Tootsie

We could lament the fact that the most popular movie ever made about a man dressing as a woman is a defiantly normative comedic romp about a straight man trying to steal a job that should go to a woman - but who wants to complain, when the movie's as fun as "Tootsie"? Dustin Hoffman stars as a struggling actor who sees the brass ring waiting in front of him in the form of a female role on a soap opera. Employing contacts in the industry (he's got access to great makeup, after all,) he goes undercover, earning the role, and living life as Dorothy Michaels for as long as he can manage. The lessons learned about the gender gap - our character is shocked to find that women are leered at, disrespected in the workplace, and so on - are nothing new. But the only thing sharper than the dialogue, which provides a punchline-per-minute, is Hoffman's invigoratingly manic performance. Silly movies aren't crafted much better than this.

The Criterion Collection has outfitted this classic crowdpleaser with a litany of extras. We get started with a commentary track recorded by director Sydney Pollack (in 1991,) then move into interviews with Dustin Hoffman and Phil Rosenthal (collectively running about 40 minutes.) There's also an in-character interview where Hoffman's Dorothy Michaels sits down with Gene Shalit for a few moments. You'll also find a pre-production curiosity: There are about ten minutes of screen and wardrobe test footage included, shot with Hoffman. But this footage predates Pollack's involvement - it was done when Hollywood hippie legend Hal Ashby ("Harold and Maude," "Coming Home,") was attached to direct. It's a glimpse into alternate movie history.

Then you get two seperate "The Making of Tootsie" featurettes, completed decades apart. The first, from 1982 (and running 35 minutes long,) relies on footage from the making-of the movie: We intercut from fly-on-the-wall footage of the production to interviews conducted on the set in-between takes. Following that up is a 70-minute long feature, completed in 2007, entitled "A Better Man." This making-of documentary takes the long view, rather than staring into the production: It tells the narrative of "Tootsie"'s making, detailing Hoffman and Pollack's introduction to the project, and other anecdotes regarding its development. (Interviews with the cast and crew are also included on this one.) The making-of documentaries included on this disc are so comprehensive that they last as long as the movie itself!

The disc also includes trailers, and more than 10 deleted scenes as well, all presented in high-definition. By the time you finish going through all these extras - totaling well over two hours, even without including the commentary track - you're ready to watch the movie again. "Tootsie" may not be the best film released by Criterion. But in terms of video quality, extra features, and all other details, this may be the best release they issued in 2014.

"Tootsie"
Blu-ray
Criterion.com
$39.95