Misfits(1961)

This movie is centered around the coming together of four misfits in the Nevada desert in 1960. Roslyn(Marilyn Monroe) is recently divorced and meets Gay(Clark Gable) an old cowboy, Guido(Eli Wallach) a pilot, and Perce(Montgomery Clift) a rodeo rider. Roslyn and Gay fall in love which makes Guido jealous since he met her first. Roslyn cares for Perce after a rodeo accident and he is taken by her gentle nature and kindness. They all show their true nature when on a trip to wrangle mustangs in the desert.

It’s hard to see this film and not think that Roslyn isn’t made up of pieces of Marilyn herself. After all, Arthur Miller, Marilyn’s husband at the time, wrote the screenplay. There is this childlike innocence, trustfulness and vulnerability about Roslyn that has been mentioned by some to be what Marilyn was like in real life.

 While this movie was not a huge success when it debuted in 1961, today it has become a must see movie for classic film fans. It stars Marilyn Monroe and Clark Gable in what would be the last completed movie for both legendary actors. Over the years more has been revealed regarding the production of Misfits which has made the movie even more significant.

 During production, Marilyn Monroe and Arthur Miller’s marriage was in trouble and was nearing it’s end. On top of that Marilyn was abusing prescription drugs and alcohol which would cause her to be late to the set or miss filming entirely. Often she would forget her lines. In 1962, Marilyn died of an apparent drug overdose.

Montgomery Clift was also abusing alcohol and prescription drugs to cope with pain caused by injuries he received in a car crash in 1956; during which he was filming Raintree County with Elizabeth Taylor. He sustained injuries to his face and had reconstructive surgery but the scars on his face remained. It is said that on the day that Clift died Misfits was on TV and when asked if he wanted to watch it he said, “Absolutely Not!”

 Clark Gable was nearing sixty when he filmed Misfits and did his own stunts. It has become known as one of Clark Gable’s best performances. Working with Marilyn was difficult for Gable. Allegedly, Gable said the following about Marilyn, "Christ, I'm glad this picture's finished. She damn near gave me a heart attack." A few days after filming concluded for Misfits he had a heart attack and died ten days later.

If you are a movie fan you’ll want to watch this movie, not only for the significance it played in the personal lives of the actors but because of Miller’s screenplay, Clark Gable’s great performance, and a tiny look at the real Marilyn through the character of Roslyn.