Waiting For the Juno Backlash to Begin
In almost every year and every Academy awards season, a film separates itself from the pack in both critical praise and audience adoration, becoming a front-runner not just for Best Picture but Biggest Backlash as well. The most obvious example, as memorialized by Elaine Benes, was The English Patient. Its sweeping scale and romantic spirit captured the imaginations of many before winning the scorn of cynical intellectuals across the country. I think we're still living through the Forrest Gump backlash. After it "robbed" Pulp Fiction and The Shawshank Redemption during the Oscars, I've heard my generation criticize Gump for being overly sentimental, for being an apologist for the racial prejudice of the pre-Civil Rights era American South, and most offensively, for not even being funny (I stand by the claim that it is one of the most quotable movies of the '90's). Other recent award favorites that provoked backlashes include Titanic, Jerry Maguire, American Beauty, and Crash (On a personal note, I have yet to backlash against virtually any of these movies. Maybe I'm stubborn to change my mind, but I think some of these are just easy targets, since they all feature a "mainstream" type of love or emotion that begs to get made fun of. They are the Billy Joel's of movies, and I'm a big Billy Joel fan).
While I would say it's certainly not a favorite to win Best Picture, this year's frontrunner for Biggest Backlash, a backlash which I wholeheartedly advocate, has to be Juno. I'm actually a little surprised/concerned that it hasn't happened already (the movie's been out for over two months). As far as a backlash goes, this movie's got everything going for it except for people who already hate on it. First, it has numerous virtues (essential for every backlash against you, is to have a majority on your side to start). A little indie charmer, the film has received rave reviews, and has made a killing at the box office due to great word-of-mouth (budgeted at $6.5 million, it has grossed $120 million and rising). The soundtrack is full of indie rock nuggets -- some old (Kinks, Sonic Youth), some new (Cat Power, Moldy Peaches) -- that help shape the quirky nature of Juno's aesthetic; in fact, it could be the quirkiest film since Napoleon Dynamite (whose own backlash has been sorely lacking -- really, people are still quoting this?). The film also boasts a winning cast of tastemaker favorites like Jason Bateman and Michael Cera, an A-lister flexing her small movie chops in Jennifer Garner, and surprising newcomer Ellen Page, nominated for Best Actress for her work. To top it off, it was written by Diablo Cody, a first time screenwriter and former stripper who has struck gold with her unique writing style and is now accepted as the voice of sardonic young adults nationwide (and Canada).
Audiences of all ages love this thing and will tell you all about it; teenagers for it's sarcastic, independent, socially awkward (in an endearing way) heroes, and adults for its supposed authentic look at the lives of young people and how they talk. Juno has been adopted as a sign of how the hip young kids act these days.
It certainly is a fun movie and much better than most of what has come out this year (see Michael Clayton), but I think if we all took a deep breath we'd discover why we should have started this backlash a long time ago. The film's faults are numerous. First of all, critics and audiences alike seem to be glossing over the main theme of the movie: Juno's pregnancy. One of the reviews on Rotten Tomatoes, where the film has a 93% freshness rating, lauds the frank discussions about sex and teen pregnancy. Was I in the bathroom for these frank discussions? The movie doesn't tackle any of these issues; it hardly lays a finger on them. A smart teenage girl from an at least moderately liberal home and community gets pregnant the first time she has sex. You would think discussions/doubts/decisions relating to an abortion would be a little more central to her life than one afternoon's trip to a clinic overseen by some girl who got fired from Newbury Comics. After one more conversation in cool new slang with her best friend the issue is dropped and she decides to have the child. I'm not saying the decision wasn't a good one, in life or in the film, but was it such a given that this was the right decision? Is my New York City progressiveness clouding the accuracy of this picture?
