--- title: "Blonde: the reviews" canonical: "https://film.one/film/blonde/reviews" title_page: "https://film.one/film/blonde" critics_score: 50 critics_reviews: 32 licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # Blonde (2022): what the critics said Critics' score 50 from 32 reviews: 10 positive, 8 mixed, 14 negative. The reviews of Blonde lean negative, but praise for Ana de Armas is widespread, including among critics who reject the film around her. Her performance is repeatedly described as committed, vulnerable and humane, giving Marilyn Monroe an emotional presence that even hostile reviews acknowledge. Praise also clusters around Dominik’s visual invention and the meticulous recreation of familiar Monroe images, though critics disagree about what those images reveal. The central divide concerns the film’s treatment of suffering. Supporters find compassion and psychological force in its brutality; detractors see repetitive exploitation that leaves little space for Monroe’s intelligence, humour or work. The spread is wide: Total Film finds uncomfortable but engaging cinema, while objecting to exploitative imagery; The New Yorker condemns the fixation on victimhood, with de Armas providing its chief redeeming quality. Even favourable reviews concede excess, and several mixed assessments find the visual flourishes more persuasive than the portrait. ## Total Film — Jane Crowther Rating 5/5. 8 September 2022. Crowther calls the film uncomfortable but engaging, unbridled cinema that will divide opinion. She praises Ana de Armas’s soulful portrayal, while criticizing the exploitative imagery in the final third. [Read the review](https://www.gamesradar.com/blonde-review-netflix/) ## Little White Lies — Leila Latif Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). Festival review. Latif finds the film exhilarating and highly accomplished, though its explicit and disturbing choices may alienate viewers. She especially praises Dominik’s anarchic collage of Monroe’s famous images for conveying her unknowability. [Read the review](https://lwlies.com/festivals/blonde-venice-film-festival-review) ## Radio Times — Emma Simmonds Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 20 September 2022. The review finds the film compassionate and eye-opening, though its outlandish style sometimes overwhelms its emotional impact. It singles out the film’s compassionate approach as a strength. [Read the review](https://www.radiotimes.com/movies/blonde-review-netflix/) ## The AV Club — Todd Gilchrist Rating B-. 16 September 2022. The review finds the film uneven and ultimately unsuccessful at bringing Monroe fully into focus, despite much to admire. It especially praises Ana de Armas’s transformative performance and the inventive recreation of Monroe’s iconic screen images. [Read the review](https://www.avclub.com/blonde-review-marilyn-monroe-ana-de-armas-1849540275) ## Variety — Owen Gleiberman Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 8 September 2022. Gleiberman finds the film flawed but haunting, with a powerful understanding of Monroe’s tragic inner life. He especially praises Ana de Armas’s shimmering, candid performance, while faulting some choices, including an over-the-top episode involving two playboys. [Read the review](https://variety.com/2022/film/reviews/blonde-review-ana-de-armas-andrew-dominik-adrien-brody-marilyn-monroe-1235362257/) ## Vulture — Bilge Ebiri Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 8 September 2022. Ebiri finds the film beautiful, mesmerizing, and deeply moving, though deliberately alienating and brutal. He praises its visual and sonic imagination and Ana de Armas’s committed performance. [Read the review](https://www.vulture.com/article/movie-review-netflixs-blonde-starring-ana-de-armas.html) ## Screen Daily — Fionnuala Halligan Fi1m's normalised score 64/100 (inferred from the text). 8 September 2022. Festival review. The standfirst describes the film as a voyeuristic portrait of Marilyn Monroe. The accessible text does not reveal the critic’s fuller verdict or what the review singles out for praise or complaint. [Read the review](https://www.screendaily.com/reviews/blonde-venice-review/5174252.article) ## IndieWire — Sophie Monks Kaufman Rating C+. 8 September 2022. Festival review. The critic finds the film a monotonous, miserabilist portrait that reduces Marilyn Monroe to a victim. She praises Ana de Armas’s committed performance and Chayse Irvin’s cinematography, while faulting the film’s lack of nuance. [Read the review](https://www.indiewire.com/criticism/movies/blonde-review-marilyn-monroe-ana-de-armas-1234759905/) ## The Guardian — Leslie Felperin Fi1m's normalised score 50/100 (inferred from the text). 