Movie Review- Juno
*SPOILER ALERT*
The film Juno is about a teenage girl (Juno Macgruff) who had unprotected sex with her best friend (Paulie Bleeker, played by Michael Cera) and got pregnant. Juno needed to decide what to do with the baby. At first, Juno thought she wanted to get an abortion and went to the clinic, but decided not to go through with the procedure. Then, Juno decided that she would put the baby up for adoption, where a nice suburban couple, Mark and Vanessa, would adopt Juno’s baby.
Throughout the movie, Juno remained witty and upbeat. Although she struggled with the physical and mental effects of pregnancy, Juno remained strong. While Juno’s attitude was the high point of the movie, I felt her character was more “indie film character” than actual pregnant teenager. Juno’s supportive parents were another high point for the movie. I’m not sure exactly how the parents of a pregnant teen would behave, but it seemed like Juno’s parents took the pregnancy in stride and were supportive of her decisions. Juno’s ability to laugh at herself and her parents’ support were the only things I liked about the movie.
I personally felt this movie portrayed teen pregnancy unrealistically. Juno’s decision to put her baby up for adoption was a very adult decision. The adoptive parents, Vanessa and Mark, represented the modern American suburban couple. However, Vanessa was desperate to be a mother while Mark had reservations. Mark also missed his youth. Mark and Vanessa were the most accurate character portrayals in the whole movie. Mark and Juno became close friends, however their friendship, to me, was slightly unsettling. The pair bonded over horror movies and rock music, which was understandable, but something about their interactions made me feel like there was some sort of romantic undertone. In the end, Mark and Vanessa split up, but Juno still gave her baby to Vanessa to raise on her own. This part of the movie also represented modern families- a single mom adopting a baby.
Although Juno did grow up rapidly and had to make a lot of adult choices, the movie ended in a fairy tale-esque way. After Juno gave up her child, she felt no remorse, no sadness, no post-partum depression…there was no point for reflection at all. Juno and Paulie became a couple and sang cutesy-folk rock songs. If anything, the movie could have offered some point for Juno to reflect on the heavy decisions she made rather than skip off to play acoustic guitar.
This movie’s intention was probably not to portray teen pregnancy accurately, but for some abstinence-only schoolchildren, this might be all they hear about sex and reproduction. The movie was intended to be a cutesy indie movie, but I think because it had such a wide audience, the movie producers/writers/directors could have taken on some responsibility to reflect without being preachy.
Juno’s story reminded me of Jessica Valenti in The Purity Myth. When Valenti had sex with her high school boyfriend, her peers judged her and considered her impure. However, Valenti did not have to deal with the burden of pregnancy while Juno did. Not only was Juno shunned because she was sexually active, she was also shunned for being pregnant.
If I got anything from this movie, it was that we need sex education in schools.
The film Juno is about a teenage girl (Juno Macgruff) who had unprotected sex with her best friend (Paulie Bleeker, played by Michael Cera) and got pregnant. Juno needed to decide what to do with the baby. At first, Juno thought she wanted to get an abortion and went to the clinic, but decided not to go through with the procedure. Then, Juno decided that she would put the baby up for adoption, where a nice suburban couple, Mark and Vanessa, would adopt Juno’s baby.
Throughout the movie, Juno remained witty and upbeat. Although she struggled with the physical and mental effects of pregnancy, Juno remained strong. While Juno’s attitude was the high point of the movie, I felt her character was more “indie film character” than actual pregnant teenager. Juno’s supportive parents were another high point for the movie. I’m not sure exactly how the parents of a pregnant teen would behave, but it seemed like Juno’s parents took the pregnancy in stride and were supportive of her decisions. Juno’s ability to laugh at herself and her parents’ support were the only things I liked about the movie.
I personally felt this movie portrayed teen pregnancy unrealistically. Juno’s decision to put her baby up for adoption was a very adult decision. The adoptive parents, Vanessa and Mark, represented the modern American suburban couple. However, Vanessa was desperate to be a mother while Mark had reservations. Mark also missed his youth. Mark and Vanessa were the most accurate character portrayals in the whole movie. Mark and Juno became close friends, however their friendship, to me, was slightly unsettling. The pair bonded over horror movies and rock music, which was understandable, but something about their interactions made me feel like there was some sort of romantic undertone. In the end, Mark and Vanessa split up, but Juno still gave her baby to Vanessa to raise on her own. This part of the movie also represented modern families- a single mom adopting a baby.
Although Juno did grow up rapidly and had to make a lot of adult choices, the movie ended in a fairy tale-esque way. After Juno gave up her child, she felt no remorse, no sadness, no post-partum depression…there was no point for reflection at all. Juno and Paulie became a couple and sang cutesy-folk rock songs. If anything, the movie could have offered some point for Juno to reflect on the heavy decisions she made rather than skip off to play acoustic guitar.
This movie’s intention was probably not to portray teen pregnancy accurately, but for some abstinence-only schoolchildren, this might be all they hear about sex and reproduction. The movie was intended to be a cutesy indie movie, but I think because it had such a wide audience, the movie producers/writers/directors could have taken on some responsibility to reflect without being preachy.
Juno’s story reminded me of Jessica Valenti in The Purity Myth. When Valenti had sex with her high school boyfriend, her peers judged her and considered her impure. However, Valenti did not have to deal with the burden of pregnancy while Juno did. Not only was Juno shunned because she was sexually active, she was also shunned for being pregnant.
If I got anything from this movie, it was that we need sex education in schools.
Comments
I think the movie could have shown some sex education but the writers didn't focus on that as it was a fictional story and I do not know if its intent was to be educational. I actually think it's a pretty boring movie. I cannot recall what I would have felt as a teen seeing it since she is giving up the baby so I do not know if it is glamorizing pregnancy.