The following contains references to sexual assault, abuse and abortion. Reader discretion is advised.

Netflix's 2022 biographical drama Blonde was among the most anticipated and controversial films of 2022. Telling the story of Marilyn Monroe through an unconventional blend of fact and fiction, the film repeatedly switches between fantasy and reality. It's notorious for receiving an NC-17 rating, a rarity in modern film.

Blonde is interspersed with scenes of a highly graphic nature, with numerous scenes being disturbing and difficult to watch. At the same time, some still question why Blonde is rated NC-17, with the harsh material supposedly no worse than films with an R-rating. Here's a look at exactly why Blonde is too hard for even an R.

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Netflix's Blonde Is Full of Harrowing, Traumatic Scenes

Even if some disagree with the NC-17 rating for Blonde, it more than deserves an R-rating, with its sometimes graphic scenes being incredibly hard to stomach given the film's basis in reality. Many of these are of a sexual nature, such as a sequence in which Norma Jeane is raped by a studio executive in order to land a movie role. This scene and one showcasing a threesome don't showcase much in way of actual nudity, with the latter also stylized via dream-like imagery. Easily the most gut-wrenching sequence, however, is one in which Marilyn is made to engage in oral sex upon John F. Kennedy, as the way it's shot makes it seem nonconsensual.

Other ways in which Marilyn's body is violated include the forced abortion sequences, which actually come off as even more terrifying than the rape scene. This is perhaps the biggest reason for Blonde's NC-17 rating, as the movie literally dives into Marilyn's uterus through her forcibly widened legs. Some have even mentioned that the scene in which Marilyn's unborn baby speaks to her could be controversial. This all adds up to a movie that's anything but family-friendly, and it's all because of the context.

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Blonde's NC-17 Rating Is Due to Context as Much as Content

Marilyn Monroe crying in Blonde

Simply having sexual scenes or nudity wouldn't be enough to garner the elusive NC-17 rating, as numerous films in theaters and on streaming services show sequences far worse than anything in Blonde in that regard. The difference is their context and how they are framed. For most movie sex scenes, the shots are given a titillating or even comical nature, with even "shock value" sex scenes being just that and failing to have any deep meaning. With Blonde, however, almost all the sexuality in the film has a negative connotation, be it from the context of rape or simply involving extramarital affairs that lead to heartbreak afterward. Thus, there's nothing pornographic about these parts of the film, which arguably makes them worse.

With nothing to stimulate viewers, so to speak, the sexuality in Blonde instead shocks them, though for more than just the sake of a gasp. It's meant to illustrate the tumultuous events of Marilyn Monroe's life, pointing out that, as beautiful and glamorous as her fantasy life may have looked, this facade didn't match reality.