---
title: "Look Who's Talking"
year: 1989
kind: "film"
canonical: "https://film.one/film/look-whos-talking"
fi1m_id: "look-whos-talking"
imdb_id: "tt0097778"
tmdb_id: 9494
wikidata_id: "Q1324330"
fi1m_score: 71
critics_score: 65
critics_reviews: 5
published: "2026-10-04T20:53:30.863297+00:00"
updated: "2026-10-04T20:53:41.936105+00:00"
region: "US"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Look Who's Talking (1989)

Directed by Amy Heckerling · 1h 36m · MPA PG-13 · Comedy, Romance

## Identity

Look Who's Talking

- **Canonical:** https://film.one/film/look-whos-talking
- **Type:** Film
- **Fi1m ID:** look-whos-talking
- **IMDb ID:** tt0097778
- **TMDB ID:** 9494
- **Wikidata ID:** Q1324330
- **Same entity:** https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0097778/, https://www.themoviedb.org/movie/9494, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q1324330

**Fi1m score: 71** · Critics 65 (early) from 5 reviews

*In a sentence:* The baby has Bruce Willis’s voice and considerably more confidence than the adults

> *Look Who’s Talking* is a slight, amiable comedy whose adult company proves more appealing than its talking-baby trick. John Travolta and Kirstie Alley make it worth an evening, even when the jokes grow predictable.

## Synopsis

The story begins with a sperm race, before giving a baby a running commentary of his own. Mikey (voiced by Bruce Willis) supplies the wisecracks as Mollie (Kirstie Alley) and James (John Travolta) occupy the adult side of a story about motherhood and romance. Rosie (Olympia Dukakis) and Albert (George Segal) are among the other grown-ups around him. The adults talk to one another; Mikey lets us hear what he thinks. His voice turns the arrival of a baby into a conversation in which not everyone can hear all the speakers.

## Review

Amy Heckerling’s *Look Who’s Talking* has a premise that sounds capable of exhausting itself before the story has properly begun: give a baby Bruce Willis’s voice and let him comment on the adults. It lasts rather better than that suggests. This is an enjoyable romantic comedy, helped considerably by performers who make its thinly written grown-ups pleasant company. We would recommend it for them, with reasonable expectations about how far the baby jokes can stretch.

The opening sperm race gives the idea a suitably undignified start. We laughed at the spectacle of conception being treated as a competitive event, which is considerably less coy than the talking-baby premise sounds. Amy Heckerling, who also writes, understands the usefulness of getting the audience past embarrassment early. The baby commentary becomes more predictable as the film goes on.

Bruce Willis gives Mikey’s remarks enough brisk assurance to make the first few seem funnier than they deserve. The pleasure is in hearing that much adult certainty attached to a baby, and his delivery does most of the work. Repetition is the difficulty: once the mismatch has registered, each wisecrack needs to offer something beyond another reminder of the premise. Some of the later lines are only mildly amusing.

John Travolta is the stronger reason to stay. As James, he brings a gentleness that makes the romantic material easier to believe, allowing vulnerability without asking us to applaud him for it. Kirstie Alley gives Mollie enough appeal to keep the adult exchanges from becoming mere pauses between comments from Mikey. Together they make us interested in conversations that would look rather ordinary on the page, although neither can disguise how lightly the characters have been written.

Thomas Del Ruth’s cinematography serves the performances competently, without providing much additional pleasure when the writing slackens. Reuben Freed’s production design is similarly unobtrusive, and does little to make these adults seem more distinctive. Neither contribution gets in the way of the comedy, but we could have used a stronger sense of the lives surrounding the jokes. The cast is left to supply most of that interest.

Debra Chiate’s editing has to keep the adult exchanges moving while making space for a voice that nobody on screen can answer. The interruptions work often enough, though their rhythm becomes familiar well before the film is over. David Kitay’s music contributes to the agreeable tone without making the weaker passages noticeably funnier or warmer. At 96 minutes, the film is not punishingly long, but a few fewer remarks from Mikey might still have helped.

A romantic comedy needs us to enjoy spending time with its central pair, and this one manages that. Its treatment of motherhood is less satisfying, because the baby’s running commentary is allowed to do too much of the work. The charm survives, although anyone hoping for sharply drawn adults may find the thin characterisation wearing. Choose it for John Travolta and Kirstie Alley, and allow the smallest member of the cast a little indulgence.

*Fi1m score 71, published 4 October 2026.*

## Straight answers

**How long is Look Who's Talking, and what is it rated?**

*Look Who's Talking* runs 1h 36m and is rated PG-13 by the MPA in the US. It is a comedy and romance film.

