Pete 'n' Tillie (1972)

User Rating:

5.8/10   

Director:

Martin Ritt

Writers:

Peter De Vries (story)
Julius J. Epstein (writer)

Release Date:

11 June 1973 (Denmark)

Genre:

Drama | Comedy

Plot Keywords:

Pun | Homosexual | Practical Joke | Marriage | San Francisco California

Awards:

Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 1 win & 4 nominations

Cast

Walter Matthau	...	Pete
Carol Burnett	...	Tillie
Geraldine Page	...	Gertrude
Barry Nelson	...	Burt
Rene Auberjonois	...	Jimmy Twitchell (as René Auberjonois)
Lee Montgomery	...	Robbie (as Lee H. Montgomery)
Henry Jones	...	Mr. Tucker
Kent Smith	...	Father Keating
Philip Bourneuf	...	Dr. Willet
Whit Bissell	...	Minister
Timothy Blake	...	Lucy Lund

Runtime:

100 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Certification:

Finland:K-16 | Sweden:Btl | USA:PG

Company:

Universal Pictures

Goofs:

Factual errors: The song Strangers In The Night, first recorded in 1966, is heard on a jukebox in a scene set several years earlier.

Movie Connections:

Featured in "American Masters: Carol Burnett: A Woman of Character" (2007)

A nice and obscure film

Walter Matthau and Carol Burnett are Pete and Tillie. They meet each other in their middle aged years. Pete is a smarmy rogue who likes Tillie, but has a smug way of showing it. Tillie feels that he is a bit of a dog himself, but she knows that she can't get anyone better than him. The courting of their relationship takes up about half of the film with a few dry laughs. Matthau delivers his lines so naturally, you know that if he was to do drama, it could only be tragicomedy. Burnett does well in a serious role and has one cathartic scene as she curses God for the loss of her 9 year old son. She has a wild fight scene with Geraldine Page that's pretty humorous. Only a small part of this story is dedicated to their parenthood as they soon learn their son is diagnosed with a terminal illness. The son dies. Tillie mourns. Pete takes it just limp. Not much emotion is shown in his performance , which I felt was understated correctness. Pete and Tillie soon separate and divorce amicably. It seems sad, but it's simply a slice of life look at two ordinary people who really don't have much in common. I like the concept that these old 70's Hollywood movies had in that they don't stress that all leading couples have to be beautiful or even attractive. Burnett and Matthau had their own charisma, which was shown in their talent. This is not a great film, but it's worth a look for innocuous entertainment.