31 Stars in 31 Days: Day 5 - MARILYN MONROE

Today marks the 50th anniversary of Marilyn's tragic death. And to honor the wonderful classic film actress I will be watching some of her films, which I just bought on blu-ray. I plan to watch three films of hers if I have enough time but if not at least two. The Seven Year Itch and Gentlemen Prefer Blondes. We love and miss you Marilyn. Here are some of my fave things about her.


Favorite Marilyn film: THE SEVEN YEAR ITCH (1955) Without a doubt my all time
favorite Marilyn film.
Favorite Marilyn role: Lorelei Lee (GENTLEMEN PREFER BLONDES) - Perfection in this movie 
Favorite Marilyn co-star: toss up between Jane Russell in Blondes and Tom Ewell 
in Seven Year Itch, hence my choice of films today
Films of Marilyn seen: 15 out of 33 films

Today's films: THE SEVEN YEAR ITCH (1955) and GENTLEMEN PREFER BLONDES (1953)
The Seven Year Itch is a wonderful comedy by Billy Wilder, who excelled at these kind of films. Well he actually excelled at all kinds of films because he was that awesome. And so is Marilyn who is simply cast as The Girl, an upstairs neighbor to a husband (Tom Ewell) who daydreams a lot about meeting and romancing women..all women. The action heats up when his wife and kid go away for the summer and he starts chatting with The Girl. All in good natured fun but it's a treat to watch how things unfold. 


Rating: ***** out of ***** stars

 Girl falls down, man is there to catch her

In GENTLEMEN PREFER BLONDES,  Marilyn is amazing as Lorelei Lee, who along with best pal Dorothy Shaw (Jane Russell, all sass and I love it) take a cruise ship to Paris and have one interesting adventure. Splashy musical comedy that lets Marilyn show why she is one of cinema's great icons. Gorgeous film and two gorgeous women. What more could anyone ask for?


Rating: **** out of ***** stars

I'm with the blonde here

My plan is to watch both of these films right after church and if I do get to sneak in one more Marilyn film, it will most likely be How To Marry A Millionaire. 

My love of classic films is beyond measure

Monty

Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953) is classic Marilyn with a good dose of a sassy Jane Russell

Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, the 1953 musical that paired Marilyn Monroe with Jane Russell, recently aired on TV and I watched a little of it. This is one of my favorite musicals and one of Marilyn's best films in my opinion. I own it on DVD but I will always pause to watch it when it plays on TV. The story has two singers and best friends Lorelei Lee (Monroe) and Dorothy Shaw (Russell) who travel to Paris pursued by a private detective hired by Lorelei's fiance's disapproving father to keep an eye on her. Dorothy ends up falling for the detective while Lorelei deals with unwanted suitors such as Sir Francis "Piggy" Beekman, a wealthy old codger, and a very young and infatuated kid. This movie is delightful with several great songs such as Is There Anyone Here For Love? which is knocked out of the park by Russell. She gives a energetic performance amid a team of gymnasts and winds up in the swimming pool. Monroe of course sings the signature song, Diamonds are a Girl's Best Friend and she is equally as good. As a matter of fact, these two women really have great chemistry together. It's a shame they didn't make more films together. Monroe nails the ditsy blonde to perfection but throws in some wisdom every now that makes a lot of sense. Russell gets to deliver all the wisecracks and she will remind you of Eve Arden a little bit. Gentlemen Prefer Blondes is a terrific movie that is great to watch in glorious color with great songs and wonderful comedy.
B+

Lorelei: Don't you know that a man being rich is like a girl being pretty? You wouldn't marry a girl just because she's pretty, but my goodness, doesn't it help?