Gentlemen Prefer Blondes is showing at London’s BFI Southbank on Thursday, June 15th (and again on June 29th) as part of Razor Sharp: The Fabulous Women of Howard Hawks, a retrospective for one of Marilyn’s most accomplished directors.
“For a man’s man, Howard Hawks’ cinema has surprisingly little reverence for tradition. Men wear dresses and weep over friendships, women dismiss motherhood in favour of adventure. Threaded throughout is a recurring trope of enduring debate – the female lead known as the ‘Hawksian woman’. She is worldly and forthright, daring us to keep up in a rapid war of affectionate insults and double entendre. Infiltrating Hawks’ world of macho camaraderie with ease, she never caves under pressure, meeting pointed guns with a raised eyebrow and a withering comeback.
Spanning multiple genres and brought to life by screen legends of the era, Carole Lombard’s party girl reputation, Katharine Hepburn’s unshrinking independence and Jane Russell’s sex-symbol status all inform their take on the archetype with a sly, knowing wink. Hawks may be the unifying factor, but each has an identity of her own, remaining both relatable and intimidating almost a century after their creation.
In Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, Russell and Marilyn Monroe play joyful havoc with a series of clueless men in this chaotic cruise of satirical sexual relations. Playfully parodying the stars’ off-screen reputations, cynical Dorothy and gold-digger Lorelei hijack the fetishising gaze of those around them in search of financial security (and, more importantly, a good time). This is a man’s world – but why let that stop you?”
The Marilyn Report 