the three faces of kim

last night i rewatched 'the goddess' starring kim stanley. where to begin.... here are some facts:

kim was considered the female brando. she was a queen of the ny stage and made only a handful of films. there is NO ONE like her.

i found a few early television plays on youtube which proved to me that she was mesmerizing from the start. her genius only deepened with time. like a little ball of mercury, she cannot be pinned down. i have tried to come up with adjectives but a little ball of mercury is the only satisfying image.

strangely, in 1958 when marilyn monroe was very much alive and making films, kim portrayed her in 'the goddess.' there is absolutely no mistaking this story is based on monroe. one of the beautiful things about the movie is that is brings one's heart closer to monroe's life. kim and marilyn shared the ability to project insecurity, need, and enthusiasm better than any others. these qualities in common allow us to really see marilyn in kim, even though they did not resemble one another physically. the actresses that do come to mind while watching kim are kim basinger and laura dern. so, all three combined and voila!

i cannot put into words just how much this actress moves me. her strength/fragility, her fury/genteelness are astonishing to me. 'the goddess' is available on dvd from indie sources.