I finally dragged myself to see “Juno” last night. A number of friends had told me I should see it. To prepare myself, I had read several reviews, most of them overwhelmingly positive and gushing about the smart and witty screenplay and the powerful performance of the young female protagonist. At least none of my friends made the mistake of telling me it was hilarious.
Although I am frequently disappointed whenever I go to see a movie if I hold any kind of expectations, I admit that I did expect “Juno” to be in the realm of a quirky funny film such as “Little Miss Sunshine,” which I adored. “Little Miss Sunshine” offers a positive feminist message and a portrayal of strong family loyalty in the face of social conventions that are held up as ridiculous. I left “Sunshine” feeling hopeful and buoyant, whereas “Juno” left me feeling annoyed.
I agree with the critics who say that “Juno” tried too hard to be clever and hip. I disagree that the acting performances or the screenplay are amazing and worthy of awards. I found nothing very “pro-adoption” in the film. If anything, the movie reinforces stereotypes of foolish young birthmothers as silly and uncaring teen girls who get themselves knocked up—even Juno’s supposedly “with it” and accepting parents refer to their daughter repeatedly as “irresponsible,” even if they are clearly joking or being sardonic.
Some viewers might find the character of Juno refreshing, since she is portrayed as a female “in charge” of her sexuality. The film drives home this point, by showing how Juno’s boyfriend had little to do with the sex act other than to sit there passively in a chair while Juno initiated sex and climbed on top of him to cure her boredom. In the role of the birthfather, the boyfriend is predictably an immature loser, although endearing in a dorky sort of way.
I understand why some are offended by the widely-shown clip where Juno refers to adoption from China. In that scene, Juno says to the prospective parents who want to adopt her unborn child, “You shoulda gone to China. You know, cuz I hear they give away babies like free iPods. You know, they pretty much just put them in those T-shirt guns and shoot them out at sporting events.” Ha ha: such wit, such sarcasm. The writer and actor have defended that scene by explaining how it is intended to show the insensitivity and lack of awareness of the 16-year-old protagonist. Yeah, we actually figured her out, long before you made us sit through that offensive repartee.
For me, the character of Juno is not very likable. I’m wondering if audiences love her because they think she is so independent and outspoken and because she’s supposed to be hip and clever. Or do they connect with her because she is trying hard to appear grown up and obviously failing miserably? Do audiences identify with her and actually like Juno, or do they feel pity for her as a loser (remarkably like her boyfriend), and one moreover who thinks she’s cool? At least her boyfriend admits that he is “trying really hard” to be cool.
Is this a pro-adoption film? For 90 minutes viewers get to watch a group of self-absorbed adults and adolescents “deal with” an unwanted pregnancy as a problem to overcome, not as a person who is being welcomed into a family and the world. The pregnant teen’s first choice was abortion, but she was talked out of it by a lone protester outside the clinic. Maybe this makes it a pro-adoption film, as opposed to pro-abortion…
Is it pro-adoption to have the prospective parents pushing Juno to see if she is expecting any kind of financial compensation beyond paying for her medical care? Bringing up the topic of money for babies understandably makes some viewers uncomfortable–as well it should. And it’s hardly pro-adoption to maintain a running joke throughout the film about Penny Saver ads listed by people hoping to become parents.
The representation of the two prospective parents is hardly flattering: an adoptive father who isn’t exactly keen on becoming a dad, and an uptight adoptive mother who is overly anxious about being disappointed again, should Juno change her mind and decide not to relinquish her baby. The adoptive mom is painfully excited to become a mother, but we aren’t really encouraged to feel sympathetic towards her.
Throughout the film, I kept waiting for Juno to talk to the child growing inside her, to show him or her some love. The closest she came was encouraging the prospective adoptive mother to feel her belly and talk to the bulge herself. Juno refuses to find out the sex of her child after an ultrasound, or to name him, see him, or hold him once he is born. From my perspective, Juno’s selfish behavior just reinforces the feelings of rejection that many adoptees experience as we try to make sense of what it means to be adopted.
At the end of the movie, Juno the birthmother does shed a few quiet tears in the hospital, while the birthfather boyfriend cuddles with her, after similarly refusing to see their son. Meanwhile, the prospective adoptive dad has divorced his wife, who goes on to adopt Juno’s baby on her own. Apparently the only character who wants to have anything to do with the newborn adoptee is the neurotic adoptive mother.
Are Juno’s parents going to be involved in the life of their grandson, the still-unnamed and largely invisible adoptee? Such a possibility could have provided an unusual plot twist. Here they have a wonderful opportunity to participate in an open adoption. After all, we have watched pregnant Juno hanging out at the adopting parents’ home on numerous occasions, and her dad even met the adoptive parents (before they divorced). Juno’s stepmother and the adoptive mom have a postpartum exchange at the hospital that could have been truly poignant and hopeful, similar, say, to the scene between birth mom (Halle Berry) and adoptive mom (Jessica Lange) at the end of Losing Isaiah. But that would have required a much deeper understanding of and sensitivity to the adoption experience than this screenplay could muster.
Click below for a slightly different adoptee perspective, including insights into the racial aspects of the film:
