Funny, cheerful, tongue-in-cheek and pretty racy for the time...Gentlemen Prefer Blondes was a nice way to spend an hour and a half. I was thrilled to spend a little time watching Marilyn do her stuff. For being the 1940's-era musical movie lover that I am, I have seen precious few of Marilyn Monroe's actual screen work. This movie delivered her sensuality, her "dumb-blonde" character persona and her ability to take over every scene in a movie no matter who the co-star might be (in this case, it was Jane Russell) in spades.
The movie centers around two young stars of the stage - Marilyn and Jane as Loreli and Dorothy, respectively - and a test of love to be proven on a European cruise. Marilyn's character, Loreli, is expected to be on her best behavior when her wealthy husband-to-be waves Bon Voyage to her and to Dorothy (played by Jane Russell) as they sail to Paris. At first it looks as though Loreli will be an angelic innocent - but she soon discovers "Piggy" the diamond mine owner - and DIAMONDS speak louder than ANYTHING to Loreli. She warms up to Piggy and a private detective placed on board the ship by Loreli's fiance's father (who suspects her of being a gold digger) gets some evidence of the "warming". Dorothy ends up in love with the detective - even after she discovers what he's up to. Loreli and Dorothy work their magic trying to obtain the evidence of Loreli's (still very innocent) cuddling up to Piggy and chuckles ensue. By the time they all get to Paris, it seems like everyone has a little explaining to do.
Of course it all ends happily - Loreli ends up getting what she wants and Dorothy ends up getting what SHE wants. A shining moment for me was seeing "Diamonds are a Girl's Best Friend" in it's entirety, performed on stage in Paris. I always wanted to see what led up to that iconic moment in musical cinema history. Also, I have to say I loved little George Winslow who played Henry Spofford III and stole scenes with his hysterical "little-kid-talks-like-a-40-year-old-playboy" lines. Listen close when you watch though, not every one of his lines is delivered crystal-clear, and you really miss some belly laughs if you miss even a little of the dialogue when he's talking.
Not bad for movie number two. I'm having a great time with this - I heartily recommend this one!
The IMDB link
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