Pillow Talk

The 1959 romantic comedy, Pillow Talk, may look like a very corny and even incredible safe feature for what was originally being sold as provocative (at least for a movie released in the 1950s), yet that supposed naughtiness didn’t stop the film from doing pretty well. It was a huge hit at the box office (earning $18 million before inflation would be gargantuan by nowadays standards), reshaped the careers of both Doris Day and Rock Hudson, and even managed to win an Oscar for Best Original Screenplay (as well as getting nominations for Best Actress, Supporting Actress, Art Direction, and Score). Nowadays, it feels like a relatively fluffy movie with a naively kitsch factor rather than anything warranting of award press, but unlike some other films of the era (especially ones focused on romance), at least it doesn’t house anything overwhelmingly offensive.

An interior designer named Jan Morrow (played by Doris Day) is a single woman living in an apartment complex within New York City and constantly gets her business calls interrupted by her womanizing neighbor, Brad Allen (played by Rock Hudson) with whom she shares a phone line with. After starting a feud behind the faceless space of a telephone, Brad on accident finds himself meeting Jan and immediately finds her attractive, hiding who he is in order to start up one of his usual flings. With Jan taking to this new persona quite strongly, this relationship born on false pretences can only continue for so long as one of Jan’s clients, millionaire Jonathan Forbes (played by Tony Randall) who happens to be madly in love with her and is also Brad’s best friend, sees this rouse playing out and  prepares to break it up in order to have Jan for himself. This comes at an awkward moment as Brad has unexpectedly developed true feelings for Jan, which may all be for naught once the truth is revealed.

Pillow Talk wouldn’t blow anyone away in modern day due to featuring a familiar formula and a pretty cliched outcome, but through a solid script, passionate performers, inviting visuals, and not being as dated as you’d expect it to be, it turns out to be a pleasant blast from the past.

Originally picked up by RKO (Radio Pictures Inc.) in 1942, the script was eventually bought back by the original writers, Russell Rouse and Clarence Greene, after it failed to get produced, and it wouldn’t be until 1958 that they found a suitable business partner in Universal and Arwin Productions, a company owned by Martin Melcher (who acts as a producer on this film and was also married to Doris Day at the time). It’s pretty hilarious looking back at this movie and seeing how it was viewed as a seductive and risqué movie that had its fair share of complaints from the Production Code Administration (PCA) to the point that it even got its leads believing that it would either damage or spice up their careers. It’s ironic as by today’s standards, this movie is beyond tame and even very innocent in its portrayal of what could be a raunchier escapade, but it actually feels like the movie benefits from the simple-hearted nature. A lot of movies from the 50s haven’t aged very well, whether due to inserting in derogatory comments, outdated mindsets, or just viewpoints on things like love and relationships in a way that clearly wouldn’t fly today, and this movie, despite having advertising that looked pretty sexist from the outset, isn’t held down by that element too much. There are a few things that are a little awkward to get through and due to the more light-hearted angle the film has, these moments aren’t really treated as big of a deal as they should be (a man forcing himself on a woman just deserves a little talking down), but outside of that, the film doesn’t feel too dated to watch today, has a romance that, while certainly a little generic and cliched, isn’t demeaning to get through, the characters aren’t overly unlikeable, and the visual style and preppy script really help upgrade the film beyond just a simple romp.

The screenplay written by Stanley Shapiro and Maurice Richlin has a nice comedic side to it that really livens up what could be a little stale and familiar, and with solid actors who can keep up with that sardonic bite and wit, it results in a fairly enjoyable time. They aren’t knee-slappers or have anything really that inventive (even for 1950), but it’s well-written, paced and performed. The director for this film, Michael Gordon, was known for jumping between various different genres throughout his career going from B-movies, action films, film noirs, and melodramas, but he was forced to halt his career after being blacklisted as a Communist during the McCarthy era. This was the film that brought him back to work as well as his first romantic comedy, and with that knowledge, the results aren’t too bad. It’s kept at a brisk running time and paced accordingly, all the actors are led pretty well, it has a light atmosphere but does feel a tiny bit scandalous (at least for the time), and while the story isn’t fruitful enough to really last that long, it doesn’t feel like you’re wasting time getting through it.