The movie also tries so hard to be cool, and I'm starting to feel like Mugatu calling out Derek Zoolander's one look ("I feel like I'm taking crazy pills!"), because no one's coming around to this. As soon as Dwight from The Office starts referring to Juno's pregnancy as an Etch-a-Sketch and she responds with, "Silencio, old man," I started wincing. The unintentional awkwardness permeates most of the film, but everything about it is so preciously put together to appear ironic that the movie has very little resemblance to real life. This is seen most egregiously in the Hamburger phone. Not only does Juno have one, but she explicitly mentions it while talking, as in, just in case the audience didn't realize how charmingly quirky my character and lifestyle are, I am going to now say out loud that I have a novelty phone last produced in the early 1980s.
I also take objection to the misuse of Michael Cera. This kid has already won eternal loyalty from Arrested Development, Superbad, and his blog. He's sweet, hilarious, and front-runner to play a young Montgomery Burns if they ever make a live-action Simpsons (which they shouldn't). His talents make it clear why he was cast. But it does not make clear why they had to dress him up in ridiculous shorts and a headband, and make him pop Tic Tac's like painkillers. It's the same thing with Will Ferrell in the ads for Semi-Pro; if he's funny anyway, why dress him in a ridiculous costume that makes him one-joke and therefore limiting the many jokes he could make in normal clothes?
I am waiting impatiently to read an article or hear on TV some sort of criticism of Juno, starting the backlash. The film would have had a happy life as this type of movie: brief period at the top, with critical praise and box office success. It would be commonly listed as a Favorite Movie on the Facebook, the soundtrack would have brought indie artists to a larger audience, and the acerbic screenplay would have lent us a few quotes. Finally the backlash would set in, and though we'd still remember it as a funny movie with good music, it would no longer be considered an authentic view into modern youth, and we wouldn't have to put up with nonsense like Academy Award nominations for a second rate Garden State or Little Miss Sunshine.
I'm hoping this happens, but as Juno cruises to nominations for Best Picture, Best Actress, and Best Screenplay among others, it looks like this could be an exception to the backlash rule.
Loading comments…
Want to reply to a comment? Hint: Click "Reply" at the bottom of the comment; after being approved your comment will appear directly underneath the comment you replied to
oh my god i hated this movie. actually, that's a lie. i didn't hate it when i first saw it. i thought the dialogue was horrific ("honest to blog"?--just kill me) but overall it was just boring. i almost said "predictable" too but i was too bored to care where it was going! it's the kinda movie that markets itself as a tiny, indie, and hip flick so people who actually see it in the theaters feel like in they're in on some secret and try to make their friends jealous. genius. but, i digress. i didn't hate this movie when i first saw it. i walked out thinking that i just wasted some time and some cash but whatever. such is life. and then slowly but surely, nominations, glowing reviews, mass critical acclaim, best movie of the year, awards--are you kidding me?? that's the sort of thing that makes you suddenly hate a movie that was just plain okay. ellen page--nominated for an academy award? seems like the equally snarky teens from [INSERT ANY TEEN MOVIE HERE] should have been nominated. director nom for a straight-forward sentimental teen comedy? screenplay?? were people watching this movie on mute??? alright, i'm done ranting! but if this movie wins any academy awards, i swear i'll be back! :)
Haven't seen Juno yet so i cannot comment but...
"Waitress" was excellent.
I never understood the nomination process and how it always comes down to a hand full of films, mostly released close to Oscar time.
So many deserving films are swept away by the ravages of time. ( 6 to 8 months )
And, how come the people who perform at The Grammys are always the winners when they "don't know" before hand who the winner is ?
Uh, where have you guys been? There's been a backlash and even a backlash to the backlash for the last month or more against this horrible film. If you read any of the entertainment blogs, you'll find plenty of anti-Juno commentaries.
I hated this film for its preciousness, its pro-life mentality, its moronic dialogue that grated on every nerve in my body and for the soundtrack that is way beyond belief in its cuteness.
It'll never win best picture, thankfully, and will die an obscure death only to be seen every so often on TBS.
Boy...I've never hated ANY movie that bad. Deep.
I can tell you one thing about that movie: Ellen Page will be a major artist for the next twenty years.
she makes her choice NOT to have an abortion because the waiting room in which she is sitting is NOISY???!??!?!?!????
