Whenever I want to see what real acting is, I always go to
Tootsie, which I consider to be one of the greatest comedies of all time. On the surface, you immediately think of "Oh, the movie where
Dustin Hoffman dresses up as a woman". Sure, it's got that, but I think the movie is a great commentary about 'working actors' and the absurd things they have to deal with and go through to get a role in something.....anything. Now, about
Dustin Hoffman.....
This is an actor at his peak. He hasn't really been able to top himself after playing the duel role of
Michael Dorsey / Dorothy Michaels. Okay,
Rain Man is pretty good too. I think the role is definitely a showcase for him as
Dorothy, but in all honesty, he is just as great as
Michael. To be able to do both parts convincingly and have weight to it, just shows you how frickin' awesome
Hoffman is here. Think about it, most actors would spend too much time on one character at the expense of the other if it meant more screen time.
As far as his portrayal as
Dorothy, his performance STILL blows me out of the water every single time. No matter how many times I have seen this, I always catch myself getting sucked into the movie to the point where I sometimes forget that it's even
Hoffman underneath that wig and that it's really some chick, which is another great commentary on what women have to go through on a daily basis in just being a woman in today's society. Even though the movie came out in the early 80's, it's still just as relevant today. Just a pitch-perfect performance
Hoffy for sure. Truly amazing and extremely funny. FYI, to this day, I still curse the
Academy Awards for giving the
Oscar to
Ben Kingsley for
Gandhi. Really? Highway robbery!!
Moving on. As great as Hoffman is, it's still a movie that only works if the sandbox he is playing is stacked with other great characters and actors and
Tootsie is loaded with them.
Bill Murray, Teri Garr, Jessica Lange, Dabney Coleman, Geena Davis, Charles Durning and
George Gaynes make this an absolute must see movie. Hell, even the director himself,
Sydney Pollack was awesome in his role too. Everyone has a great scene to call their own and this is why the movie never bores me. It's got great scene after great scene with some real humor as well as deep emotional weight when things begin to cross the line. The corker of course is the the reveal when he undresses to reveal the "real him" on live TV. It. Is. Awesome! Watching him trying to "ad lib" and think on his feet while he "creates" a logical story line to justify the whole scenario as plausible to work within the Soap Opera he is on makes me laugh every damn time.
I highly recommend this as a must-
Buy. Even though I've seen this movie more times than I can count, this is actually the first time I've gotten to check out the
25th Anniversary Edition DVD. Gonna hit the bonus stuff now.........