Tootsie ***** (1982, Dustin Hoffman, Jessica Lange, Teri Garr) – Classic Movie Review 203

‘We’re looking for someone younger.’

‘We’re looking for someone older.’

‘We’re looking for someone else.’

With just a delicious bitter-sweet touch of romance and a poignant back flavour, Sydney Pollack’s witty and charming 1982 drag comedy film Tootsie is a hilarious laughter-raiser – the finest and most enduringly popular since Some Like It Hot in 1959.

A brilliant Dustin Hoffman gives a stupendous performance as Michael Dorsey, an out-of-work Manhattan actor with a reputation for being difficult, who comes up with a radical solution to the problem. He finds that, with no jobs available for a man, there’s nothing for it but to disguise himself as a woman, whom he calls Dorothy Michaels, when a likely job comes up in a General Hospital-style daytime soap drama, Southwest General.

Despite him looking much more like Charlie’s Aunt, or anyone else’s ancient spinster aunt, than a real young alluring woman, he fools everyone and lands the role and of course has to carry on the charade to keep it.

Of course then there are loads of sexual confusion in this joyous exploration of gender. The TV show women look to Dorothy as a liberating role model against the oppression of men like Michael. The comedy of embarrassments mounts to a delirious climax. Michael falls for his soap co-star Julie, her father falls for him, a male co-star falls for him, and his girlfriend is understandably not very happy about any of it. At any rate, by the finish, Michael ends up being a better man because he’s been a woman.

Hoffman, Oscar-winning Best Actress in a Supporting Role Jessica Lange as his soap co-star Julie, Teri Garr as his girlfriend Sandy, Pollack as his agent George Fields and Bill Murray as Jeff provide the classy, charismatic playing deserved by Larry Gelbart, Murray Shisgal and (uncredited) Elaine May’s bold, witty incisive screenplay. Good though Lange is, it is unfair that she won and Hoffman didn’t. He is the movie. It is also unfair that Lange won the Best Supporting Actress Oscar and Teri Garr didn’t, as Lange’s is a star role and she should have been nominated as Best Actress, which might have allowed both of them to win.

The idea was initiated in 1978 by Don McGuire, based on his experience as an actor and agent, but only one of his lines made it to the final screenplay, though he is credited as the co-writer of the story with Gelbart.

Oscar-winning Best Actress in a Supporting Role Jessica Lange for Tootsie.

Tootsie landed ten Oscar nominations. But it had to be content with only the one Oscar, though it was nominated for Best Picture, Best Actor in a Leading Role (Hoffman), Best Actress in a Supporting Role (Garr), Best Director, Best Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen (Larry Gelbart screenplay/ story, Murray Schisgal screenplay and Don McGuire story), Best Cinematography (Owen Roizman), Best Sound, Best Film Editing and Best Original Song (Dave Grusin music, Alan Bergman lyrics and Marilyn Bergman lyrics for the song ‘It Might Be You’.

Gelbart, complaining of Hoffman’s obsessive work on his role and the script, told me later: ‘Never work with an actor who’s smaller than his Oscar!’ Gelbart claimed he had conceived Tootsie, and was angry that Hoffman claimed the film was his friend Schisgal’s baby.

Hoffman eventually talked a reluctant Pollack into the agent acting gig (he wanted Dabney Coleman in the role). He was right. Pollack is great in his cameo. But they allegedly quarrelled on set and did not film together again.

The film was called ‘Would I Lie to You’ until Hoffman suggested Tootsie, named after his mother’s dog.

‘I was a better man with you as a woman than I ever was with a woman as a man.’ Confused? You will be!

The cast are Dustin Hoffman as Michael Dorsey/ Dorothy Michaels, Jessica Lange as Julie Nichols, Teri Garr as Sandy Lester, Dabney Coleman as Ron Carlisle, Charles Durning as Les Nichols, Bill Murray as Jeff Slater, Sydney Pollack as George Fields, George Gaynes as John Van Horn, Geena Davis as April Page, Doris Belack as Rita Marshall, Ellen Foley as Jacqui, Lynne Thigpen as Jo, Christine Ebersole as Linda, Anne Shropshire as Mrs Crawley, and Susan Egbert as Diane.

Teri Garr [Terry Ann Garr] (December 11, 1944 – October 29, 2024)

Teri Garr died from complications of multiple sclerosis at her home in Los Angeles on 29 October 2024, aged 79.

Her film career started appearances as a dancer in nine Elvis Presley musicals.

Teri Garr received nominations for an Academy Award and a British Academy Film Award as Best Supporting Actress for Tootsie.

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© Derek Winnert 2013 Classic Movie Review 203

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