Absolutely adorable from start to finish, this screwball comedy of a new, loser generation has sex written all over it and of course, that is never shown. But when Rock Hudson and Doris Day are seen touching feet on split screens while each in their own tub, it is as if they have already visited the bedroom still covered in soap suds. of course, for the first quarter of the movie, they can't stand each other. they share something called a party-line which long before the invention of modern cell technology, was the only way the phone company could add new customers while trying to figure out ways of separating the lines for individual persons. Doris is aghast that Rock is always on the phone in some sort of romantic clinch with his newest flame, and even when she make a complaint to the phone company, the female inspector is totally enchanted by Rock and denies Doris's claim of phone abuse. When Rock sees Doris for the first time in public, he decides to come between her and his pal, Tony Randall, and pretends to be from Texas in order to charm her. This rolly polly situation gets completely out of hand until Randall exposes Hudson's scheme.
The first of three pairings of the team of Doris Day and Rock Hudson is without a doubt their best, a practically perfect affair to remember, and proof as to why 60 years later, Rock is the best known of Doris's co-stars. Each of their three films co-starred Tony Randall, and he is perfect here in the Ralph Bellamy failed second romantic lead role. Thelma Ritter is extremely funny as Day's constantly drunken housekeeper, getting Rock even more pie-eyed than herself when she schemes with him in her effort to get him and Doris together. Nick Adams is a delightful rich geek who tries unsuccessfully to seduce Doris, and Leee Patrick basically repeats the same role that she played in the previous year's "Auntie Mame".
A terrific screenplay and speedy direction is aided by beautiful color photography, some gloriously campy sets and several songs which Dora sings with her usual spunk. I found it ironic that her apartment overlooks the queensboro bridge, ironically the setting for "Sorry Wrong Number" which had a different type of telephone scenario. In spite of changing morals in the past sixty years, "Pillow Talk" works because it is completely subtle in every way, even though rocks character is a bit morally ambiguous when you first meet him. But his charm is undeniable, and there is some irony in the small plot device of a women's doctor thinking that Rock has broken through some gender barrier. These twists and turns and tongue and cheek makes "Pillow Talk" a complete charmer that led to many similarly-themed romantic comedies that fell flat in comparison.
The first of three pairings of the team of Doris Day and Rock Hudson is without a doubt their best, a practically perfect affair to remember, and proof as to why 60 years later, Rock is the best known of Doris's co-stars. Each of their three films co-starred Tony Randall, and he is perfect here in the Ralph Bellamy failed second romantic lead role. Thelma Ritter is extremely funny as Day's constantly drunken housekeeper, getting Rock even more pie-eyed than herself when she schemes with him in her effort to get him and Doris together. Nick Adams is a delightful rich geek who tries unsuccessfully to seduce Doris, and Leee Patrick basically repeats the same role that she played in the previous year's "Auntie Mame".
A terrific screenplay and speedy direction is aided by beautiful color photography, some gloriously campy sets and several songs which Dora sings with her usual spunk. I found it ironic that her apartment overlooks the queensboro bridge, ironically the setting for "Sorry Wrong Number" which had a different type of telephone scenario. In spite of changing morals in the past sixty years, "Pillow Talk" works because it is completely subtle in every way, even though rocks character is a bit morally ambiguous when you first meet him. But his charm is undeniable, and there is some irony in the small plot device of a women's doctor thinking that Rock has broken through some gender barrier. These twists and turns and tongue and cheek makes "Pillow Talk" a complete charmer that led to many similarly-themed romantic comedies that fell flat in comparison.