What's Up, Doc?

What's Up, Doc? (1972)

  • 91% of critics liked it
    (34 reviews)

  • 86% of users liked it
    (9,255 ratings)

With Howard Hawks's Bringing Up Baby (1938) as his blueprint, Peter Bogdanovich resurrected and payed homage to 1930s screwball comedy in What's Up, Doc? (1972). When wacky co-ed Judy Maxwell (Barbra Streisand, in the Katharine Hepburn part) spies nebbishy musicologist Howard Bannister (Ryan O'Neal… More

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G, 1 hr. 34 min.
Directed By
Peter Bogdanovich
Written By
Peter Bogdanovich, Buck Henry, Robert Benton
Genres
Romance, Classics, Comedy
In Theaters
Mar 9, 1972 Wide
On DVD
Jul 1, 2003
Warner Bros. Pictures

Critic Reviews

  • Variety Staff, Variety

    This picture is a total smash.

  • Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

    The strength of a movie like this, of course, is that you don't have to believe too much for too long, because there's something else happening.

  • Vincent Canby, New York Times

    Not the least of Bogdanovich's triumphs is his success in scaling down Miss Streisand's superstar personality to fit the dimensions of farce.

  • Jonathan Rosenbaum, Chicago Reader

    The busy script by Buck Henry, Robert Benton, and David Newman keeps things moving, but the spirit of pastiche keeps this romp from truly rivaling its sources.

  • Nell Minow, Common Sense Media

    A lot of fun for the whole family.

Read all 16 critic reviews

Critic ratings and reviews powered by RottenTomatoes.com

Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)

Rotten (59% or fewer critics rated the movie positively)

Featured Audience Ratings

  • Bob S


    "There's not much to see actually. We're inside a Chinese dragon." Kinda like Bringing Up Baby meets one of those 70s's Alka Seltzer commercials - with Babs. A funny, silly movie.

  • Jens S


    Classic 70s chaos comedy about a girl called trouble and four identical bags with very different contents. The mix up and chase after these bags still belongs to the most hysterical pieces of comedy Hollywood ever delivered. The fun being, that the film takes itself and its characters… More

  • Dean M


    Superb zany, riotous slapstick comedy of the 1970s! It makes me can't stop laughing heaps. Silly, simple and superficial, with no lowbrow, leering takes or hidden moral messages lurking, "What's Up, Doc?" is pure, unadulterated fun. Bugs Bunny should be proud.… More

  • AJ V


    This is my favourite movie with Streisand, it's hilarious and has a great cast and director. It's an adventure comedy, and it's really fun, I highly recommend this movie.

  • Pierluigi P


    Bogdanovich, an eloquent director but most important of all an avid cinephile, puts his love for the old screwball comedies in this wacky film that (of course) lacks the charm of the classics it was inspired by. some hilarious moments save the day.

Read all 12 featured audience ratings

Cast

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Trailers & Clips

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