Review of She's Having a Baby (1988) by Pat M — 16 May 2014

Probably that only John Hughes directed film that I hadn't seen multiple times. When it came out, I was more into Hughes' Brat Pack films and wash not as into a story about young married couples and getting pregnant.

Now that I'm in my 40s, I think I appreciated this film much more than I did when it originally came out. I also used to be a Kevin Bacon hater at the time, which didn't help my disposition towards the film, but now I like him much more.

The story is about a young newlywed couple, Kevin Bacon and the still underused Elizabeth McGovern, and their trials and tribulations of married life and making the transition from crazy college kids to responsible adults.

I was in my 30s when I got married, so I didn't identify with this part of the film so much, but it was still entertaining and done in a very honest manner. Alec Baldwin, in an early role, does a good job laying Bacon's less responsible single friend who is living the wild single life that Bacon could still see himself living.

I identified more with the film about the having a baby elements and the responsibility and life change that comes with that. Watching this film now, it really reminded me of the sincere Judd Apatow comedies.

Though not as outrageous as something like "The 40 Year Old Virgin" it doe shrve the same sincerity and heart at the center of the film, which makes the humor more true and identifiable. The film also has a terrific supporting cast including Holland Taylor, William Windom, Nancy Lenehan, Dennis Dugan, John Ashton, Larry Hankin (a couple standouts as bickering neighbors) and Hughes regulars like Bill Erwin, Paul Gleason and Edie McClurg.

You also get Al Leong, Lili Taylor as Girl at Medical Lab and Dan Aykroyd and John Candy reprising their roles as Roman and Chet from "The Great Outdoors" and Matthew Broderick as Ferris Bueller over the end credits.

On top of that, there's a fine score by the under appreciated Stewart Copeland. I also really liked the photography by Donald Peterman, a DP who I never really noticed before but who has some pretty impressive credits including "Point Break," "Men in Black" and "Get Shorty.

" The film does have some downsides, such as over use of fantasy sequences and some cliched characters, such as the annoying in-laws. However, most all of the film works quite well and is awfully entertaining.

This film really made me miss John Hughes and I hope someone like Howard Deutch will film some of Hughes' unproduced scripts.