Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953)

Lorelei Lee is the type of girl that can spot a diamond ring in a man's pocket while performing on stage underneath the bright lights.  Dorothy Shaw, her best friend and fellow showgirl, is only looking for a good time and could care less if her future husband is rich (just as long as he's good looking).  They are the two central characters at the center of Howard Hawks' amiable, if shallow, musical Gentlemen Prefer Blondes.  Marilyn Monroe and Jane Russell star as Lorelei Lee and Dorothy Shaw in the 1953 film, their costars include Charles Coburn, Elliott Reid, and Tommy Noonan.

The film begins with Lorelei and Dorothy performing a musical number on-stage to the delight of a crowd that includes Gus Esmond (Tommy Noonan), Lorelei's wealthy husband-to-be.  Lorelei's reason for loving Gus is that he is willing to do anything she wants, and he has the money to do so.  Gus' father disapproves of their union, he (correctly) thinks that Lorelei is a gold-digger; the elder Esmond forbids Gus from going on a planned trip with Lorelei and Dorothy to Paris: Lorelei and Dorothy go ahead as planned.  The elder Esmond, suspecting Lorelei may do something not becoming a respectable young lady, hires Malone (Elliott Reid), a private detective to spy on her.  While on the ship Lorelei's becomes interested in "Piggy" Beekman (Charles Coburn), the owner of a very profitable diamond mine; Dorothy is interested by the men's Olympic team...and Malone (the Olympic team has a strict curfew).  As Dorothy is charmed by Malone, Lorelei sets her sights on using her "charm" to acquire Piggy's wife's prized diamond tiara (Lorelei just can't resist diamonds).  Dorothy discovers Malone's true reason for taking the trip and plots to beat him at his own game; all the while Lorelei's success at her own "game" threatens to lead to her losing everything: Gus, her freedom, and possibly most important of all: her diamonds.

Monroe and Russell both do solid work as the showgirls looking for love and a good time.  As the ditsy Lorelei, Monroe demonstrates why she is remembered as a capable comic actress.  Russell does her job well, playing the (relatively) straight-woman to Monroe's ridiculously over the top character.  The supporting players perform admirably, but neither they, nor the leading ladies, can compensate for the fact that nearly every character is despicable.  Lorelei is a gold-digger (and proud of it) willing to coerce a man into giving up his wife's most prized possession because it looks pretty.  The film frames this act as a shrewd move by Lorelei; in reality, such an act is both wretched and malicious.  Russell's Dorothy is witty, but in her own way is as equally as shallow as Lorelei.  Elliott Reid is solid as Malone, but he really doesn't have much to do as Russell's love-interest.  Tommy Noonan is convincing as the passive Gus Esmond; but that fact does not help the movie, as a character that is supposed to be likable, it is hard to do little more than crack a bemused smirk at the way he is treated by Lorelei.

The film is beautifully filmed in Technicolor, the colors are vibrant and match the bubbly tone of the film and do the lovely leading ladies justice.  The film, directed by a seasoned Howard Hawks, has well choreographed and entertaining musical numbers; though the music itself is clichéd and underwhelming.  The most famous number, "Diamonds Are a Girl's Best Friend," is deservedly iconic as a musical number, but as the message for a film (the film's message amounts to that, essentially), it is completely superficial and utterly revolting.

Gentlemen Prefer Blondes has many of the typical trademarks of a standard fifties era musical: a predictable plot, spirited leads, and heavily choreographed musical numbers.  Despite its renown and fond place in many a memory, Gentlemen Prefer Blondes amounts to little more than mediocre musical fare with protagonists that are actually quite hard to like.  Though, Marilyn Monroe and Jane Russell truly do shine in the lead roles.

4/10

Note: This review was previously posted on another blog I wrote.