Excellent but underrated film

Absolutely Fantastic

The biggest problem with this movie is it’s a little better than you think it might be, which somehow makes it worse. As in, it takes itself a bit too seriously, which makes most of the movie feel kind of dull.

This movie tries so hard to be funny, yet it falls flat every time. Just another example of recycled ideas repackaged with women in an attempt to appeal to a certain audience.

Cast: My favorite--Gladys Hotchkiss played by Carol Haney. A fine actress with an interesting voice...and she's an excellent dancer. Otherwise, a little overacting by some of the other characters (Vernon Hines and Sid Sorokin, come to mind).Songs: Catchy tunes including "There Once Was A Man (I Love You More)". Famous songs such as "Hernando's Hideaway". Doris Day has an excellent voice; she hits high, loud parts perfectly. The rest of the songs are standard for musicals of that era.Dance Numbers: A couple of standouts--"Once-A-Year Day!" and "Steam Heat". The latter has an eerie resemblance to Michael Jackson signature moves and clothing.Dialog: Quite unremarkable...as evidenced by the fact that 2,311 people have rated this film on IMDb but the "Quotes" page contains only two entries.Scenery: Again, a couple of excellent sets at the factory and the park. Otherwise, standard for musicals of this era.Problems: I thought that Babe Williams and Sid Sorokin fell in love way, way too quickly.

When I watched this film, I was VERY surprised to see the subplot involving the jealous boyfriend (Eddie Foy Jr.) Such extreme jealousy is NOT funny--though it was sure meant to be. And late in the film when he chased his girl with a knife--tossing them right and left at her...funny?! It's pretty amazing that insane pathological violence was seen as a laugh-getter back in the day! As for the plot of "The Pajama Game", it plays a LOT like a musical-comedy version of "Norma Rae"! Seriously....it really is very similar. Doris Day plays a spunky union rep who is pushing her company for a 7 1/2 cent an hour raise--and the pig-headed boss is willing to let the business go to pot for 7 1/2 cents. Stuck in the middle is John Raitt--who represents the company BUT who is also infatuated with Day. What's to happen? See the film.This is a decent musical overall but not much more. Some of the songs are very familiar and quite good, while some seem inexplicable, as they seem to have nothing to do with the plot and just seemed crammed in regardless (such as "Steam Heat" and "Hernando's Hideaway"). Also, when it comes to Day's singing, you might find (like I did) that it came off as brash--as she belted out tune after tune with little grace--just LOTS of power. In fact, though he never went on to star in another film, Raitt came off pretty well in this one and you wonder why he didn't get more opportunities in films--though apparently his career on stage was quite long and successful.

I have never seen the pajama game before this week when I managed to get a copy of the DVD. I was too young in the 50's and it hasn't been around much since then. I was a bit apprehensive, another movie I caught up with late was Flower Drum Song and I've yet to take to that. However, this was a joy from go to whoa. Yes, it was stagey and some of the numbers, although well done and entertaining were not what you would get nowadays, so that took some mental adjustment, but once the brain was in gear - WOW! Doris we know and love, Calamity Jane is a standard in this house, (I can't wait until my kids see this!) but the stage ensemble who transferred seamlessly - according to the previous writers, who have the advantage of me in that they knew the stage show - make the whole thing go with a bang. Let's face it you could have Doris sing the phone book, and it would be entertaining, so you can't judge a show by her. But Carol Haney, John Raitt (swoon, swoon) et al are fantastic and I wish I'd been born 20 years earlier and lived in New York if this is what I've missed. I loved that there were real people in this, an older lady - Reta Shaw? - and Barbara Nichols? and others. My only gripe with the whole thing is that I am sick of having women dancers groins thrust into my face during dance sequences, and just when I thought we'd managed without it, the Once a Year Day sequence let me down. However, I thoroughly enjoyed the rest of the movie, There Was A Man, Hey There, etc. I've been raving about this all week, and the songs wont go away. Now that's a sign of a good musical.

One of the most popular musicals of the early 1950s received a reasonable film adaptation here courtesy of Stanley Donen and Broadway legend George Abbott. For me, the main object of interest here is the presence of original cast members John Raitt and Carol Haney in the film. They are two performers who were popular on Broadway but were often replaced for film versions of their hits. John Raitt was said to be "un-photogenic" but he had an incredible singing voice and personally I found him suitably attractive and at the same time very down to earth. Carol Haney was a big discovery for me here because previously I've only heard about her dancing, but here in "Steam Heat" we get to see just how really special she was. She and Bob Fosse collaborated here obviously, and the result is truly fresh and inventive. I also like how she plays her character, a very good drunk scene included.Doris Day, what can you say? Sometimes I like her, as in "Calamity Jane", but for some reason I just couldn't enjoy her in this role. Part of the problem, for her and Raitt both, was how quickly they're supposed to be professing love for each other. After the great build-up with all the workplace tension, it's hard to accept. I was dreading through the whole film hearing her sing "Hernando's Hideaway" and I was so pleased to find out that it was one of Haney's numbers. Very well staged by the way, a very good version of that song.This has never been one of my favorite shows to listen to, but I always wanted to at least see the film version so I could know the story. Other than "Hey There" and "Hernando's Hideaway" none of the songs have really appealed to me, and some like "Once a Year Day" and "Not at all in Love" are kind of awful in their cloying way. I suppose you could say that style matches Day very well, but it's the mode I don't like seeing Day in. However Raitt, Haney, and Eddie Foy Jr. do come together and give the movie quite a bit of class.