Gentlemen Prefer Blondes

+ intro by Rosie Broadley, National Portrait Gallery senior curator and curator of Marilyn Monroe: A Portrait

Marilyn Monroe and Jane Russell make for a magnetic duo, playing two showgirls pursuing a perfect match in Howard Hawks’ classic comedy musical.

  • Director

    Howard Hawks

  • With

    Jane Russell, Marilyn Monroe

  • USA 1953. 91min

  • Digital

  • Certificate

    U

Best friends Dorothy and Lorelei are two showgirls looking for love and financial security, albeit not always in that order. When they board a cruise ship to Paris, they must navigate millionaire suitors, a wealth of diamonds, private detectives and a strapping male Olympic team. Monroe is incandescent as the jewel-loving Lorelei, injecting a combination of sweetness, cunning intelligence and flirtatious humour into her role. The iconic performance of Diamonds Are a Girl’s Best Friend is the very definition of star power and still enjoys a significant influence on popular culture.

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