Congrats to our own Oscar Winner!

[RIP Psyclone]

^She could have exactly been saying that. However, it's the whole "a child doesn't need a father," especially when it's a son, that I am taking issue with.

[downunder]

I just saw that the guy clearly wasn't ready to let go of his youthful dreams and the idea of settling down with a kid was something the couldn't handle, I can certainly relate to that.

 

She seemed to be pushing it all and I sensed that was probably had been the case in the marraige overall - and it just got to the point where the repressed partner had to make a stand. I'm surprised those two got married in the first place.

 

Their separation, while not a good thing in real life, certainly made the movie more interesting. I didn't see any symbolism in the whole thing but anyone can make anything of it I guess.

[cfc]

^She could have exactly been saying that. However, it's the whole "a child doesn't need a father," especially when it's a son, that I am taking issue with.

 

I didn't get that message at all from the movie. Basically, the husband still had the mentality of a teenage boy and wasn't really cut out for fatherhood.

 

Look at the relationship Juno has with her own father--it's pretty solid. (In fact, next to Juno, I thought he was the best character in the movie.)

[Wes]

^She could have exactly been saying that. However, it's the whole "a child doesn't need a father," especially when it's a son, that I am taking issue with.

 

Why is this an "issue"? Single parents raising children of either sex is not an uncommon theme in many movies. To raise it as an issue with this movie, where the element was pretty much non-existant, especially in a movie that has more weighty issues like teen pregnancy, abortion, and marital infidelity as clear points of contention seems to be grasping at straws for the sake of grasping at straws.

Did you make the same argument with the Star Wars prequels too, or are you just trying to sound to critical to save face after being owned hard earlier in this thread?

[RIP Psyclone]

Did you make the same argument with the Star Wars prequels too, or are you just trying to sound to critical to save face after being owned hard earlier in this thread?

 

 

Anakin's mother was impregnated by midichlorians, everyone knows that! As for me being "pIZwn3d," I addressed that issue in another thread, and didn't "grasp at straws" trying to defend myself. You guys should seek to hold a copyright on that. Anyway, I was only taking issue with that since everything else in the film was handled so well. I think the fact Bateman and Garner didn't reconcile was a missed opportunity. This is why I requested, if at all possible, Ms. Cody herself to say something on this matter. So in closing, is it possible for a single parent to do a good job? Yes. But since we are talking about a movie--a fictional story and the screenplay it was based on--I just would like to know what the writer was saying about Bateman's character, marriage, and children being raised without a father.

[Wes]

I think within the confines of the story, as others said, Bateman's character was cool but immature, whereas Garner's seemed uptight, but ultimately caring and ready for motherhood, with or without a husband. I don't think the story, at least as it was portrayed on screen, suggests any hidden agenda about family structure.

 

The thing I liked about Juno, even with the hyper stylized dialogue, was that the characters and situations were realistic. It's too formulaic for a couple who are portrayed with deep, irreconcilable differences on the future of their life together to just sort it out in order to have a happy ending. Bateman's character was very nuanced, which is something you don't see very often in comedies. He wasn't a great guy, but he wasn't a total asshole either.

[downunder]

Anxiously awaiting Anne Frank's definitive answer to all this debate. I'm holding my breath waiting, going blue, losing consciousness.

[RIP Psyclone]

^^All good points, Wes. Earlier in the film, Juno made it clear that she wanted her baby to be adopted by a good family; loving parents, financially stable, etc. So, it was a little surprising to me that after Mark (Bateman) had announced he was leaving, (and Juno having become friends with him, so was much closer with him than with Vanessa, Garner's character,) Juno seemed to have quickly forgotten that she wanted her baby to have both parents, and left the note just for Vanessa--Mark excluded. Juno's opinion of Vanessa probably changed after their encounter in the mall, but still.

 

^Glad I'm not the only one, and happy to see my words have entered TPR pop culture.

[FLIPDUDE]

Let me know when the spoilers end.

[DATman]

^^She is allowed to change her mind throughout the film. After all, she says that about 9 months before she actually gives the baby away. She quickly forgot nothing. Don't forget that she had that long debate with herself in the car, and, again, time had long passed since she said that.