The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956)

David chose this movie for us to watch one night...I waited too long to blog it...
Jessica: Why did you choose this movie?
David: You wanted something you'd never seen before. And you wanted a classic movie.
J: What do you like about it?
D: I don't know. I guess I have good memories of it. I probably watched it for the first time when I was eleven or so. We'd go to Hastings... that was when I started to really like Hitchcock... I like the suspense.
J: What should people know about the plot?
D: Well, I don't want to give it away...
J: A little sound-bite.
D: I don't want to give it away... Family man Jimmy Stewart finds himself in the middle of intrigue along with his lovely wife Doris Day. It would give stuff away if I said anything else. Except I'll say this. There's a scene that can only be explained by the fact that Hitchcock wanted to have a scene in a taxidermist's.
J: Thanks.
D: No, thank you. This interview has been lovely.

Four stars, and I would watch it again. I also want to re-watch Hitchcock's 1934 version, because I saw it too long ago to remember just exactly how different it was...I assume no "Que sera sera..."

Young at Heart (1954)

Do not be fooled by Doris Day's cheeriness, nor by her silly songs on the beach.  Do not be fooled by the light-heartedness of three sisters playing music in the parlor and laughing about men.  This movie is actually dark and tortured.  The Tuttle sisters are all so happy in their lovely Connecticut home, playing music with their father, having witty conversations with Aunt Jessie (Ethel Barrymore), and laughing about their men.  When a composer named Alex arrives to stay, all is still happy and frivolous. Even the fact that all three sisters fall for Alex does not seem serious.  But enter Barney (Frank Sinatra), a troubled pianist, and all goes downhill fast.  Lori Tuttle (Doris Day) ditching Alex at the alter to run off with Barney is only the beginning of the horrifying drama.  Oh, one star.  I was annoyed with this movie and the characters long before it got dark.  The star is because Frank Sinatra sings multiple songs.  I will not see this again, but I am curious about the 1938 movie Four Daughters, of which this movie was apparently a remake.

PIllow Talk (1959)

"My pillow and I agree... there must be a boy for me."

And so goes the opening song...

When the movie begins, Jan (Doris Day) and Brad (Rock Hudson) have never met, but they share a party line.  Brad, player that he is, is always on the phone wooing some new girl.  Jan, furious that she never gets to use the phone and horrified by Brad's "sex mania," decides to lodge complaints and chew him out over the phone.  When Brad recognizes Jan's voice in a restaurant, he retaliates by adopting a new name and persona and trying to make her fall in love with him.

Part of the fun of this movie is the use of a split screen for phone calls.  Just as wonderful as the split screen moments are the moments when we get to hear Jan and Brad's thoughts.  "It couldn't be, or could it?"  So dramatic.  Or my favorite dueling thought moment:

in Jan's head: "He definitely respects me... He didn't even try to kiss me."

in Brad's head: "I'd say 5 or 6 dates oughtta do it."

And another great moment in Brad's head: "So that's the other end of your party line."  Hmmm.

Silly and fun.  Fours stars... would definitely watch again.  (And would like to see "Down with Love" again.)

Lover Come Back (1961)

Doris Day and Rock Hudson? Sign me up! Advertising agencies again...almost as much fun as the newspaper business.
I'm about 40 minutes in when I know for certain this was the inspiration for Down with Love - which was awesome. I just hope Doris doesn't get duped.
Three stars - one whole star for the hats!

Oh the hats! I wish I could show you a picture of each and every one! But is there ONE good picture of the hats on the internet? No there is not!


Tony Randall is awesome as Rock's bumbling boss and Ann B. Davis (Alice from the Brady Bunch) as Doris' secretary.

Renee Zellweger did an admirable imitation of Doris Day in Down with Love.
In Down with Love the two main characters are engaged in a public fight over women's liberation while at the same time the guy ends up wooing the girl under an assumed identity to get back at her.