8 September 2022. Festival review. Felperin finds the film ravishing and moving but also intensely irritating and excessive. She praises Ana de Armas’s persuasive performance, while criticizing how little agency the story gives Monroe. [Read the review](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2022/sep/08/blonde-review-some-like-it-rotten-monroe-biopic-is-moving-explicit-and-intensely-irritating) ## Sight and Sound — BFI Fi1m's normalised score 45/100 (inferred from the text). 30 September 2022. The critic finds the film boldly confrontational but troubling in its focus on Marilyn’s fragility and victimhood. They praise Ana de Armas’s uncanny, moving performance and the meticulous recreation of iconic images. [Read the review](https://www.bfi.org.uk/sight-and-sound/reviews/blonde-shock-snapshots-stars-martyrdom-altar-showbiz-patriarchy) ## Evening Standard — Jo-Ann Titmarsh Rating 2/5. 8 September 2022. Titmarsh finds the film frustrating and disempowering, despite some inventive filmmaking. She praises the cast, especially Ana de Armas’s presence, but says the role gives her too little room to show Monroe’s intelligence and humour. [Read the review](https://www.standard.co.uk/culture/film/blonde-movie-review-ana-de-armas-marilyn-monroe-powerless-b1024146.html) ## The Hollywood Reporter — David Rooney Fi1m's normalised score 40/100 (inferred from the text). 8 September 2022. Festival review. Rooney calls the film a must-see despite finding its excesses cruel and overwhelmingly unpleasant. He praises Ana de Armas’s raw performance, while criticizing the film’s lurid treatment of Monroe’s suffering. [Read the review](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-reviews/blonde-ana-de-armas-andrew-dominik-marilyn-monroe-netflix-venice-1235214391/) ## Time Out — Phil de Semlyen Rating 2/5. 7 September 2022. The review finds the biopic disappointing, calling it unsubtle and myth-reinforcing. It singles out Ana de Armas’s performance as Marilyn Monroe for praise. [Read the review](https://www.timeout.com/movies/blonde-review-2022) ## Slant Magazine — Jake Cole Rating 1.5/4. 15 September 2022. Cole argues that the film’s repeated depictions of Monroe’s abuse reduce her to a victim and do a disservice to her artistic ambitions. He praises its ravishing visual style and cinematography, while criticizing its brutality and shallow treatment of Monroe’s work. [Read the review](https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/blonde-review-ana-de-armas-andrew-dominik/) ## Empire — Catherine Bray Fi1m's normalised score 35/100 (inferred from the text). 8 September 2022. Bray finds the film elusive and overly focused on Marilyn Monroe’s suffering, with little sense of her personal evolution. She praises its striking visual reconstructions and surreal imagery, while noting that Ana de Armas’s performance feels constrained. [Read the review](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/blonde-2/) ## Film Comment — Jessica Kiang Fi1m's normalised score 25/100 (inferred from the text). The critic finds the film visually driven but ultimately lacking insight. The headline singles out its failure to offer insight into Marilyn Monroe. [Read the review](https://www.filmcomment.com/in-the-dark-andrew-dominik-blonde-review-marilyn-monroe/) ## The New York Times — Manohla Dargis Fi1m's normalised score 25/100 (inferred from the text). 28 September 2022. The review finds the film a troubling, exploitative take on Marilyn Monroe. It singles out Ana de Armas’s performance amid its criticism of the film’s treatment of Monroe. [Read the review](https://www.nytimes.com/2022/09/28/movies/blonde-review-marilyn-monroe.html) ## Los Angeles Times — Justin Chang Fi1m's normalised score 20/100 (inferred from the text). 26 September 2022. Chang finds the film punishing, incurious and overly focused on Monroe’s suffering, leaving little room for her talent or agency. He praises Ana de Armas’ intensely felt performance, which he says is lost in the film’s sprawl. [Read the review](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/movies/story/2022-09-26/blonde-review-netflix-marilyn-monroe-ana-de-armas) ## The i Paper — Christina Newland Fi1m's normalised score 15/100 (inferred from the text). 8 September 2022. Newland finds the film empty and reductive, reducing Monroe to a relentlessly weeping victim. She praises Ana de Armas’s performance and Dominik’s visual style, but says neither can overcome the character’s conception. [Read the review](https://inews.co.uk/culture/film/blonde-review-film-ana-de-armas-marilyn-monroe-weepy-ridiculous-victim-1839217) ## The New Yorker — Richard Brody Fi1m's normalised score 10/100 (inferred from the text). 20 September 2022. Brody pans the film as vulgar and sadistically focused on Monroe’s victimization. He praises Ana de Armas’s energetic, nuanced performance as the one element that lends it dignity. [Read the review](https://www.newyorker.com/culture/the-front-row/blonde-is-the-passion-of-the-christ-for-marilyn-monroe) ## Collider — Brian Formo Rating 8/10. 