and fish nuggets and sticks, sausages, burgers, hot dogs, and other reconstituted meat products, powdered and packaged instant soups, noodles and desserts.
Infiniti QX80 specs
Engine: twin-turbocharged 3.5-liter V6
Power: 450hp
Torque: 700Nm
Price: From Dh450,000, Autograph model from Dh510,000
Available: Now
BMW M5 specs
Engine: 4.4-litre twin-turbo V-8 petrol enging with additional electric motor
Power: 727hp
Torque: 1,000Nm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 10.6L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh650,000
New schools in Dubai
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Profile
Company name: Jaib
Started: January 2018
Co-founders: Fouad Jeryes and Sinan Taifour
Based: Jordan
Sector: FinTech
Total transactions: over $800,000 since January, 2018
Investors in Jaib's mother company Alpha Apps: Aramex and 500 Startups
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Reading List
Practitioners of mindful eating recommend the following books to get you started:
Savor: Mindful Eating, Mindful Life by Thich Nhat Hanh and Dr Lilian Cheung
How to Eat by Thich Nhat Hanh
The Mindful Diet by Dr Ruth Wolever
Mindful Eating by Dr Jan Bays
How to Raise a Mindful Eaterby Maryann Jacobsen
Temple numbers
Expected completion: 2022
Height: 24 meters
Ground floor banquet hall: 370 square metres to accommodate about 750 people
Ground floor multipurpose hall: 92 square metres for up to 200 people
First floor main Prayer Hall: 465 square metres to hold 1,500 people at a time
First floor terrace areas: 2,30 square metres
Temple will be spread over 6,900 square metres
Structure includes two basements, ground and first floor
The biog
First Job: Abu Dhabi Department of Petroleum in 1974
Current role: Chairperson of Al Maskari Holding since 2008
Career high: Regularly cited on Forbes list of 100 most powerful Arab Businesswomen
Achievement: Helped establish Al Maskari Medical Centre in 1969 in Abu Dhabi’s Western Region
Future plan: Will now concentrate on her charitable work
The biog
Job: Fitness entrepreneur, body-builder and trainer
Favourite superhero: Batman
Favourite quote: We must become the change we want to see, by Mahatma Gandhi.
Favourite car: Lamborghini
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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The rules on fostering in the UAE
A foster couple or family must:
- be Muslim, Emirati and be residing in the UAE
- not be younger than 25 years old
- not have been convicted of offences or crimes involving moral turpitude
- be free of infectious diseases or psychological and mental disorders
- have the ability to support its members and the foster child financially
- undertake to treat and raise the child in a proper manner and take care of his or her health and well-being
- A single, divorced or widowed Muslim Emirati female, residing in the UAE may apply to foster a child if she is at least 30 years old and able to support the child financially
Dirham Stretcher tips for having a baby in the UAE
Selma Abdelhamid, the group's moderator, offers her guide to guide the cost of having a young family:
• Buy second hand stuff
They grow so fast. Don't get a second hand car seat though, unless you 100 per cent know it's not expired and hasn't been in an accident.
• Get a health card and vaccinate your child for free at government health centres
Ms Ma says she discovered this after spending thousands on vaccinations at private clinics.
• Join mum and baby coffee mornings provided by clinics, babysitting companies or nurseries.
Before joining baby classes ask for a free trial session. This way you will know if it's for you or not. You'll be surprised how great some classes are and how bad others are.
• Once baby is ready for solids, cook at home
Take the food with you in reusable pouches or jars. You'll save a fortune and you'll know exactly what you're feeding your child.
Moon Music
Artist: Coldplay
Label: Parlophone/Atlantic
Number of tracks: 10
Rating: 3/5
SQUAD
Ali Khaseif, Fahad Al Dhanhani, Adel Al Hosani, Mohammed Al Shamsi, Bandar Al Ahbabi, Mohammed Barghash, Salem Rashid, Khalifa Al Hammadi, Shaheen Abdulrahman, Hassan Al Mahrami, Walid Abbas, Mahmoud Khamis, Yousef Jaber, Saeed Ahmed, Majed Sorour, Majed Hassan, Ali Salmeen, Abdullah Ramadan, Khalil Al Hammadi, Fabio De Lima, Khalfan Mubarak, Tahnoun Al Zaabi, Ali Saleh, Caio Canedo, Muhammed Jumah, Ali Mabkhout, Sebastian Tagliabue, Zayed Al Ameri
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Ms Yang's top tips for parents new to the UAE
- Join parent networks
- Look beyond school fees
- Keep an open mind
EA Sports FC 26
Publisher: EA Sports
Consoles: PC, PlayStation 4/5, Xbox Series X/S
Rating: 3/5
if you go
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Blonde
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