Pillow Talk

So there I was, in my sick-bed when this film comes on. I start to watch, having never seen it before, and to my surprise, find myself laughing...out loud.

I have never really been a fan of either Doris Day or Rock Hudson, but I did enjoy this piece of fluff. And in our modern times when comedies currently released in the cinema can hardly raise a smile, let alone a laugh, I found this a pure delight. So the sexual politics maybe a little outdated, but there were some beautifully timed comedy set-pieces: The moment Doris Day discovers the real identity of Hudson's character has one of the best use of music I have seen in a movie since the Warner Bros cartoons!

A film that I didn't think I would enjoy, but was completely bowled over by.

This smart and sassy sex comedy was made in 1959 but it could just as easily have been made in 1939 and the roles played here by Doris Day and Rock Hudson could have been played by Irene Dunne and Cary Grant. Michael Gordon's direction is serviceable at best but it has a likable Oscar-winning script by Russell Rouse, Maurice Richlin, Stanley Shapiro and Clarence Greene that makes the most of it's premise of the mismatched couple who find romance in the most unlikely of farcial situations.

Day is starchy and frigid but Hudson is immensely likable and displays a real comic flair. There is a gay joke at the expense of the Hudson character and knowing what we know now we might well ask how much of an 'in-joke' this really was and just who was in on the joke. The film was a huge success and re-vitalized Day's career in non-musical roles. Tony Randall's character of the slightly effete millionaire who is in love with Day is not unlike David Hyde Pierce's Niles in "Frasier" and you can see some of the best "Frasier" scripts in some of the situations here. Influential or what?

Favorite Movie Quote: "At least my problems can be solved in one bedroom. You couldn't solve yours in a thousand!"

With Westerns, War-Dramas, and Sci-Fi dominating the movie-fare of the 1950s, producer Ross Hunter was aptly warned that Screwball Comedy like Pillow Talk would never, ever be a success at the box-office.

Even though Screwball Comedy had long been pronounced "dead" at the end of the 1940s, Pillow Talk turned out to be one of the most successful films of the 1950s. It proved just how starved movie-audiences were for pure escapist fluff, such as it was. Pillow Talk went on to be nominated for 5 Academy Awards. It won an Oscar for "Best Screen-writing".

Pillow Talk starred Doris Day and Rock Hudson. Pairing these 2 stars together proved to be such a success that they eventually went on to make 2 other Romantic Comedies together, but neither of which turned out to be as magical as Pillow Talk.

Featuring some pretty snappy dialogue, energetic performances, lush photography, and high production values, Pillow Talk is certainly an all-round fun and very enjoyable 1950s Comedy.

By 1958, Doris Day's career was on the downslide and something drastic needed to be done to revive her career. 1959'S PILLOW TALK redefined Doris' image and created an entirely new genre of the "will she or won't she" sex comedy as well as introducing one of the greatest romantic screen couplings in history...Doris Day and Rock Hudson. Day plays Jan Morrow, an interior decorator who shares her phone line with Brad Allen (Hudson) a song-writing playboy who ties up Doris' phone by singing love songs (actually the same song) over the phone to the parade of women in his life. Day's attempts to get a private phone line fail and she and Hudson begrudgingly come up with a system to share the phone which Hudson doesn't stick to. Tony Randall plays Jonathan Forbes, a rich playboy who is a client of Doris' and Rock's best friend, who is crazy about Doris but she doesn't feel the same way. One night, Brad discovers Jan at a nightclub and knowing she already hates him, pretends to be a wealthy Texan in order to romance her and this is where the fun begins. Yes, the story is dated because party lines are virtually a thing of the past but it is the linchpin upon which this story delightfully plays out. Director Michael Gordon cleverly uses split-screen images to put Doris and Rock together on screen in seemingly compromising positions, very adult for 1959 and watching Brad pretending to be cowboy Rex Stetson, trying to romance Jan while Brad tries to advise Jan over the phone about what a cad Rex is, is a lot of fun. Day lights up the screen here, in a luminous performance that earned her her first and only Oscar nomination. Hudson, previously only seen in dramatic films up to this point, turns out to be gifted farceur and interviews in his later years, always credited Doris for teaching him how to do comedy. Randall is comic perfection as Jonathan as is Thelma Ritter, who was also nominated for an Oscar for her work as Jan's housekeeper. A delight from start to finish that introduced a new movie couple that would give Fred and Ginger and Spenceer and Kate a run for their money.

Out of all the "Bedroom Comedies" of the 50's & 60's this is the best by far. Nothing else comes close to "Pillow Talk" with its witty script, stylish sets, and costumes and a great cast of "A" actors at their very best. Some movies wrap you up like a warm mink coat and make everything seem right in the world. 1950's New York looks fabulous, and I've always wanted to go one of those chic supper clubs decked out like Doris is here. This is one of those rare movies that make you laugh, no matter how many times you've seen it. How sad it is for some reviewers to take fault with Alma and her apparent drinking problem (only to find love herself and throw away the bottle!) or Rock's sexuality that some just can't get past. This is an elegant romp with Doris and Rock.