John Newton

Netflix describes “Blonde” as “daring, unapologetic, and feminist”. Well, it’s certainly not feminist in the classical definition of the word, and it absolutely should be apologetic. This hatchet job is another in the modern trend of “feminist” films: the woman is only ever portrayed as a victim of men, has no autonomy in her own life and destiny, and even the men who at first seem to be different eventually reveal themselves as toxic. Was her era overly misogynistic? Without a doubt. Was every man in that generation toxic and only used women as meat? How dare they even suggest such a thing. A truly feminist film would show the protagonist stand up against the evil programming of her culture, do the shadow work to overcome her insecurities and past trauma (accepting ownership and responsibility for her own mistakes, even if influenced by others), and only enter into a romantic relationship with a man or woman who was worthy of her: and if none could be found, remain happily single. I understand this is a biopic, and so the storyline is limited, but the writers decided to portray every event through one lens and one lens only: men are evil pigs, and Marilyn was a helpless victim. Bring back feminism, for the love of God… equality, strength, balance, Yin and Yang in equilibrium producing beautiful harmony. Anti-masculinity is a cheap knockoff that produces NOTHING of value.