For my response this week, I looked at A. O. Scott’s review of Juno from December and how it relates to my final project:
In his review of Juno, A. O. Scott seems to respect the humor that is directed toward the main character’s pregnancy. He writes, “It’s not that Juno treats her pregnancy as a joke, but rather that… she can’t help finding humor in it.” However, Scott fails to recognize what effect this might have on the audience. Are all viewers going to be observant enough to pick up on the irony of Juno’s situation and how her humor reflects on the emotional implications of her pregnancy? Scott describes the film’s writing as having “surprising delicacy and emotional depth.” But while the screenplay may be clever, is it really sending the right message about pregnancy to its audience? Most people may not exactly see Juno’s frank indifference as delicate. Instead, on the surface, she appears completely emotionless, as if having a baby is no big deal. Scott defends Juno’s “jarring” sarcasm, writing that the film evolves “from a coy, knowing farce into a heartfelt, serious comedy.” However, this depth could be possibly lost on most audiences, and portraying, on the surface, a rather apathetic perspective toward teen pregnancy is perhaps not the wisest risk to take.
1 comment:
i really liked your use of quotes in this review, especially the part about the film evolving “from a coy, knowing farce into a heartfelt, serious comedy” and i can also agree with you that the way the movie was written does leave it open to criticism from those who try to call her apathetic because of how she dealt with her pregnancy. good job!
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