Pillow Talk
Composite Score: 82.37
Starring: Doris Day, Rock Hudson, Tony Randall, Thelma Ritter, Nick Adams, Julia Meade, Allen Jenkins, Marcel Dalio, and Lee Patrick
Director: Michael Gordon
Writers: Stanley Shapiro, Maurice Richlin, Russell Rouse, and Clarence Greene
Genres: Comedy, Romance
MPAA Rating: Passed
Box Office: $18.75 million worldwide
Why should you Watch This Film?
Pillow Talk is the Doris Day/Rock Hudson romantic comedy/bedroom comedy about two people who share a party line (like on a land-line telephone) and end up falling for each other despite their frustrations at each other’s antics. The film won the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay in 1960 and was nominated for four others. The comedy and comedic performances of this film stand out among some of the older romantic comedies. Most of the jokes have aged incredibly well, and it benefits from its era’s aversion to overt sexual activity on screen by then being forced into so much double entendre and veiled adult humor that remains quite funny. Overall, this classic romantic comedy stands the test of time well.
Why shouldn’t you Watch This Film?
Though the film’s protagonist – Doris Day’s Jan Morrow – is a strong, independent woman who does fine without a man, the characters around her seem intent on making her uphold the standards of the day by settling down with a nice man and becoming a family woman. This is not to say that the film overtly supports the sentiments of Jan’s friends, just that the attitudes are a bit dated. Jan does maintain her autonomy for basically the entirety of the film – choosing relationships of her own volition, figuring things out on her own, holding her own with the men in her life. It is just the overall messaging that ends up a bit muddled by the way that other characters (including supportive friends) seem to detract from Jan’s independence. One particularly problematic scene is her interaction with Tony, a young man who drives her home from a party and attempts to kiss her in his car. She is able to hold off his advances but still has to go out for drinks with him – it’s a poorly aged norm from this bygone era in the midst of an otherwise well-aged film.
There is one bit in the film that has aged strangely, at least from a 2022 perspective. There is a moment where Rock Hudson’s character, Brad Allen, ducks into an OBGYN office to avoid running into Jan and another of his friends. Without knowing the nature of the office, he tries to set an appointment, surprising the nurse. Throughout the rest of the film, there is a running joke about the doctor being fascinated with this man who claims to be with child – it is even the film’s closing bit of comedy. Being a 1950s film, it doesn’t seem to be playing at all on tropes of transgenderism or even drag, but with that modern context, the comedy doesn’t play quite as well. It’s still funny, and if it was intentional, it was remarkably progressive. I don’t think that is the case though, so it’s a weird bit to get as much screen time as it does.
So wait, why should you Watch This Film?
As romantic comedies go, this one is way up there in terms of quality. The humor consistently delivers, and the performances are well-acted. Doris Day handles herself as expected of a star of her caliber, delivering the strong leading lady performance that is equally powerful, lovable, and funny for the film’s entirety, fully deserving of her Best Lead Actress nomination. Rock Hudson works well as the charming but scheming love interest, playing well with Day in their interactions, both physically and dialectically. Thelma Ritter’s performance as Alma, Jan’s housekeeper, garnered a nomination for Best Supporting Actress as she played the lovable alcoholic and voice of occasional reason in the film. Even Tony Randall’s turn as Jonathan Forbes is tragically comedic as he attempts time and again to share his unrequited love with Jan.
The award-winning screenplay crafts a masterful romantic comedy. The speed of the jokes, both in wordplay and physical comedy, baffles as they come nearly one per minute – and most of them land on the mark. With all of the jokes, it would be easy to lose the plot, but this film manages to hold on to it as the enemies-to-lovers trope plays out on screen between Jan and Brad. The love story, while vaguely contrived, works well within the fiction of the film as these two strikingly different people struggle to overcome each other before eventually falling in love in the wildest way possible.
The high-paced comedy, strong romantic story, and award-worthy performance of Pillow Talk make it a classic of the romantic comedy genre, way up on the list, and also one of the Greatest Films of All Time. Though not every bit of the 1950s comedy has aged perfectly, this is one of the better ones from the era and, honestly, of all time. This film is available to rent on most streaming services if you are in the mood – check it out.
