Released 40 years ago, Tootsie was a comedy that never should've worked. A ludicrous premise, a star whose last movie was Kramer vs. Kramer, and an endless list of screenwriters. And it ended up being a heartfelt hit. Craig D. Lindsey explains:
A standard-issue New York actor—auditioning during the day, waiting tables at night, teaching an acting class somewhere in-between—Dorsey’s commitment to his craft has made him a pariah in the industry. Even his own agent tells him no onewants to hire him. He eventually proves him wrong by becoming Dorothy Michaels.
pulls off the amazing feat of being an absurd farce that seems plausible because Pollack, Hoffman and the cast don’t go for broad laughs. Dorsey goes on quite the eye-opening journey as his star rises. Between becoming a close confidant to his single-mom co-star , whom he eventually falls for, and seeing how women like her get harassed and undermined on the set, Dorsey eventually realizes how bad the fairer sex has it.
Despite their behind-the-scenes disagreements, both Pollack and Hoffman wanted the comedy to come out intelligently and truthfully. They brought in several screenwriters to help them make the story both funny and believable. Larry Gelbart, Elaine May, Barry Levinson and Hoffman’s late playwright pal Murray Schisgal were just some of the credited and uncredited scribes who contributed to the script. The star and the director also didn’t mind throwing in some improvised scenes.
Even though dudes in drag is considered a lowbrow way to get laughs, cross-dressing comedies are still a far cry from going out of style. Hell, earlier this year, Tyler Perry dropped another Madea movie on Netflix. Years ago, I interviewed indie-film producer/guru John Pierson, who spent some time in Fiji running a movie theater with his family. One of the big hits at that theater was, a forgettable 2002 farce about a trio of frat guys who get all dolled up and hide out at a sorority.
Sure, drag comedies will always round up the yuks. But, unless another group of unlikely people team up to do something fresh and funny and feminine, we may never see another movie that brings the same wit, cleverness and heartfelt, honest humor as the sweet-as-hellCraig D. Lindsey is a Houston-based writer. You can follow him on Twitter and Instagram at @unclecrizzle.
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