Confidences sur l'oreiller

In spite of what we know now, Rock Hudson still convinces as a woman-chaser!! He was never considered to be a great actor but he convinced the public for years- so what dom the critics know? This movie is brilliant in every respect-script, plot , performances and the look of the whole thing. How can Doris Day be so sexy and virginal at the same time? Rock Hudson showed a real flair for comedy in this film and it is no wonder that every romantic comedy has been judged against the "Rock Hudson/Doris Day" movies. Even the Doris Day movies NOT starring Rock Hudson were called "Rock Hudson/Doris Day" !!! Doris Day was/is one of the most underrated actresses of the last 50 years. She could play comedy with perfect timing, but convince totally in dramas (check out "Love Me or Leave Me"-fantastic performance.) I must have watched this movie dozens of times and it is still true entertainment. If you have never watched one of her movies then make a point of doing so-yes they have dated, but what has not? Real talent not hype is what true stars have. By the way the 9/10 is because of the dated plot.

One of the first (and certainly the most popular) of the early-'60s bedroom comedies--movies about sex that never use the word, relying instead on double entendres, implications and innuendo. A New York City party-line connects a single working girl--a somewhat rigid and humorless interior decorator with a shapely figure--and a bachelor songwriter and ladies' man who has one tune for every new gal. They're enemies on the phone-line only; once he gets a good look at her (or rather, her shimmying behind on the dancefloor of a nightclub), he decides to woo her using the alias of a shy Texas cowboy. In their first of three pictures together, Rock Hudson and Doris Day share fresh, happy chemistry; their love scenes are convincing--Hudson is a great kisser--and soon Day is singing "Possess Me" to herself on the car-ride with Hudson to his pal's country hideaway. Tony Randall (who also appeared with Hudson and Day in both 1961's "Lover Come Back" and 1964's "Send Me No Flowers") and Thelma Ritter are equally terrific, and the picture has a lovely, cocktail lounge-styled plastic-perkiness which is very winning. With the advent of '60s permissiveness on the screen, "Pillow Talk" (with it's winking, nudge-nudge 'naughtiness') soon looked coy and antiquated; however, it holds up nicely today. Five Oscar nominations--including Day as Best Actress (her only such nomination!)--with one win: for Stanley Shapiro and Maurice Richlin's original screenplay from an initial treatment by Russell Rouse and Clarence Greene. *** from ****

Out of all the "Bedroom Comedies" of the 50's & 60's this is the best by far. Nothing else comes close to "Pillow Talk" with its witty script, stylish sets, and costumes and a great cast of "A" actors at their very best. Some movies wrap you up like a warm mink coat and make everything seem right in the world. 1950's New York looks fabulous, and I've always wanted to go one of those chic supper clubs decked out like Doris is here. This is one of those rare movies that make you laugh, no matter how many times you've seen it. How sad it is for some reviewers to take fault with Alma and her apparent drinking problem (only to find love herself and throw away the bottle!) or Rock's sexuality that some just can't get past. This is an elegant romp with Doris and Rock.

By 1958, Doris Day's career was on the downslide and something drastic needed to be done to revive her career. 1959'S PILLOW TALK redefined Doris' image and created an entirely new genre of the "will she or won't she" sex comedy as well as introducing one of the greatest romantic screen couplings in history...Doris Day and Rock Hudson. Day plays Jan Morrow, an interior decorator who shares her phone line with Brad Allen (Hudson) a song-writing playboy who ties up Doris' phone by singing love songs (actually the same song) over the phone to the parade of women in his life. Day's attempts to get a private phone line fail and she and Hudson begrudgingly come up with a system to share the phone which Hudson doesn't stick to. Tony Randall plays Jonathan Forbes, a rich playboy who is a client of Doris' and Rock's best friend, who is crazy about Doris but she doesn't feel the same way. One night, Brad discovers Jan at a nightclub and knowing she already hates him, pretends to be a wealthy Texan in order to romance her and this is where the fun begins. Yes, the story is dated because party lines are virtually a thing of the past but it is the linchpin upon which this story delightfully plays out. Director Michael Gordon cleverly uses split-screen images to put Doris and Rock together on screen in seemingly compromising positions, very adult for 1959 and watching Brad pretending to be cowboy Rex Stetson, trying to romance Jan while Brad tries to advise Jan over the phone about what a cad Rex is, is a lot of fun. Day lights up the screen here, in a luminous performance that earned her her first and only Oscar nomination. Hudson, previously only seen in dramatic films up to this point, turns out to be gifted farceur and interviews in his later years, always credited Doris for teaching him how to do comedy. Randall is comic perfection as Jonathan as is Thelma Ritter, who was also nominated for an Oscar for her work as Jan's housekeeper. A delight from start to finish that introduced a new movie couple that would give Fred and Ginger and Spenceer and Kate a run for their money.

In New York, the interior decorator Jan Morrow (Doris Day) and the wolf composer Brad Allen (Rock Hudson) share a party line, but Brad keeps it busy most of the time flirting with his girlfriends. They do not know each other but Jan hates Brad since she needs the telephone for her business and can not use it.

Coincidently Jan's wealthy client Jonathan Forbes (Tony Randall) that woos her is the best friend of Brad and he comments with him that he feels an unrequited love for Jan, who is a gorgeous woman. When Brad meets Jan by chance in a restaurant, he poses as a naive tourist from Texas named Rex Stetson and seduces her. But Jonathan hires a private eye to find who Rex Stetson is.

"Pillow Talk" is a delightful romantic comedy that improved my Saturday afternoon. This is the first time that I watch this movie and Doris Day and Rock Hudson show a great chemistry. But Thelma Ritter steals the movie in the role of the alcoholic housemaid Alma. The gags with the nurse and the obstetrician are also hilarious. My vote is eight.

Title (Brazil): "Confidências à Meia-Noite" ("Confidences at Midnight")