‘Tootsie’: Does the 1982 gender-bender hold up?
ToI's movie maven and deputy editor take a 2026 look at the classic tale of an out of work actor who masquerades as a woman to bring home some bacon
Welcome to The Reel Schmooze with ToI film reviewer Jordan Hoffman and host Amanda Borschel-Dan, where we bring you all the entertainment news and film reviews a Jew can use.
Continuing in our decade-by-decade comedy viewing, this week’s featured Schmooze film is 1982’s “Tootsie.”
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Starring Dustin Hoffman as the gender-bending Michael Dorsey/Dorothy Michaels, the supporting roles are equally star-studded, with 1980s greats Jessica Lange (who won an Oscar for her role), Teri Garr, Dabney Coleman, and Charles Durning.
Sydney Pollack directs — and shares the spotlight in several scenes as the beleaguered agent. But the true scene-stealer is a young Bill Murray, who plays Hoffman’s playwright roommate.
Although set in a daytime drama (don’t say “soap opera!”) in the 1980s, the feminist questions raised are still all too relevant.
So put on your shoulder pads and let’s hear who gave this film an “oy,” “meh” or the prized “not bad” this week on The Reel Schmooze.
The Reel Schmooze is produced by Ari Schlacht and can be found wherever you get your podcasts.