Bastard Boom

The bastion of sodomy, immorality and anti-American sentiment has released three films this year that have been accused of having Pro-Life themes. Despite all their stylistic differences Indie hit and Oscar nominated Juno (Diablo Cody), frat-house comedy Knocked Up (Judd Aptow) and the dramedy Waitress (the late Adrienne Shelley) converge on theme of unwanted pregnancy.

Film critics grew suspicious when movies about women keeping bastard children invaded the porous skin that is the box office. Juno and Waitress premiered at Sundance, while Knocked Up had an immediate wide-release. Out of the three Juno and Knocked Up grossed around $350 million worldwide.

Several notable critics charged that the films implicitly gave off Pro-Life themes, while acknowledging that not any one of them was made for that purpose.

David Edlestein of Slate and NPR’s Fresh Air, commented that, like it or not, these films made political statements (evidently in the favor of Pro-Life). This motivated his decision to keep Juno off his top ten-list.

Hadley Freeman of the Guardian took a more direct approach and said flatly that the films are, “a product of a generation that has had the luxury of legal and relatively easy access to abortion. The danger is that one forgets what the alternative really meant, and as a result sentimentalises it.”

The alternative film of choice for politically frustrated critics was Romanian director’s (Christian Munguin) “4 Months, 3 Weeks, 2 Days”. If Juno is a "feminist, girl-powered rejoinder and complement to Knocked Up", as A.O Scott of The New York Times put it, then 4 Months is Schindler’s List to Jakob the Liar.

As if often the case, it seemed as if no one actually watched the movies. Only when critics are in the grip of some of a theory can they ignore the qualitative difference in films.

Out of the three Knocked Up exemplifies the discontent among Pro-Lifers. The powerful and successful Allison sacrifices her career for the stoned, jobless and schmucky Ben. The only thing that was clear about Allison is that she was the creation of male writer. There was no depth, no complexity, and no desire.

To add insult to injury, one of the male characters can’t even say ‘abortion’.

In an interview for Vanity Fair star Katherine Heigl voices these concerns when she describes the film as “a little sexist” and added,” it paints the women as shrews, as humorless and uptight, and it paints the men as lovable, goofy, fun-loving guys.”

These comments created a tidal wave of controversy for writer and director Judd Aptow. He, however, had little to contribute, aside from questioning Heigl’s use of ‘shrew’ and sheepishly reminding the public to “buy Knocked Up on DVD and judge for themselves.”

Juno screenwriter Diablo Cody, no stranger to criticism herself for her immodest stint as a stripper and phone-sex operator, has been vocal that Juno is not a Pro-Life film.

In an interview for online magazine suicidegirls Cody offers her interpretation on the abortion question, “I think she makes a personal choice. I don't know what I would call it and I don't know if that would be my personal decision. But I think her journey is rich and valid.”

While, Juno does not chose to terminate her pregnancy for all of the good reasons that a sixteen year old would, Cody reminds us that her choice should not be invalidated. The pregnancy is an essential part of the trajectory of Juno’s journey, which is not to be mistaken with the idea that the pregnancy in itself is that trajectory.

One could argue, however, that Juno’s choice is inconsistent with her character. Admittedly, the scene when Juno breaks the news to father and stepmother lacks the expected tension. She remains cool throughout never breaking with her supreme self-confidence. Having been a teenager myself, I will readily say that I experienced more angst and torment for sneaking a Mike’s Hard Lemonade from mom.

Despite the absence of any noticeable tension the bit of dialogue that follows is of monumental significance for the arch of the film. Juno’s father tells her that he thought she was the type of girl that ‘knew when was when’. Juno replies, “I don’t know what kind of girl I am”.

It is these words that establish the trajectory of the film. Before Juno is just a smart-assed, punky teenager that so many critics found nauseating. In this moment, however, Juno is for the first time exposed and complicated. And this remains the question for the rest of the movie: What kind of girl is Juno?

And I suppose this is deeply disturbing for Pro-choice critics. It would seem that the answer to the question is inexorably bound up with her decision to have the child.

Of the three films, Waitress is the most complicated. It does a kind of tightrope walk on genre lines, often flirting heavily with romantic comedy. There are moments, however, that threaten to implode the entire structure.

Out of the three films it is closest to the conservative motifs of the time. The protagonist is a country gal married to an abusive good ol’ boy. In a kind of quasi-surrealism her thoughts are transposed into pie recipes, making for a disturbingly beautiful motif that undercuts the whole traditionalist motif.

Waitress grossed only around $18 million dollars and despite receiving stellar critical reception was not nominated for any awards. It is a rare film in both its originality and depth. While devoid of the gritty realism of a film like “4 Months” it is commentary nonetheless. If critics could budge from their uncritical dogmatism they would see this and not do it the disservice of grouping it with Knocked Up and Juno.