Jassica lange and Dustin Hoffman

Tootsie is the funniest cross dressing film since Some Like it Hot.  In both films a man, or men, dress as women with great comic results.  Both have men falling in love with a woman while in drag.  The difference is that Some Like it Hot is played entirely for laughs while Tootsie tries to make a feminist statement about women being strong and respected.

Michael Dorsey is a starving actor in New York, waiting tables and waiting for a break.   He has been at it for years and has earned a reputation for speaking his mind and pissing off directors.  Thus he has a hard time getting work.   He eventually becomes so desperate that he secretly auditions for a role on a soap opera as a woman, Dorothy Michaels.  He not only gets the job but becomes a sensation.

Michael had originally coached his friend Sandy for the part, but she was quickly dismissed for being too easy going.  As Dorothy, Michael impresses the producers of the show by standing up to the director.  Later he/she takes things further by making his/her character on the show stronger than actually written.  This hits a chord with co-stars and fans alike.

Michael took the job so as to earn money to produce his roommate's play, that he and Sandy will star in.  Complications, of course, arise.  He falls in love with a co-star on the show, Julie, who only knows him as Dorothy.  Things get even more complicated when Julie's father falls for Dorothy.     

The film stumbles a bit during Dorothy's dramatic scenes.  Most notably is when he is in bed with Julie and she is talking about her life.  At such close proximity it would be obvious that he is a man.  Michael acts tender and loving in this scene while Julie thinks she is confiding in a friend and not someone horny for her.   This scene makes Michael creepy.  A similar scene takes place in Some Like it Hot, but it is played completely for laughs and as such is one of the most classic comedy scenes in film history.

The scene, as well as the entire trip to Julie's father's farm, is meant to teach Michael that Julie is not just a sexual conquest, but a real person.    I get where the movie wants to go, but this is about a man lying to people who trust him, and playing with their emotions.   These scenes undermine Michael and make him a less likable character. 

Tootsie works best when focused on the comedy. Hoffman is very convincing in drag. He looks like a conservative, English school teacher.  Any time he acts up while in costume the movie is a hoot!   Jessica Lange is absolutely gorgeous is this movie.  She radiates a charm not seen on the big screen since Marilyn Monroe.  Teri Garr has a thankless role but has some great lines, "No, we are not friends. I don't take this shit from friends. Only lovers." Bill Murray steals a few scenes as Michael's roommate.  "You slut!"  This is also Geena Davis's film debut.  Her most memorable scene is when she is wearing only her under wear in front of Dorothy and he says, "What kind of mother would I be if I didn't give my girls tits... tips?"

Tootsie is a great situation comedy but it over states the message of respecting woman for more than sex.    "I was a better man with you, as a woman... than I ever was with a woman, as a man."   The men in Some Like it Hot learn how it is to be a woman in a man's world without getting sidetracked by it.  Tootsie remains a great film but it falls off the comic rail once too often. 

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