Wouldn't that make one want an abortion even more? Oh thats right, she gives up the crier, no problem.
So far, waiting for it to come onto free TV sounds like the wise choice.
But I think you'll get your backlash Jack.
I kind of enjoyed the movie - during the scenes 'Juno' wasn't in that is. I had an *oh no, she's back* feeling every time she reappeared. I did think Jason Bateman was really good though, he took a character that could have been as one-dimensional as Larry the neighbor from "Three's Company" and made him real... I KNEW that guy. The scenes with him and Jennifer Garner were what made the film watchable.
The previews had the stupidest dialogue, and the previews are usually the funniest parts of the movie. I know what you mean by "watching her act". I see no reason to dole out the ticket price.
I feel like a loser who doesn't get it but that movie just seemed like the characters were saying what a screenwriter, trying very hard to by funny and original, thought people might say if they were all very funny and original. It's like a writer sitting around saying "now what exactly would this smart-ass, funny, acerbic girl say if we were writing a movie about a smart-ass, funny, acerbic girl?" instead of the way people really talk.
And every year Hollywood has to have some unknown new precocious girl who is nominated for an Oscar and the only qualification is that she must be white and she must be unknown. Maybe someday Hollywood might actually write movies where the characters talk the way people do in real life - but that would be so boring!
I agree. Every character had the same exact slangy voice. I think the dialog was written by IM.
A friend told me that if the cast was minorty family...how much attention would it recieve and would it get it nomination.
sorry to inject but what he dose say kinda make scene
It would never get made - Hollywood only thinks teenage pregnancy is funny when it happens to precocious, funny, smart-ass, acerbic white girls.
er Then a dog bites him. I hate my typos. Which give me another idea for a screenplay...
what's to get? A smart, funny, sometimes silly movie that has a edge of seriousness about it. Good to great performances, and if you really think she only left the waiting room because it was noisy, then you needed to put down the ju ju bees and watch the film.
The reason there is no backlash is because it is a good movie.
However, the article does give me an idea for a screenplay called "Waiting For Backlash". It's a bout a guy who doesn't get a movie, and wanders around LA and NY looking for others who hate it, but can't find anyone. The a dog bites him. The end.
Cool....
I haven't seen the movie, so I can't say I hate it, but I am gut-sick of being told how much I'm supposed to like it.
If that's how backlashes begin, I'm already there.
not a reviewer, but i didn't like it immediately. aside from your comments, i had huge trouble believing the lead actress... i felt i was watching her act.. i didn't buy the character or her portrayal. i was shocked she was nominated. as for the film, it felt like a right wing commercial against abortion. she makes her choice NOT to have an abortion because the waiting room in which she is sitting is NOISY???!??!?!?!????
i got up from my seat afterwards, being the only one in my group who didn't like the film, wondering when i stopped knowing anything... because i just don't get it.
I'm curious, did you actually watch the movie or did you sit there and make out with your boy/girlfriend?
Did you not notice that after running into Su-Chin and her mentioning that fetuses have finger nails, she started to be distracted by the fingernails of all the other patrons of the abortion clinic, thinking of the child inside her? This after having to deal with a somewhat disgusting and totally disinterested receptionist who did nothing to make the place appear welcoming or supportive in the slightest.
Now this being an independent movie, not a Hollywood puffpiece they didn't feel the need to hold your hand through her thought process. Believe it or not, you are allowed to think in a movie theatre. It was unnecessary to have dramatic scenes with Juno sorting through the options and the details or deciding whether or not to ask her parents for a permission slip to go to the other abortion clinic. She wanted to be an adult and make a decision on her own. For better or for worse she makes the decision she does which allows for the movie to exist.
Do remember, it is a movie, they have artistic license to do whatever they want, and if they made it exactly as it might happen to a boring normal girl who has an obortion, nobody would be even slightly interested in watching their film.
You must be logged in to comment. Log in or connect with
