Pillow Talk is a wonderful romantic comedy which has hardly aged a bit in the decades since its release. Remade a couple of years ago into the excellent Down With Love, this one can still hold its head up high (and though I personally still like the latter film more, I know that many prefer the original.)
Jan Morrow (Doris Day) is a highly successful career woman, who is unfortunate in that she has to share a party phone line with playboy Brad Allen (Rock Hudson). The phone company is working hard to give everybody their own individual lines, but no-nobody other than Jan herself considers his constant wooing of different women over the phone to be a problem. The phone company do actually send over an inspector after Jan makes a complaint, but since the inspector is a woman… well, she doesn’t see any problem with him whatsoever!
Jan’s work as an interior designer sees her brush shoulders with many rich and influential men, including Jonathon Forbes (Tony Randall)– who’s been married several times before so thinks he should be good at it by now, and so wants Jan to marry him – and he’s also friends with Brad. So when Brad works out that his party line opponent is actually quite a babe, he adopts a persona to start dating her, without her knowing who he is and without Jonathon knowing what’s going on – predictably a recipe for disaster. Add into the mix Alma (Thelma Ritter), and elderly friend and housemaid of Jan’s who thinks Brad (over the phone) is adorable (and thinks the lift operator is too fast due to her constant hangover), a very judgemental jazz singer / pianist, and a few other inconsequential oddballs, and you have a really big disaster waiting to happen.
All in all, Pillow Talk is an extremely enjoyable film thanks to a witty script and an enthusiastic cast. Hudson and Day are terrific whether sparring or wooing, and their phone encounters contain some sparkling dialogue. Tony Randall as the rich wannabe husband who can’t understand is very funny, particularly when taking great delight in Brad’s failures (though he does turn out to be sort of a good friend in the end!) His performance is not all that dissimilar to David Hyde Pierce’s in Down With Love, though the characters are very different. Thelma Ritter is great in her role, and none of the supporting cast disappoint. The musical score works well and though there’s not really much in the way of special effects (apart from the split-screen effects so popular in the fifties!), this doesn’t detract from the film and some of the sets are wonderful. Some are not so wonderful, but that’s intentional – watch the film and you’ll see what I mean!
There’s really not much wrong with any aspect of the film, but in a few scenes I did feel it slowed down too much, and thus had quite long gaps without any real laughs. Altogether though hugely enjoyable, very funny, and probably one of the few romantic comedies that even people who don’t like romcoms will enjoy. It is also, (unlike Down With Love with has rather a lot of innuendo) real family viewing.
Other Info
Director: Michael Gordon
Year of release: 1959
Runtime: 98 minutes
Rating: UK: PG USA (non rated)
Quotes
Jan: Officer, arrest this man - he's taking me up to his apartment!
Police Officer: Well, I can't say that I blame him, miss.
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Brad Allen: Look, I don't know what's bothering you, but don't take your bedroom problems out on me.
Jan: I have no bedroom problems. There's nothing in my bedroom that bothers me.
Brad Allen: Oh-h-h-h. That's too bad.
(Ok so there is some innuendo!)
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[Jan and Brad are on the phone discussing a phone schedule.]
Jan: We're just going to have to live with each other...
[Jan pauses, waiting for a response]
Brad Allen: Well?
Jan: I was waiting for you to say some off-color remark.
Brad Allen: Is that all you have on your mind?
Jan: Never mind my mind! You just stick to your half hour and I'll stick to mine!
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[Trying to convince Alma she loves living alone.]
Jan: Well, what am I missing?
Alma: If you have to ask, you're missing it!
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