Le milliardaire

I was pretty unimpressed with this movie, to be frank. There was something about every aspect of it that didn't quite add up and you're left with an essentially dull film, which you're not really too concerned about by the end. I am a huge fan of Marilyn but I don't feel she was at all her best in this picture, and I don't think that's entirely her fault - the film around her is incredibly flimsy. The dialogue is often wooden and unconvincing, and Montand's character and his storyline are just totally unbelievable - nothing of what he says or what he does was convincing to me and this really brought the film down very hard and very quickly. The musical numbers are pretty standard fair and were nothing Marilyn hadn't done before. The film didn't make me laugh and I didn't care what happened to the characters. If anything I was only sad the talented Marilyn Monroe was a part of the film - as her portfolio shows she was deserving of far higher quality films than this. I can't recommend the film as it's not really worth your time and you probably won't enjoy it - if you just want to see all of Monroe's film's than see it, but otherwise don't bother.

This film begins with a French billionaire named "Jean-Marc Clement" (Yves Montand) being informed that a small theater is hosting a play which makes fun of him. Naturally, being somewhat curious he goes to a rehearsal to see for himself. But as it so happens, while there he is accidently mistaken for an actor wanting to play the part and since he seems so natural for the role he is hired immediately. At first he has no inclination to accept the offer but upon seeing the lead actress named "Amanda Dell" (Marilyn Monroe) he begrudgingly acquiesces in order to get to know her better. And during this process he also gets to know himself better too. Now rather than reveal any more I will just say that, even though the film centers around the character played by Yves Montand, the main attraction was clearly Marilyn Monroe who performed in an outstanding manner. Unfortunately, not only did none of the other actors perform up to her level but the plot lacked the humor necessary for a comedy of this type as well. That being said, while I enjoyed this film for the most part, I have to rate it as just slightly above average.

This has got to be one of the dullest films MARILYN MONROE ever did--and equally dull is her leading man, the French accented YVES MONTAND who must have left his heart and his talents in France for the duration of filming.

He's simply bland with a capital B and very unfunny. And when MILTON BERLE, GENE KELLY and BING CROSBY attempt to give him pointers on how to be an entertainer, they're impatience with him is understandable. Whatever magic Montand had in his homeland is obscured here by a witless script and poor direction from George Cukor, who even manages to make Marilyn look less than believable as a wistful showgirl.

The faults extend to the songs to. The only reasonably good one is "My Heart Belongs to Daddy" done in a rather coy and simpering style by Monroe but nevertheless, it's the only high point in the whole show. Everything else is better left unmentioned.

Summing up: A waste of two stars who, incidentally, have no chemistry together, at least on screen. Off is another matter.

Released in 1960 after Marilyn's super turn in the fantastic 'Some Like It Hot', LML has often been cited as Monroe's worst movie.

There is plenty to work against the film: Cukor's almost non-existent direction, the rather dreadful musical numbers, Yves Montand's irritating performance and the wasted opportunities of the star cameos.

However, Let's Make Love is a reasonably inoffensive way to waste an afternoon. The plot is slight and therefore doesn't require too much brain power to follow and Monroe is, as usual, cinema gold. Despite the fact that she is slightly overweight here and nothing much has been done with her in terms of make-up, hair or wardrobe she is eminently watchable. She gives a convincing, assured performance in her role turning the simple character of Amanda into a sweet, likable woman.

As I have mentioned before in Monroe reviews, I always find it interesting to see Monroe in films in the 1960s, being very much an icon of the 1950s.

So, is LML really that bad? Well, to be honest no, it isn't. It's lightweight fluff that doesn't really mean anything but is watchable non the less. It is unfortunately placed between the sublime 'Some Like It Hot' and Monroe's bravura performance in the following year's 'The Misfits' but don't hold that against it. Make up your own minds!

This is by no means a great film, but I was pleasantly surprised in the end. Montand and Monroe both do good jobs. Tony Randall is always enjoyable, and Milton Berle has a great time teaching Montand how to be funny, the best comic moment of the film. Having just seen Montand in The Wages of Fear, one of the most intense movies ever made, it was interesting to see him goofing off and having a good time. This role takes him back to some of the songs he sang early in his career, not long after Edith Piaf discovered him. I only wish he had been able to sing more in the movie. I'm not a big fan of Monroe - her dumb-blonde routine generally irritates me - but she seems more vulnerable in this film, more pleasant to watch. She particularly impressed me in the musical numbers. Unfortunately, the costume designer did a lousy job - everything seems too big on her, or just tacky. Compare these costumes to those of Bardot in Une Parisenne, made around the same time period. There are ways and then there are ways to show off a body like that of Bardot or Monroe. All in all, this is a light piece of fluff, with some humorous moments, some sappy moments, some good musical numbers, some bad writing, some good cameos by Berle, Bing, and Gene Kelly, a silly storyline, Yves Montand, Monroe, and a good dose of fun.