This movie was credited with redefining and even reinvigorating the careers of both Doris Day and Rock Hudson, who were both well-known Hollywood names, but were being seen as ‘’old news’’ by some in the industry. The fact this film was seen as a bit more risqué is actually what made it more appealing for someone like Doris Day, who was comfortably seen as the ‘’girl next door’’ archetype and was hoping that being a role that allowed her to be an object for lustful desire, would shake up how people saw her. It seemed to do that fairly well and was even the first time Day would ever be nominated for an Oscar, and while it’s hard to say she truly throws away that kind of homely and gentile persona as a lot of her attitude and manner of speaking still feels like something akin to a sitcom wife, she actually proves to be pretty likeable in this. It’s nice seeing a working woman portrayed in this time period as not just a stick-in-the-mud who has to be ‘’taught’’ how a real woman ‘’should act’’ (it is kind of in there, but not to a degree that feels like it should be taken seriously), and while she definitely has the look and voice the role is asking for, she really shines in the comedic portions, where her timing, delivery and expressions are pretty effective.

This can also be said for Rock Hudson, who was initially very against being in the movie as he feared it would damage his ‘’masculine persona’’ (with the fact that he was a deeply closeted gay man probably factoring into that paranoia), but was eventually convinced by Day to take part, and he also feels very natural here. His character is a little annoying to begin with due to his careless playboy demeanor and the fact that his actions are pretty childish and cruel, but as it continues, he mellows out a bit and he’s not too bad, especially in comparison to Tony Randall, whose character is so childish and desperate that he feels pretty pathetic even if the acting is perfectly fine. Strangely, while Day and Hudson actually have good chemistry, it actually isn’t in a romantic sense as much as it is a comedic sense. There are a lot of factors that play into this like the romance being very standard of the era and not really feeling that interesting nowadays (they look attractive and say they like each other, that’s all it needed to be back then), but when they play off each other during the comedic parts, they spar between each other very smoothly and it feels very natural. Most of the other actors only play bit parts, but they work with the tone pretty well and some even manage to stand out in that brief time, like Allen Jenkins, Marcel Dalio, Lee Patrick, Mary McCarty, Alex Gerry, Perry Blackwell and especially Thelma Ritter (who even got an Oscar nomination).

The look of the film is quite inviting, with a visual style that feels very colorful and vibrant, but not in an overly showy manner. Despite being attached to a large film studio with big name actors, the film doesn’t feel like it needed a ton of money as none of the locations they go to are that dramatic or grand from a visual standpoint, mainly only jumping between apartment complexes, small cabins or even just a nightclub. There are times where you can tell they aren’t showing certain moments probably because they didn’t have time or money to shoot it (like how they go through dates just by inserting their faces over stock footage of the city) but it feels like a lot of effort was put into making some of these sets at least look interesting without feeling abnormal. Given the lead is an interior designer, it’s fitting that some of the rooms on display are fancily done up, with the art direction for this film handled by Richard H. Riedel, Russell A. Gausman and Ruby R. Levitt managing to be intricately orchestrated, yet never overwhelming or too extravagant.

The colors are distinct, yet the shades are fairly toned down and feel almost chalky, it feels very pastel and soft like something out of a children’s den. It keeps up with the film’s lighter atmosphere in some ways, but clashes with the supposed sexual drive the film has going for it, so even it is a little confused, it does give the film more of a softer identity by today’s standard, and there are times when the visual design does play into a hint of that risqué nature (the final design of Rock Hudson’s apartment after it was redesigned by Day is pretty funny). There is usage of a split screen whenever the characters are talking on the phone and that also fits in with this world (even if that also feels like something right out of a sitcom and not a raunchy sexy flick), but the movie doesn’t really do many other tricks like that, it is play relatively straightforwardly and given that some of these moments were seen as scandalous back then, it’s a little funny now.

Pillow Talk may have a suggestive title and present itself as being something meant to be viewed in hushed tones and sheltered eyes, but it really doesn’t feel like that in today’s landscape (when the most provocative thing you have going for yourself in terms of smut is touching feet on opposing walls in a bathtub, it shows the tolerance for saucy material over the passage of time). In spite of that, the film is honestly a decent watch all these years later, with most of the flaws being more components of narrative direction and genre faults rather than a problem with the time period and writing choices, and even with that in mind, it still houses solid performances, a good fun script, and a bright and pleasing visual design. There are classics in every decade, and even if this isn’t anything outstanding, it’s a pleasant surprise that is worth checking out. Very little bedroom time for a movie with Pillow in the title, but one that will prevent any sudden naps.