Why “Tootsie” is one of my favorite films

I learned a lot about being a woman from the 1982 Dustin Hoffman hit, “Tootsie.”

The reason is rooted in the phrase, “Been down so long it looks like up to me.”  That line is not in the movie, but the fact is that women have been so subjugated and derided all our lives that we don’t even see it any more.  We just comply to get along.

But when an out of work actor masquerades as a women to land a role in a soap opera, we get to see the world of being a woman through his eyes, and it’s a wake-up call.

The film was nominated for ten academy awards and in 2000 the American Film Institute ranked Tootsie as the second funniest film of all time.

Whether you’ve seen it before or not, I recommend watching it again, because it’s timeless. 

But here is the best part.  I just came across this three-minute interview with Dustin Hoffman about the making of the film.  He reveals his epiphany in discovering something that every woman has sadly already experienced.

It’s quite an eye opener.  Have a hanky ready.

Watch the 3-minute here: Dustin Hoffman clip