15 September 2022. Formo finds the film alienating, exploitative, and empathetic, ultimately an effective and disarming experience. He especially praises Dominik’s evocative visual style and de Armas’s portrayal of Norma Jeane’s split identity. [Read the review](https://collider.com/blonde-review-marilyn-monroe-ana-de-armas/) ## HeyUGuys Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). The critic praises the film as a harrowing, visually inventive interpretation rather than a definitive biography. They single out Dominik’s gothic visual artistry and Ana de Armas’s performance, while acknowledging the film’s upsetting impact. [Read the review](https://www.heyuguys.com/blonde-review/) ## NME — Alex Flood Rating 4/5. 28 September 2022. The review finds the film an audacious, unsettling psychological horror, despite its shortcomings as a portrait of Monroe. It singles out Ana de Armas’s raw, humane performance as the element that cuts through the film’s exploitation. [Read the review](https://www.nme.com/reviews/film-reviews/blonde-review-marilyn-monroe-netflix-ana-de-armas-3318809) ## Deadline — Damon Wise Fi1m's normalised score 75/100 (inferred from the text). 8 September 2022. Festival review. Wise finds the film fascinating and praises its bold, unconventional reimagining of Monroe’s life. He singles out Ana de Armas’s emotionally complex performance as the film’s essential strength. [Read the review](https://deadline.com/2022/09/blonde-review-ana-de-armas-marilyn-monroe-movie-andrew-dominik-netflix-1235111307/) ## Paste — Jesse Hassenger Rating 7.8. 16 September 2022. Hassenger calls the film a daring, empathetic deconstruction that is also a miserabilist wallow in exploitation. He praises Ana de Armas’s performance and the film’s vivid visual ideas, while noting its punishing monotony and uncomfortable excesses. [Read the review](https://www.pastemagazine.com/movies/marilyn-monroe/blonde-review) ## /Film — Lex Briscuso Rating 5.5/10. 8 September 2022. Festival review. The critic finds the film ambitious but disjointed, with its ideas and visual flourishes failing to cohere. Ana de Armas’s powerful performance and striking visual moments are singled out as strengths. [Read the review](https://www.slashfilm.com/999050/blonde-review-ana-de-armas-powerhouse-performance-tries-hard-to-save-an-ambitious-mess-venice/) ## Den of Geek — David Crow Rating 2.5/5. 28 September 2022. The critic finds the film cold and exploitative, despite its considerable craft. Ana de Armas’s vulnerable performance is singled out for praise, but the film’s fixation on Monroe as victim leaves that performance constrained. [Read the review](https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/blonde-review-ana-de-armas-marilyn-monroe-deserve-better/) ## Eye for Film — Nikola Jovic Fi1m's normalised score 50/100 (inferred from the text). 19 February 2023. Jovic finds the film bleak and over-aestheticised, yet ultimately the exact movie that needed to be made. He singles out its lush, carefully recreated imagery as both visually striking and part of its troubling reduction of Monroe to an image. [Read the review](https://www.eyeforfilm.co.uk/review/blonde-2022-film-review-by-nikola-jovic) ## Consequence — Clint Worthington Fi1m's normalised score 35/100 (inferred from the text). 20 September 2022. Worthington finds the film visually astonishing but ultimately troubling in how it depicts Monroe. He praises the cinematography and striking imagery, while faulting the film for turning Monroe into an aesthetic object. [Read the review](https://consequence.net/2022/09/blonde-review-netflix-marilyn-monroe/) ## The Wrap Fi1m's normalised score 35/100 (inferred from the text). 8 September 2022. Festival review. The critic finds Blonde formally accomplished but ultimately self-serving, arguing that it fails to restore Monroe’s agency. They praise Dominik’s precise visual control, especially the surreal nightmare logic of the closing act. [Read the review](https://www.thewrap.com/blonde-netflix-review-ana-de-armas-marilyn-monroe/) ## Digital Spy Fi1m's normalised score 20/100 (inferred from the text). 28 September 2022. The review condemns the film as a cruel, dehumanizing portrayal of Monroe. It praises Ana de Armas’s effort to bring humanity to the role, though the film gives her little room beyond suffering. [Read the review](https://www.digitalspy.com/movies/a41401688/blonde-review-netflix/) ## The Ringer — Adam Nayman Fi1m's normalised score 15/100 (inferred from the text). 28 September 2022. Nayman finds the film technically gifted but ultimately cruel, self-congratulatory, and emotionally hollow. He singles out Ana de Armas’s performance as its humane emotional center. [Read the review](https://www.theringer.com/2022/09/28/movies/blonde-movie-review-marilyn-monroe-biopic) --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Our review: https://film.one/film/blonde.md