Classic musical comedy directed by the great Howard Hawks and starring Marilyn Monroe and Jane Russell. Marilyn's determined to marry a rich heir but his father has hired a private detective to prove the beautiful blonde's just after his money. Jane tries to protect Marilyn and keep her out of trouble while the two travel to Paris.

Marilyn's pitch-perfect as the gold-digging Lorelei Lee. She played the 'dumb blonde' better than anybody in movie history. It's impossible not to like her, even when she's doing things you might not agree with. Jane's never been better than here playing Marilyn's sassy man-crazy best friend. Charles Coburn is the horny owner of a diamond mine. Child actor George Winslow steals every scene he's in. Tommy Noonan is fun as Marilyn's fiancé. Elliott Reid is the weakest part of the cast as the private detective who falls for Jane. He's just so stiff and corny that I couldn't see what a great dish like Jane Russell could see in him. He looks like a Fed.

Lots of great lines and scenes. Possibly the best thing about the movie is just how gorgeous it looks. I'm not just talking about the leading ladies, who are both stunning. The Technicolor just pops off the screen. One of my favorite movies of all time. It'll make you smile from start to finish. Colorful, funny, sexy, with enjoyable performances and wonderful songs. Includes one of Marilyn's defining moments - "Diamonds Are a Girl's Best Friend." An absolute must-see classic.

Throw realism out the window--otherwise, this film probably won't work. That's because if you really think about it, the character that Marilyn Monroe plays is pretty despicable. But, playing it for comedy manages to make her a bit easier to take. Monroe plays a money-grubber whose only interest is finding a rich man to buy her things. Her shallowness is astounding! Conversely, her best friend (Jane Russell) is man-crazy but could care less if a man has money. In real life, such divergent personalities could never be such close friends, as their values are diametrically opposed. But, given some nice comedy writing and music, it is easier to take.

The film begins with Monroe and her current boyfriend (Tommy Noonan) becoming engaged. He's a rich but rather wimpy young man whose family would never approve of a showgirl like Monroe's character. Despite this, he promises to marry her in Europe. But, when she is ready to travel on the Isle de France, he's a no-show so she decides to look for other game--in other words, another rich guy. Her quarry on the cruise is a rich old goat (Charles Coburn) and it doesn't bother her that he's already married! Nice girl, huh?! On the cruise, Russell meets a nice guy who claims to be rich as well--a definite turnoff for her. However, in reality he's a private detective who was sent to get proof of the sort of woman Monroe is, as Noonan's family is desperate to keep their son from making a big mistake.

While the film seems to try to get you feel sorry for the girls, if you think about it, Monroe is a despicable whore--and makes little pretense about this! She's a self-involved money-hungry "lady" with no real depth to her. When caught, she claims that SHE is the victim! Some who watch the film can just laugh at her character but I know I struggled to keep watching, as I hated everything about her. Also, why, oh why, would a nice lady like Russell have anything to do with such a selfish conniver?! The bottom line is that there is some nice comedy (particularly the cute scenes with child actor George Winslow) and some amazingly iconic musical numbers (such as "Diamonds Are a Girl's Best Friend"). But, aside from this, the story just seems pretty shallow and dumb. It is a bit easier to take since Monroe seems hard to take seriously, but still she is a horrible person...and not always that funny.

This film has many fans and perhaps they are more able to laugh off the plot as fluff or just focus on how incredibly beautiful Miss Monroe is in the film. As for me, the film just promotes the "blondes are idiots" myth and seems to paint some women as glorified prostitutes--and because of that, while it looks great, it misses the mark.

Fluff...unadulterated fluff. And this is made all too apparent in the dopey courtroom scene near the end...uggh! You just have to see it to believe it...it's THAT bad. Up until the ending, I might have given the film a 6 or 7--it was annoying but well made. However, given the courtroom antics of Jane Russell and how ridiculous the whole thing is, I am begin charitable in giving the film a 5.

Well, what can I say? I thoroughly enjoyed this. Gentlemen Prefer Blondes may be fluff, but my goodness, it is enjoyable fluff. The men may be underused, and the third act is rather flat and contrived. However, the whole film is superbly photographed, with some eye popping costumes. The music is wonderful too, Diamonds are a Girl's best friend is iconic and for a reason but every other song is well done too. The choreography is also sprightly and enjoyable, while the script is snappy and witty and the story well-structured. The pace rarely lags either, and Howard Hawk's direction is excellent. I thoroughly enjoyed the performances of the two leads. Jane Russell is a great match, but it is Marilyn Monroe's movie. Classy, beautiful and entrancing, she really gives it her all and gives a superb performance in the process. All in all, thoroughly enjoyable and worth watching for Monroe alone. 8/10 Bethany Cox