Howard Hawkes' film 'Gentlemen Prefer Blondes' in many ways cemented Marilyn Monroe's reputation as a 'dumb blonde' - certainly a casting which was misjudged in reality, shown by Monroe's real witticisms in interviews as well as her aptitude for writing in her poetry - found in the book 'Fragments'. In reality, Monroe was also described by many to be incredibly shy, and by those who knew her well, an intellectual; Marlon Brando said of her: 'Marilyn was a sensitive, misunderstood person, much more perceptive than was generally assumed. She had been beaten down, but had a strong emotional intelligence -- a keen intuition for the feelings of others, the most refined type of intelligence.' For me, this film on a first watch has the ability to be just what it seems - a light, amusing comedy. However, on second glance this films reveals much more than it would seem - for instance, the role of women in the 1950s as well as the infamous reputation of 'blonde' women.
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| Marilyn: Not what she seemed. In a publicity shot for 'Gentlemen Prefer Blondes' |
Jane Russell co-starred with Monroe in the 1953 film; she had become something of a fixation for Howard Hawkes after he reportedly met her as a dentist's assistant, and signed her up to a film contract almost immediately. Russell and Monroe make the perfect comedy duo - the dynamic of Monroe's 'Lorelei', rushing around unknowingly, responding to the world as if it is all something new to her, is complemented perfectly by Dorothy's steely resolve, and no-nonsense manner. The film's script is also perfectly crafted, with subtle but extremely funny one-liners. The setting on a ship also gives the whole film a sense of being suspended in it's own little reality, of fun and excitement.
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| Monroe and Russell: The perfect duo |
Yet beneath this, the title 'Gentlemen Prefer Blondes' still seems to inspire some irony - after all, it is Lorelei who always ends up with men that only want one thing from her - though she cheats them for their money, the ease with which she charms her way to them represents a paradoxical situation. One the one hand, we are shown the power that women can have by using their looks to manipulate - but also the slight sadness that women appear to need looks to perform this act - perhaps Monroe's 'Lorelei' would be poor and destitute were she not good-looking. Gentlemen might 'prefer' blondes as 'silly things' to have a fling with - but, in wanting only one thing from them, no constancy. This seems to be implied in the name of the film's sequel: (But) 'Gentlemen Marry Brunettes'. So in Hawkes' film we see women trying to usurp their lower place in society, but ironically by emphasising their attributes as women - the very things which restricted them in the first place.
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| The cover of the book, the basis for the film, perfectly depicts the paradoxical role of women discussed above. |
Russell and Monroe became very good friends during the filming, and perhaps this is why their on-screen rapport is so convincing. We really believe they are a team, out to help one another. The film is also marked out by Hoagy Carmichael's iconic music, sung and performed beautifully by Russell and Monroe, two underrated singers in their own right. The sequence 'Two Little Girls From Little Rock' has become in itself iconic, whilst Monroe's 'Diamonds Are a Girl's Best Friend' is imprinted onto pop culture, and has been imitated - but never bested - many times. Monroe succeeds where others fail in keeping her performance subtle yet forthright - most mimics create Monroe into the caricature they believe is the true Monroe - all swishing blonde hair, scatterbrained, and breathy. It makes sense that only Marilyn herself could carry these actions off adequately - after all, it was she who engineered her 'dumb' persona so cleverly, even studying anthropology and dance books to achieve the famous Monroe walk. On first watch, by all means enjoy the film as it seems - but I hope this review gives a closer account of what can be found when we try, even just a little, to look past the veneer of caricature and rumour - when we look, carefully, a second time.
Victoria x
N.B. - I claim no ownership of the pictures used in this post.
I obtained them all under a Creative Commons license on Flickr:
https://www.flickr.com/search/?text=gentlemen%20prefer%20blondes&sort=relevance&license=1%2C2%2C3%2C4%2C5%2C6
Nice review.
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