Women's Pictures - Amy Heckerling's Look Who's Talking
Thursday, September 10, 2015 at 6:29PM 
For some as of yet unexplained reason, 1980s American movies experienced a baby boom. Movies about family are always popular, but from about 1983 to 1995, the box office went gaga for babies. Mr. Mom, 3 Men and a Baby, Raising Arizona, and even Junior showed that for a brief period of time, there was nothing funnier or more heartwarming in Hollywood than people who didn't want kids suddenly becoming parents. Amy Heckerling jumped onto this baby buggy bandwagon with her freshman screenwriting effort, Look Who's Talking.
Talking babies are now almost passe as a conceit, thanks to Real Baby Geniuses, Rugrats, and those creepy e*trade Superbowl ads. But in 1989, the idea was new enough for Roger Ebert to point it out in his 3 star review of the film. Still, minus the talking baby (voiced by Bruce Willis and only audible to the audience), the rest of Look Who's Talking is formulaic in the classic romcom way - there's a Meet Cute, then Opposites Attract, an Unlikely Romance starts, which ends in a Romantic Reveal and the requisite Happy Ending, all of which is predictable from the minute Kirstie Alley's water breaks in the back of John Travolta's taxi.
None of this is necessarily a bad thing. Amy Heckerling's talents as a director are of the kind that we don't usually reward with golden statues or the word "auteur." [More after the jump]
She has an eye for talent, a light touch, and the un-egotistical ability to let talent shine through onscreen. The large cast of on-the-verge stars in Fast Times at Ridgemont High has already been noted (an improbable feat of casting that Heckerling will replicate with her next iconic teen film). But though neither John Travolta nor Kirstie Alley was unknown in 1989, neither was at a career high either. Alley was just off Cheers and looking to prove her movie chops. Travolta hadn't made a film in five years. Both desperately needed a vehicle to show off their charismatic brand of comedy. And along came Look Who's Talking.
The film itself is a light bit of baby bubble, but it shows off Alley and Travolta at their best. Kirstie Alley can do sexy, slightly frazzled, and charmingly exasperated. John Travolta, who on his off days comes off as extremely creepy, instead seems here like Danny Zuko's slightly smarter older brother. Movies this light demand strong star chemistry to work well, and with Alley and Travolta, it works. As comic stars, Alley and Travolta are probably never better than they are in Look Who's Talking, so it's not surprising that the film re-launched both of their careers.
As a screenwriter, Amy Heckerling is already pulling from life experience and her own film love. The idea for Look Who's Talking came from her own experience with motherhood. Similarly, he jokes in the movie sound strikingly similar in their three part setup-and-punchline delivery method shared by 1930s slapstick or MAD Magazine - two major influences on Heckerling. For instance:
James: Whoa! You really got your fire back, didn't you?
Mollie: This is not my figure!
James: Well then, you got Dolly Parton's figure back!
The jokes sound stale because it's a style of setup that's mostly fallen out of favor now. However, Heckerling will perfect the style and delivery by 1995.
It probably sounds like I'm making a lot of excuses for Look Who's Talking. And to a certain degree, I am. It's a transition movie, nestled between Heckerling's more well-loved films, which shows her growth as a screenwriter and her skill as a director handling talent. Defamed movies like Look Who's Talking are what makes series like Women's Pictures difficult; not every director makes Weighty, Important Movies, and we have a tendency to overlook the value of fluffy genre flicks like this. Fortunately, the next film on our list needs very little justification. It spawned a fashion revolution, introduced an entire generation to Valley Speak, and redefined teen film (again). It's, like, totally time for Clueless.
This month on Women's Pictures...
9/17 Clueless (1995) (Amazon Instant Video) (Netflix) - Like we'd skip over this classic on its 20th anniversary? As if!
9/24 Vamps (2012) (Amazon Instant Video) - Amy Heckerling's literal suckfest, which weirdly gives us hope for the future.
Reader Comments (11)
Teen comedies, baby comedies, body switch comedies...ah, those crazy '80s!
You don't have to make excuses for Look Who's Talking when it actually is a decent studio release. The first one, not those dreadful sequels. Although, Rosanne's voice coming out of a little girl is cute at times, ultimately not enough to save it from the never should have been made pile of crap the studio system pumps out. How come no mention of the funniest line in the movie? Mollie is eating chips talking to the receptionist and says Albert is fucking me.
I got to see this for free at a pre-release screening at my alma mater the University of Kansas. And I saw it with the (very straight) guy that I was hopelessly in love with. So, it has a special place in my heart.
It's crude and sophomoric, but Travolta and Alley have chemistry and charisma to spare, and I've always loved Bruce Willis for "Moonlighting". It's silly and fun, and you forgot the Car Chase Cliche for the Climax, but it's perfect for rainy Saturdays, or with the Guy Who Should Have Been The One.
Just returned home from watching Photograph 51 and
1) I still can't believe I've seen Nicole Kidman act on stage;
2) She was wonderful! Yes, she brings the Virginia Woolf elements to this performance but it fits the character flawlessly; the dress, the hands in the pockets; the shy bearing but that's what the character is: single, devoted, probably a virgin. The play was 95 minutes in length with no interval which made the experience better. I'm often exhausted by really long plays.
3) There was no actOring on Kidman's part which was refreshing. In London I frequently see the "look, I went to drama school, here's me projecting" type of acting. I really forgot I was watching Nicole Kidman.
My favorite part of the experience was that I really enjoyed the story, it felt real. So wonderful of her to bring a science play to life. She also received a standing ovation, a rare feat in London.
Bravo and well done, Nicole!
Anne Marie: I kind of think you're way overstating how lucky Clueless looks in retrospect. Donald Faison and Jeremy Sisto became live-action TV staples (but ONLY Live-action TV staples) and Rudd deserved to break through to the wide world of cinema. But the rest of the cast? Brittany Murphy's high point (before she died) was playing the least interesting central character on King of the Hill (and when the shows fans have more affection for BOOMHAUER, that really says something), Alicia Silverstone ran into the brick wall that was Joel Schumacher's Batman & Robin, and I don't think I even have to go into the wastelands that are the careers of Stacey Dash, Elisa Donovan, Justin Walker and Breckin Meyer.
I liked much European Vacation and I think films of the of Amy Heckerling is one of her best (though she does not have a very exciting career, perhaps it is the problem of many women directors but often they are not responsible for this )
About Look Who's Talking is a cute movie.
I still say Kirstie Alley is a comedic gem. :)
I love when movies are a clear snapshot of the time in which they came out. This is definitely something that audiences today would be a bit confounded by. Also, Joan Rivers totally does the voice of the baby girl at the end. Uncredited cameo. I know this series. The less said about the third movie where it's dogs talking and not babies, the better.
A guilty pleasure for sure. ( I did even "liked" the sequels)
But I can never NEVER EVER hear that famous Beach Boys song "I get around" again without thinking for what it was used here. *lol*
Never. It's simply branded in my mind.
It still fits somehow...
I remember this movie because after I saw it as a kid, I was totally upset to find that John Travolta and Kirstie Alley weren't married in real life.
And I actually love the sequels. Zero shame about that.
Is this the one where Heckerking's credit is played over an open toilet bowl? NOT a smart choice. I actually stopped the movie after that.