**Where can I watch Look Who's Talking in the US?**

*Look Who's Talking* is streaming on Tubi in the US, and it is also available to rent from Amazon Prime Video from $3.99. It leaves Tubi on 1 October. Availability is checked daily; the links above go straight to each service.

**What should I watch after Look Who's Talking?**

After *Look Who's Talking*, try [*The Kid*](https://film.one/film/the-kid) (1921, Fi1m 84): A child’s presence brings out adult tenderness without doing away with the mischief. Then [*Tokyo Godfathers*](https://film.one/film/tokyo-godfathers) (2003, Fi1m 82): Unexpected childcare turns mismatched companions into an affectionate, argumentative family of sorts.

### Reviews we read (5)

- **Los Angeles Times**, Chris Willman (85/100, inferred): Willman finds the film surprisingly charming and smart, with enough witty adult interplay to balance its baby-talk gimmick. He especially praises John Travolta’s gentle, vulnerable performance and Kirstie Alley’s appealing work. [Read](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1989-10-13-ca-93-story.html)
- **Time Out**, SFe (70/100, inferred): The review frames the film as a humorous, direct take on motherhood. It singles out the opening images of tadpoles swimming through a neon womb. [Read](https://www.timeout.com/movies/look-whos-talking)
- **The New York Times**, Janet Maslin (64/100, inferred): The page is blocked, so the critic’s verdict cannot be determined. No specific praise or complaint is available in the provided text. [Read](https://www.nytimes.com/1989/10/13/movies/review-film-alley-and-travolta-in-look-who-s-talking.html)
- **Radio Times**, John Ferguson (3/5): Ferguson presents the film as a smash hit that revived John Travolta’s career. He praises Bruce Willis’s wisecracking baby voice performance and the film’s high-concept premise. [Read](https://www.radiotimes.com/movie-guide/b-dt2lg9/look-whos-talking/)
- **Empire**, Mark Cooper (45/100, inferred): Cooper finds the comedy amusing but slight, with a novel premise that does not rise above its modest standards. He praises the opening sperm-race sequence and Bruce Willis’s voice, while faulting the grown-up characters as too cardboard. [Read](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/look-talking-2-review/)

## Details

- **Director:** Amy Heckerling
- **Director:** Amy Heckerling
- **Writer:** Amy Heckerling
- **Cinematography:** Thomas Del Ruth
- **Editor:** Debra Chiate
- **Music:** David Kitay
- **Production design:** Reuben Freed
- **Costume design:** Molly Maginnis
- **Producer:** Jonathan D. Krane
- **Cast:** John Travolta as James; Kirstie Alley as Mollie; Olympia Dukakis as Rosie; George Segal as Albert; Abe Vigoda as Grandpa; Bruce Willis as Mikey (voice); Twink Caplan as Rona; Jason Schaller as Mikey
- **Runtime:** 1h 36m
- **Certificate (MPA):** PG-13
- **Release (the US):** 13 October 1989
- **Genres:** Comedy, Romance
- **Budget:** $8 million
- **Box office:** $297 million

## Where to watch in the US

- Tubi: free, hd, leaving 2026-10-01
- Amazon Prime Video: rent $3.99, uhd
- Amazon Prime Video: buy $14.99, uhd

*Checked 2026-10-04.*

Also available in: AR, AT, AU, BE, BG, BR, CA, CL, CO, CZ, DE, DK, ES, FI, FR, GB, HR, IE, IN, IT, JP, LT, MX, NL, NO, NZ, PL, PT, RO, RS, SE, TR, US. Add `?region=XX` to this URL for another country.

## Awards

- Kids' Choice Award for Favorite Movie 1990: Kids' Choice Award for Favorite Movie (won)

## If you liked this

- *Baby Boom* (1987): Another comedy about parenthood disrupting adult plans, with a sharper working heroine.
- *The Kid* (1921), Fi1m 84: A child’s presence brings out adult tenderness without doing away with the mischief. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/the-kid.md)
- *Little Nicholas* (2009): Another child’s perspective makes adult behaviour look peculiar, with a gentler comic touch.
- *Tully* (2018): For a more bruising account of motherhood, exhaustion and the need for help.
- *Tokyo Godfathers* (2003), Fi1m 82: Unexpected childcare turns mismatched companions into an affectionate, argumentative family of sorts. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/tokyo-godfathers.md)

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/film/look-whos-talking