The Review - Gentlemen Prefer Blondes

So as previously mentioned, a few weekends ago (my, time does fly, doesn’t it?) Luke and I went to see Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, a part of the 2012 New Zealand International Film Festival. I've seen this movie a few times before. In fact, I got into Marilyn Monroe films because of my sister, who once had a brief infatuation with her. It was near Christmas time, so I decided to buy her a box set of Marilyn movies. This was back in the days of videos. Unfortunately, by the time Christmas rolled around, my sister’s infatuation had been replaced by something else. So the box set sat in its plastic wrap for about a year, when finally I thought: Dammit, I’m going to watch them. So I did. And I loved them all, especially Gentlemen Prefer Blondes.

As mentioned in yesterday’s blog, Luke took me to see this movie at the Roxy Cinema a couple of weeks ago. This film is actually an adaption of a 1949 stage musical of the same name, while the musical was based on a 1925 novel by Anita Loos. Interestingly, Jane Russell, who co-stars with Monroe, was the bigger star when the film was released and was paid more than ten times what Monroe received. The storyline is pretty trivial. And at the end of the day the movie is more about the musical numbers, comedic one-liners, and of course the beautiful main characters. So if you’re wanting to watch a bit of fluffy nonsense, then this movie is perfect. 

Lady Beekman: It's a tiara.
Lorelei Lee: You DO wear it on your head. I just LOVE finding new places to wear diamonds.

 Fun fact: In the "Ain't There Anyone Here for Love?" sequence, Jane Russell’s fall into the pool was an accident. When the director saw the take, he kept it in the film. 

 Gus Esmond: Dorothy Shaw. I want you to remember you're supposed to be the chaperone on this trip.
Dorothy Shaw: Now let's get this straight, Gus. The chaperone's job is to see that nobody else has any fun. Nobody chaperones the chaperone. That's why I'm so right for this job.

 Dorothy Shaw: You know I think you're the only girl in the world who can stand on a stage with a spotlight in her eye and still see a diamond inside a man's pocket.

Esmond Sr: Have you got the nerve to tell me you don't want to marry my son for his money?
Lorelie Lee: It's true.
Esmond Sr: Then what do you want to marry him for?
Lorelei Lee: I want to marry him for YOUR money.

Until next time :)