In Lover Come Back they are basically just fighting over clients although there is a loud subtext about women who don't want to put out and men who sleep around.
I can't give this four stars because the ending is just too weird and unsatisfying. I won't give it away because you already KNOW it's a "happy" ending so the only fun part is how do they get together in the end and I can't deprive you of the enjoyment of discovering that, however limited that enjoyment might be.

Only if you've seen the weird Sandra Dee movie "Doctor, You've Got to Be Kidding" will you feel that the ending is vaguely familiar. Maybe they hired the same screenwriter to finish both scripts. Or maybe they just lost the last five pages and didn't feel like bothering with a re-write.

Regardless, enjoy the hats, enjoy the bizarre insight into product development, but don't hold your breath for the ending.

Tea for Two (1950)

Three stars - one for Uncle Max, one for the tap dancing one for Eve Arden.
Won't watch again - unless maybe in mute.

It seems to have been Doris Day Day on TCM this past Saturday. This early Doris flick is based on the broadway show "No No Nanette" it has a very silly premise that a girl and her guardian bet that she can't say "yes" to anything for 48 hours. Hilarity Ensues!

Featuring S.Z. Sakall - aka Sasha from Casablanca and the cook in Christmas in Connecticut. I'm getting so close to this man with the charming thick german accent combined with bumbling antics that make him non-threatening that I'm going to adopt him as my official vaguely-jewish honorary uncle. In fact, in the movie, he plays Uncle Max who is suprisingly BAD with money...what? What kind of vaguely jewish uncle is he?

Besides dear darling Uncle Sasha-Max, the best part of the movie is the tap dancing.*

Robert Osbourne of TCM tells me the songs all came from the vast library Warner Bros had purchased in anticipation of the advent of sound movies. Meaning, in Robert-Osbourne's euphemistic double-talk, that this music sat around for, oh, about 30 years and no-one cared to use it till now.

All the songs are pretty sappy and forgettable, but the dancing is great. Comparable to White Christmas.

I find it irritating that Nanette has to say "no" to anything she's asked, but sometimes she turns right back around and says "but I'll do it anyway!" - she a really bad cheater and it irks me, since that's the whole premise of the movie. If I were her Uncle Max, I'd have spanked her.

In typical DD fashion there is NO kissing, NO hugging, no emotion or sensuality of any kind. No stocking scenes, even! However, when the hero and heroine want to express their feelings and they can't dance, they lean their heads together and harmonize! Rapture!

*Strike that! Eve Arden is better than the tap dancing and I almost forgot! She gets a star of her own (I've had to revise to three stars). It's worth watching just for her reaction to DD. If the whole movie could be from her perspective, you'd have a classic. Just goes to show - a bitter and beautiful brunette is far more entertaining than an innocent blonde ANY day of the week. Even Doris Day Day.

That Touch of Mink (1962)

One Star. Will not watch again.


Oh my. Doris Day Day on TCM, or so it seems, and this has no dancing or singing, so it was hard to bear.

Cary Grant was by far the best part. Sexually frustrated CG is one of my favorite CGs to watch. He has his comedy down pat by '62 and he seems to be trying very hard to do his bit without ever being in the same scene with Doris Day.

Maybe that's because they were apparently intent on putting vaseline on the lens every time she appeared on screen since she had reached the ripe old age of - gasp - 38! Meanwhile, Cary Grant was - get this - 58 - and wasn't considered old enough to merit vaseline. A perfect example of Hollywood's age problem. A problem that it only seems to have with women.

Truth be told, though, DD's bit I'm not so fond of - Mary Tyler Moore does daffy better, in my opinion. Even Sally Field does indignant virgin better. But it's DD's schtick so if you love her, then here you go!

Costumes are mildly entertaining and the fashion show sequence is a nice touch.

Again, the same as in Yours Mine and Ours there is something vaguely Brady to these clean-clean comedies that try to be "romantic" comedies. You'd get more play taking your date to Shrek than you would watching this at the drive-in.