Arthur Miller, 89, apparently felt he didn't get slammed enough for After the Fall. In this new play (which had its world premiere at Chicago's Goodman Theater), he takes another look at his failed marriage to Marilyn Monroe, this time through the lens of The Misfits, her last movie, for which Miller wrote the screenplay. Miller engages in a little score-settling (in his portrayal of the Strasbergs, Marilyn's acting coaches), but mostly his backstage account of a Hollywood film in crisis is convincing and even-handed, and his portrayal of the last stages of his marriage brutally candid.
Come fly with us, and Leo, through the best (and worst) of 2004. Tops in the cinema this year include Scorsese's Howard Hughes biopic The Aviator. Elsewhere, Deadwood was good TV, and a Strange tale fascinated readers.