In the wake of last week’s Ishtar revelation, I’ve been thinking more about professional criticism and its impact on the arts. I’m also two-thirds of the way through my Doris Day complete filmography watch, and happily, these two things converge with Doris’s follow-up film to Pillow Talk, Please Don’t Eat the Daisies (Disc/Download).
Starring David Niven as a New York theater critic and Doris Day as his long-suffering wife (boy does she suffer…), this film is part social satire and part retro HGTV makeover show. As Niv takes a slow trip on the “downalator” toward negativity and pithy quips in his column, Doris is left to raise their four rambunctious sons- one of whom she keeps in a literal cage (not that I blame her). She is also tasked with smoothing over disagreements between critic/playwrights, moving the household from the city to the suburbs, renovating a mansion that looks like a former residence of The Munsters, looking the other way when a floozy actress tries to seduce her husband, putting on a charity play for her new town, and doing it all while looking like Doris-freaking-Day. Perfectly tailored outfits, perfect hair, perfect makeup, and perfect hats. Always, the hats. When her husband admonishes her for calling herself a housewife, saying she’s so much more than that, she replies, “So is every other housewife.” Even her dialogue is perfect. Part of me wishes she’d just leave the husband, leave the kids, and run off with the local non-binary veterinarian.
This is a great movie to watch with a cocktail because there are plenty of Sardi’s scenes, plenty of cocktail parties, and plenty of times when I want to throw a drink at David Niven. While watching Please Don’t Eat the Daisies, I recommend drinking this Gin Daisy.
Gin Daisy
2 oz Gin
¾ oz Cointreau
¾ oz Lemon Juice
¼ oz Grenadine
Splash of Soda Water
Lemon twist and fresh mint (garnish)
Combine gin, Cointreau, lemon juice, and grenadine in a shaker with ice. Shake until chilled, then strain into a glass filled with fresh ice. Top with a splash of soda water, and stir gently to combine. Garnish with a lemon twist, fresh mint, and a daisy (optional).
Eventually, Niv realizes he’s being an ass both in his column and in his personal life and goes crawling back home, where Doris is waiting with open arms. I will say, as much as I have my reservations about this couple on paper, on film the pairing is electric. The two actors have terrific chemistry, and it’s a joy to see Doris in a sexier role than she’d typically played before her breakthrough in Pillow Talk. Although the critical mass at the time gave this film a tepid response, this modern critic enjoyed it more than I expected to. I’d even go so far as to call it a “Hooten Holler”-in’ good time (see, you can still make jokes and be nice). Cheers!
Cinema Sips 