The Misfits

The Misfits

Tells the story of the making of the legendary film "The Misfits" (1961), directed by John Huston and starring Marilyn Monroe, Clark Gable and Montgomery Clift. As part of the promotional strategy for the film, The Magnum photographic agency was given the exclusive right to take photographs during the shooting. Eight of its most famous photographers covered the production, both on and off the set. Two hundred of their pictures are reproduced here in rich duotone, providing both a documentary of the making of a film and an intimate portrait of three of the most famous film stars of all time. The photographs are accompanied by an essay recounting the tragic and triumphant story of the film and an interview with Arthur Miller, husband of Marilyn Monroe and writer of the movie.From BooklistThe last film made by Clark Gable and Marilyn Monroe, one of the last made by Montgomery Clift, and the only one scripted by playwright Miller, then at the peak of his career,The Misfits (1961) was a prestige picture, whose entourage included a team of stellar photographers from the photojournalist agency Magnum. The lensers' work furnishes the enthralling core of this book, but the contributions of Miller and Toubiana, editor of the French film journalCahiers du Cinema, aren't negligible. Interviewed by Toubiana, Miller says the film was intended as a vehicle for Monroe to establish her credentials as a dramatic actress, and he expresses disappointment that director John Huston allowed so few long shots, for Miller felt that showing the characters in the vacant western landscape of its setting would be a powerful visual metaphor of their social isolation. Toubiana's discussion of the production valuably augments Miller's perspective and critiques previous written accounts. Even without so many splendid photographs of such photogenic people, this would be a fascinating film book.Ray OlsonCopyright