Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter? (1957)

4 Stars (out of 4)

Pucker Punch

By Jeffrey M. Anderson

This masterpiece by Frank Tashlin may be his greatest film. It's a meta-movie taking aim at the newish invention of television (which was considered a threat to big screen movies) as well as the advertising industry. It includes several funny, fake ads, as well as a "break" in the middle of the film. Tony Randall stars as Rock Hunter, a lowly advertising man who comes up with an idea to save the firm's "Stay-Put Lipstick" account. All he has to do is get the glamorous movie star, Rita Marlowe (Jayne Mansfield), to endorse it. (She has "oh-so-kissable-lips.") Rita agrees, but the catch is that Rock must pose as her boyfriend, in order to make her real boyfriend, the star of "The Jungle Man," jealous. It works like gangbusters, and Rock becomes famous as Rita's "Lover Doll." He even starts getting promoted. Unfortunately, Rock's fiancee Jenny (Betsy Drake) doesn't like this one bit. Tashlin focuses on the question of whether success can truly be fulfilling, and his beautiful widescreen compositions reflect this, especially in the sequence in which Rock goes to visit the former company president, now happily growing roses. Randall gives a pitch-perfect comic performance, occasionally revealing his squeaky, meek side, but also convincingly becoming "Lover Doll." Mansfield has a more fully-rounded role here than in Tashlin's earlier, great The Girl Can't Help It, and she's hilarious. And Henry Jones as Rock's co-worker nails some of the movie's best dialogue. Joan Blondell co-stars as Rita's handler, and future "I Dream of Jeannie" star Barbara Eden appears in one scene. Best of all is the cameo by Groucho Marx, further demonstrating the connection/chasm between movies and TV.