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Tuesday, April 15, 2008

Haterade



With the Juno DVD coming out today talk has again focused on the "little independent film that could". Juno was a huge success, grossing $140 million at the box office, winning Oscars, making stars of it's cast and creators and probably increasing the revenue of orange Tic-Tacs. Shoot, Juno was the first Best-Picture nominee to also have the #1 selling album on the Billboard charts since... Titanic. Now that's pretty successful company. So this little movie that was made for $6.5 million (about the budget for food and snacks on Spiderman III) touched audiences hearts, won critical acclaim and awards, sold millions of copies of a CD filled with Belle & Sebastian and Velvet Underground songs and made stars out of it's gifted cast (including dat dood Michael Cera)... and people hate it. I mean really hate it. With a passion. With a hatred that should be reserved for kitten-killers and Rob Schneider. I've never seen a backlash quite like this vocal group, "The Haters of the Junoverse".

For you unawares, here are a few articles about the Juno backlash. They're extremely interesting so read them!

http://www.slate.com/id/2183937

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/julie-klausner/hopefully-this-will-be-t_b_88781.html

Now I'll admit, a lot of the dialogue in Juno is embarrassingly corny, especially in the first 20 minutes. I don't care who you are, "Honest to blog" is just plain bad. Also this movie, although it was nominated for Best Picture, isn't an "important" movie with a major theme or a lot to say about society a la fellow nominees "No Country For Old Men" or "There Will Be Blood". It doesn't even grandstand or have any important message about abortion, adoption, safe-sex or anything else that happens in the film. It doesn't even contain the social satire of the American Dream that fellow Best Picture nominee and Fox Searchlight independent "Little Miss Sunshine" had. It's just a simple little movie with simple plot points and simple joys that have made audiences laugh, cry and fall in love with the story and especially Juno herself. It's not trying to be a defining moment of cinema or of our generation. It's just a great little movie.

Juno
-haters don't just single out the cutesy dialogue... they hate many other aspects of it as well. Some hate that Juno practiced pre-marital unprotected sex and that the movie doesn't address the evils and dangers of these practices. Some hate that the word "abortion" was even muttered and that Juno enters an abortion clinic. Many people hate the cute indie music of the soundtrack. Most Juno-haters can't stand Diablo Cody: she was a stripper, so she CAN'T possibly be smart/talented/ a writer/ an Oscar winner. I mean, she's a dumb slutty stripper whore,right? RIGHT?

There is so much crap that is popular. There is so much stuff that is lowest-common-denominator, artless, opiates-for-the-masses who's only purpose is to get us to the next commercial break so we can purchase and consume. I applaud an independent film featuring independent music that can reach the masses and the critics and inspire people that wouldn't normally see a movie without explosions or car chases. I love the subtle messages of the film, especially the "Love you for you" message that Juno's dad gives her at the end. Let the haters hate. I mean, hater dudes marry hater ladies and have hater kids, right?

Juno switched the style up, and if they hate then let them hate and watch the money pile up.

2 comments:

ibis27 said...

i totally agree 50 cent

Mandy said...

you are an excellent writer!! i knew that you wanted to be a critic for a mag or something, but i had never read your work. sorry, i know i'm corny but you're great!

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