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Product Details
- Amazon Sales Rank: #138 in Movie
- Released on: 2007-10-08
- Running time: 117 minutes
Customer Reviews
Great movie, but what's with the awards?
One of the most enjoyable films of the 1980's, "Tootsie" remains as good today as it was 20 years ago. I won't reiterate what otherfolks have said about it here, because all the praise that this movie has received from the other reviewers is justly deserved.
However, one thing I have never understood is the way this movie was and was not lauded at the time. It was up against 2 other films at the time. While "Ghandi" was certainly a superb epic and probably deserved best picture, I will never understand how Ben Kingsley won for best actor over Hoffman. Kingsley could just look at old newsreels to "get" his character right. Hoffman had to literally create the Dorothy Michaels character out of nothing but the written word...a much greater challenge for an actor and frankly a performance more deserving of an Oscar. I should also mention that I thought Julie Andrews's performance in "Victor/Victoria" was better than Kingsley's as well.
Secondly, I have also never figured out why Geena Davis got best supporting actress. Did people confuse her with Teri Garr (whose performance was much better, richer, and more developed) because the 2 actresses were in the same movie? I can only think of a couple of scenes in which Davis even appeared in the film and none of the scenes are particularly memorable.
There were also many other actresses up for this award from other films. Leslie Ann Warren's performance as the mobster's girlfriend is the one that most comes to mind. One wonders who was sleeping with who to even consider Davis for the nomination.
Nevertheless, "Tootsie" did receive its share of awards (Golden Globe, People's Choice, etc.) It just seems like it was unfairly cheated out of many accolades by the Academy.
No thanks
I am hoping that it is not just myself that feel sthe two biggest grossing movies with male/female switching roles are played by in this case Dustin Hoffman and in the case of Mrs Doubtfire by Robin Williams.
This may seem a case of what i syour point,and i will tell you both of these Actors Hoffman especially is fantastic as the male he plays in so many movies,as is Williams in the right movie not some of the drivel that he has unfortunately taken on at times.
Anyway that i sthe case here,i cannot get past the fact that that is Dustin Hoffman as a woman,and my goodness he makes an ugly lady.
Having taken that into account the movie is alright,nothing special but a bit of light entertainment.
I am definitely a fan of Hoffman's and this movie did very well for all concerned,i am forever grateful that he put away that dress and hairstyle having said that.
Ian.
25th Anniversary Edition Worth the Upgrade!
It seems that in "special" releases, Columbia and Paramount really trail behind Warner Bros., which is why I hesitated somewhat from upgrading my barebones "Tootsie" DVD to this 25th Anniversary Edition. The first extras that I looked at were the deleted scenes; there are quite a few short ones here, none of which really deserved to be inserted. Some are mildly amusing, some shouldn't have even been shot in the first place. OK, one extra down, two to go. Next I looked at Dustin Hoffman's "screen test." Source material are original betamax tapes of Dustin first doing the Dorothy Michaels character. Although theses tests are very short, they are extremely relevatory into the talents of Hoffman. Between the time he filmed these initial test and the time that his final character was put on film, Hoffman transitioned from a bad drag queen into a believable female. Truly incredible to compare the two performances which are roughly 3 years apart. 2nd extra down, last one to go: "The Making Of" documentary. I had no expectations of this whatsoever; expecting a 20 minute assortment of clips and a little narration, instead, we are treated to about an hour and a half of indepth interviews and insight into the creation of this comedy classic. There are current interviews from Hoffman, Jessica Lange, Terri Garr, and Sydney Pollack. The only major player missing is Murray, but it doesn't detract from the documentary. We learn that this movie is one of those amazing occurrances where the right creative team comes together; Hoffman is a difficult to control idea-man who definitely needs to be steered and somewhat restrained. As the Director, Pollack supplied this excellent guidance, and rather than play the movie for bawdy laughter, he went for honesty and truth. Elaine May also apparently gave the film its momentum and helped build all of the intertwined stories that lead to the exciting conclusion of the live Soap Opera reveal at the climax. Bill Murray and Terri Garr gave many classic improv moments, and Jessica Lange gives a very sweet and honest "straight" performance. In the interviews, Dabney Coleman tells how nobody ever laughed on the set; it was the editing of Pollack that made all the humor work, and when looking at the movie after hearing this, it is obvious to see the truth in his statement. This documentary all has many behind-the-scenes clips and confrontations between Pollack and Hoffman, who pushed the director to try every possible route and questioned everything about the movie. Large gripe - why couldn't the theatrical trailer have been put on here? It was on the barebones previous release...surely it could have fit on this DVD, too.
For those not familiar with the plot, here it is: Michael Dorsey is a talented but exasperating NYC actor (much like Hoffman apparently) who nobody wants to work with; he drives up budgets and is difficult to work with. Desperate for money, he disguises himself as a woman to win a role on a soap opera. After he gets the role, he must keep it a secret from his girlfriend (Terri Garr), his costar Julie (Jessica Lange) with whom he has fallen for, and from Julie's dad (Charles Durning) who has fallen for him, thinking he is a woman. The longer it continues, the harder it is to keep juggling his life and secrets, and Michael must figure out a solution.
The film itself looks good for its age in this widescreen 2:40:1 transfer in English 5.0. It is a little surprising that there's no commentary track, however, the documentary covers so much it really isn't all that necessary. Nice job and a move in the right direction, Columbia!
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