★ 7 / 10
Well there's a transatlantic voyage, a missing tiara
CinemaSerf
Well there's a transatlantic voyage, a missing tiara, a private detective; a pair of sparkly dancers and a little courtroom drama - so something for just about…
Well there's a transatlantic voyage, a missing tiara, a private detective; a pair of sparkly dancers and a little courtroom drama - so something for just about everyone as we follow the antics of two American showgirls trying to make a living after the war. "Dorothy" (Jane Russell) and "Lorelei" (Marilyn Monroe) are working their passage as the latter woman takes a bit of a breather from her incredibly wealthy but just a little possessive fiancé "Gus" (Tommy Noonan). It's his millionaire father who is distinctly suspicious of his son's choice of bride so he's the one who hires the PI and so you just know there are going to misunderstandings galore on that front. Meantime, "Dorothy" has managed to attract the attentions of the American Olympic squad - a lot of fit, scantily clad young men who make her feel like a million dollars. Despite them being offered different temptations along the way, the two stick together like glue in the original depiction of "sisterhood"! To be honest, the story isn't the best - it's an hybrid of lots of familiar scenarios all stitched together rudimentarily with the purpose of delivering an amiable vehicle for two women who do know how to entertain. 'Diamonds Are a Girl's Best Friend" is the show-stopper from Jule Stein and Leo Robin amidst an otherwise rather unremarkable array of rather formulaic song-and-dance numbers, but these two do their own singing and synchronise perfectly as they dance their way through half a dozen numbers en route to a denouement that allows Norma Varden to get up onto her most snooty hind legs and for Charles Coburn to complete his few enlivening scenes as this thinnest of stories sails along effortlessly but, I have to say, forgettably. It is a classy looking film and oozes a charm that's well worth a gander.
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★ 7 / 10
Gentlemen Prefer Blondes 1953, sharp and very clued
John Chard
Gentlemen Prefer Blondes 1953, sharp and very clued into the times. Other than Ridley Scott's brilliant Thelma And Louise 1991, Gentlemen Prefer Blondes has to…
Gentlemen Prefer Blondes 1953, sharp and very clued into the times.
Other than Ridley Scott's brilliant Thelma And Louise 1991, Gentlemen Prefer Blondes has to rank as one of the finest films where the girls actually out buddy buddy the men!!
It would seem that a chief complaint with the film is that it has no similarity to Anita Loo's Broadway musical? And whilst I'm one for pounding on films for missing out crucial parts of source novels, I have no frame of reference as regards this films original source so therefore view with untainted eyes as it were.
Viewing it these days you have to admire the cheek of it all. I mean it really shouldn't work because on the face of it this is just a couple of showgirls taking a trip, but the blatant use of stereotypes for these two ladies is deftly funny. Monroe is absolutely perfect for the role of Lorelei, a woman purely out for the sparkle of diamonds and a man's bank balance, she is as much shallow as she is to die for gorgeous. Jane Russell is also sublime here, her Dorothy Shaw is witty and sophisticated and very protective towards her friend, yet she also needs to be loved and this shines out amongst the sarcasm and sharpness dripping off of her tongue.
The film works on more than one level, it's a sugar and sweet musical with glamour girls to feast my eyes upon, but also it works as a sharp piece of work when taking into account the era it was made. The 50s (my research and my parents led me to believe) were very much the time of family values being paramount, yet around the time of this pic's release, sex was becoming more of a topic to the people of the street. Playboy with Marilyn on the center was about to turn heads, and of course Kinsey and his report was just around the corner. So upon watching Gentlemen Prefer Blondes now I can't help thinking that Howard Hawks had his finger firmly on the pulse by throwing away the big show time of the source, and then making a film that saw the wind of change with people's attitudes.
Not a masterpiece by any stretch of the imagination, but we get some tidy numbers from the girls and some sharp dialogue coupled with hilarious visual comedy. A very smart and astute film that's knowing of the times that were a changing, and featuring a dynamic female duo to rank with the best that cinema has to offer. 7/10
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★ 8 / 10
Female buddy movie as musical comedy
marissas75
"Gentlemen Prefer Blondes" presents us with the showgirls and best friends Lorelei Lee (Marilyn Monroe) and Dorothy Shaw (Jane Russell). There isn't much of a…
"Gentlemen Prefer Blondes" presents us with the showgirls and best friends Lorelei Lee (Marilyn Monroe) and Dorothy Shaw (Jane Russell). There isn't much of a plotjust Lorelei and Dorothy taking a transatlantic voyage and running into trouble when Lorelei's love for diamonds gets her into a compromising situationbut that's enough to provide a framework for jokes and songs. Monroe is at her ditziest here, delivering all her lines with sincere, wide-eyed loopiness; Russell makes a nice contrast as the sardonic, practical Dorothy, so it's all the funnier when she imitates Monroe's cartoonish persona late in the movie.
The musical numbers are just an excuse for clever rhymes, sequined costumes, and shimmying choreography, and they succeed on all charges. Monroe and Russell duet on the jazzy "Two Little Girls from Little Rock" and the plaintive "When Love Goes Wrong" (a country/blues song sung at a Parisian café). The highlight, "Diamonds Are a Girl's Best Friend" is an over-the-top riot of Technicolor, diamonds, dancers, and Monroe's insinuating, breathy vocals, though the song is also fun when Russell kicks it up in a courtroom. Then there's the hilarious "Anybody Here For Love?" which Russell performs in front of a chorus of male bodybuilders in flesh-colored briefs.
What I love most about "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes" is that it's a female buddy movie. Of course, in one sense, it plays into sexist stereotypes--Lorelei is a gold-digging airhead and Dorothy flirts shamelessly with any handsome guy. But in another sense, it's pretty rare for Hollywood to depict two beautiful women as friends and equals, not rivals. Although gentlemen may prefer blondes, Dorothy is never jealous of Lorelei, and despite her cynical wisecracks, she deeply cares for her. The girls will always put their friendship before romance, and help each other out of a jam. Monroe and Russell sparkle together, but lack chemistry with their C-list male costars; in the end, you feel like these guys don't deserve two such vibrant women. Kind of ironic, then, that the movie's hit song claims "diamonds are a girl's best friend," when the rest of the movie celebrates the best-friendship between Lorelei and Dorothy.
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