This infectious comedy-musical from director Howard Hawks is sure to please the many fans of the legendary Monroe and possibly win over new ones, especially after the newbies get a look at this sumptuous DVD. 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment's release is absolutely stunning -- as are the other discs in its Marilyn Monroe: Diamond Collection series. The film's picture has been painstakingly remastered and given a makeover that it never previously displayed for home video. To say that the film looks gorgeous is putting it mildly. The film's three-strip Technicolor image glows and sparkles; colors resonate like never before, and there is added depth and texture to many of the scenes. The picture is offered full frame only, at its proper aspect ratio (1.33:1). The soundtrack has also gotten a newly remastered stereo boost (appropriate for a musical), though its original English mono soundtrack has also been included. A French mono track is available, and the disc has the optional English and Spanish subtitles. In terms of extras, the disc includes the original theatrical trailer, a Movietone newsreel that shows Monroe and top-billed star Jane Russell immortalizing their hands and feet in cement in front of Mann's Chinese Theater, as well as just doing their thing in front of the cameras. And like the other discs in Fox's Diamond Collection, an informative restoration comparison has been included. This release is a great example of how to spruce up classic Hollywood fare for the digital age.Second-billed Marilyn Monroe is the blonde in question in this second film version of Gentlemen Prefer Blondes: Miss Lorelei Lee, whose philosophy is "diamonds are a girl's best friend." Together with her best human friend Dorothy (top-billed Jane Russell), showgirl Lorelei embarks upon a boat trip to Paris, where she intends to marry millionaire Gus Esmond (Tommy Noonan). En route, the girls are bedeviled by private detective Malone (Elliot Reid), hired by Esmond's father (Taylor Holmes) to make certain that Lorelei isn't just another gold-digger. When Dorothy falls in love with the poverty-stricken Malone, Lorelei decides to find her pal a wealthier potential husband, and that's how she gets mixed up with flirtatious diamond merchant Sir Francis Beekman (Charles Coburn) and precocious youngster Henry Spofford III (George "Foghorn" Winslow). Most of the Leo Robin-Jule Styne songs from the Broadway show remain intact, including Marilyn Monroe's rendition of "Diamonds are a Girl's Best Friend," a production number later imitated by pop icon Madonna.
