Product Details

• Actors: Trudi Jo Marie Keck, James Bacon, Roy Ward Baker, Jack Benny, Jeanne Carmen
• Directors: Ted Newsom
• Writers: Ted Newsom
• Producers: Dante J. Pugliese
• Format: NTSC
• Studio: Brentwood Home Video
• Run Time: 97 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• ASIN: 6304245939
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #600,908 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

"A sex symbol becomes a thing," says Marilyn Monroe, her voice being approximated by Trudi Jo Marie Keck, who also doubles as the editor of We Remember Marilyn, a historical appreciation of the life of the much-vaunted sex goddess. "I always thought symbols were things you clashed together," she continues to muse. "But if I'm going to be a symbol of anything, I'd rather it be sex than some other things there are symbols for. I know how they'll remember me: 'Here lies Marilyn Monroe, 34-24-36.' But, anyway, they'll remember me." And remember her they do, in this concoction written and directed by Ted Newsom (Ed Wood--Look Back in Angora). Newsom doesn't bother to cite the source for the above words ascribed to Ms. Monroe so it's hard to say where they came from, but they pointedly set the tone for any discussion of sex-symbol iconography. The quote is by turns sad and funny--funny because of the lack of self-awareness evinced in the words. And how better to sum up a career that moved between celebrity and the highest seats of power on a vehicle of sex, and ended early and abruptly. Film clips, photos (where Marilyn the icon truly shone), and a rich array of stock footage form the backdrop for the proceedings. At one point, the voice of director John Huston enriches the soundtrack. --Jim Gay

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars under average film on a bad quality dvd, June 10, 2000

By 

[e-mail] (the netherlands) - See all my reviews

This review is from: We Remember Marilyn (DVD)

To be clear, I'm talking about the EU version of the dvd but I hear it's just the same as the US, being region free. The film is nice to watch once, a vhs tape will perfectly do. It doesn't add anything new to Marilyn's story, it doesn't present events in a revealing perspective. The footage is ordinary and often very short. It's nice to have/see it as a recap of this woman's life. The Kennedy story is mentioned in about 10 seconds plus the Happy B'day Mr President footage (which is about 20 secs.). The dvd transfer is poor, the colour episodes are phoney but the b/w will do. There's absolutely no extra and if someone still thinks "scene access" is extra, the music cd business should also call the cd-s "enhanced" because they have a 4 page booklet or you can choose the songs you want to listen to. Pleeease!

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Don't Judge a DVD By Its Cover, October 19, 2005

By 

Samantha Glasser "Maliejandra" (USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: We Remember Marilyn (DVD)

One might look at the cover of this DVD and think that it is a cheap look at the legend Marilyn Monroe. The photograph is the famous "Golden Dreams" Playboy nude taken by Tom Kelley, but a black bathing suit has been badly drawn on top. This doctored photo might mislead; We Remember Marilyn is one of the most thorough documentaries available on Monroe.

Monroe's mother's life is described, as well as Monroe's childhood, modeling, romantic relationships, plastic surgery, three marriages, life in films, and personality including her shrewd comments directed at Joan Crawford's criticisms.

This documentary is narrated by John Christopher Hyke and Monroe's words are spoken by the slightly annoyingly childlike voice of Trudi Jo Marie Keck. However, the use of Marilyn's interviews and book My Story, although possibly altered to protect a studio manufactured image, are highly effective and personal. There are also interviews with Jim Dougherty (Monroe's first husband), Jeanne Carmen (Monroe's model friend), and Robert Cornthwaite (fellow actor).

This documentary is filled with archive footage including that from her films and many rare extras. One gets to see Monroe when she was a model, in early commercials, at premieres, award show film, entertaining the troops, in interviews when she was famous, in film taken on the sets of her films, in a video from her announcement of her divorce from Joe DiMaggio, in a video from a hospital visit, and in footage from the president's birthday party.

Overall, this two hour documentary is exceptionally well done and a must have for Marilyn Monroe fans.

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Better than I thought, January 1, 2002

By A Customer

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: We Remember Marilyn (DVD)

I have the DVD and have never seen the video, so I can't compare the two. However, I was impressed with this Marilyn documentary because it provided many details of MM's life and career, including her brief career at Columbia. Marilyn's words (spoken by someone else) were used appropriately throughout so that you got a sense of Marilyn's pain and struggles. The clips of Marilyn's movies were usually the trailers, but that was fine. Film clips were also presented of her news conferences, tv appearance on Ed Murrow's Person to Person show, and Korea appearance--some clips that I had never seen before. Most importantly, Marilyn is presented with sympathy and compassion; still, she was portrayed realistically, not as a Goddess. My only complaint: I wasn't satisfied with the abrupt ending of the documentary; it appeared as if the creators did not want to speculate on MM's mysterious death. Maybe they were right. Speculation on MM's death could provide another documentary! I recommend purchasing this documentary if you are a MM fan. I have seen it many, many times and am still enthralled.