knocked up and the a-word
Contains sorta-spoilers, but nothing you probably care about.
So I went to go see Knocked Up, and it was very funny. On the humor front, it about met my expectations. But there was another aspect that I found decidedly lame.
A while ago, when the trailer first arrived, I was totally pumped. Another Apatow movie! And it looks funny! I played it for my roommate, who, halfway through, rolled her eyes and groaned something like, "Brought to you by the Pro-Life Association of America."
"Oh, come on, now," I indignantly replied. "Just because this movie is about a successful, ambitious woman deciding to carry an unplanned pregnancy to term doesn't mean it's anti-choice. I mean, she's choosing to have her baby. The whole point of choice is that you can do either one." Mal grunted, unimpressed. I paid no attention, sure (or hopeful, anyway) that the film would approach the issue of abortion even-handedly.
Sigh.
I should be glad, I suppose, that abortion came up at all. I was a little worried that the filmmakers, avoiding a difficult topic, would opt instead to present pregnancy as an inevitable and irrevocable sentence without acknowledging the options that so many people have fought so hard to keep. But it (thankfully?) did come up, if briefly, and I suppose I shouldn't be surprised that I was disappointed with its presentation. Early in the film, Katherine Heigl's character, Alison, is having lunch with her mother after having broken the news. Now faced with a difficult decision - carry to term or abort? - Alison turns to her mother, whose opinion is clear. Mom tells Alison about another woman (a sister? I don't remember) who was faced with the same situation. "And," her mother intones, leaning in, "she got it taken care of." Around the same time, Ben's (Seth Rogan) stoner friends irreverently advise him that Alison get a "shmushmortion" (one character doesn't want to hear the actual word, so they self-censor). Ben looks disgusted and troubled, storming off with his thoughts.
I still believe what I said before - a movie about carrying an unplanned pregnancy to term doesn't have to vilify those who take the other option. But this one does, if not absolutely directly. There is much talk of taking responsibility for one's actions and doing the right thing as characteristic of a decision to keep the baby. Mom's suggestion to get it "taken care of" carries a decidedly ominous note, and it's a bit of a relief when we learn of the tearful outcome of Alison's struggle. Our ambitious career girl has bitten the bullet and made the right decision in the face of pressure.
The whole business should have been handled much better. Screentime isn't the issue; although abortion deserves at least a mention, a movie about pregnancy obviously doesn't have to be a movie about abortion, and a quick no-thanks would have absolutely sufficed as far as I'm concerned. Anyway, it's not like it's always an easy decision, and portraying it like one would have been disingenuous. But it's deeply not okay to portray abortion as an immoral and irresponsible decision, an act of cowardice so shameful that it does not even deserve to be mentioned by name. Having (and wanting) babies, and being willing to make sacrifices for them, does not make anyone a better person. It doesn't make anyone more honorable, more willing to "take responsibility for her actions," more worthy of respect than someone who decides that bringing another life into the world isn't the choice that she wants to make. And it could have been handled differently - mommy could have said, "I know someone who had an abortion, and it was really the right choice for her, but may not be for you. I'll be there to support you no matter what you decide."
Anyway. I'd like everyone to stop thinking about abortion like it's the most unmentionably horrible thing you can ever do as a human being. Then again, I'd also like a pony that poops rainbows.
So I went to go see Knocked Up, and it was very funny. On the humor front, it about met my expectations. But there was another aspect that I found decidedly lame.
A while ago, when the trailer first arrived, I was totally pumped. Another Apatow movie! And it looks funny! I played it for my roommate, who, halfway through, rolled her eyes and groaned something like, "Brought to you by the Pro-Life Association of America."
"Oh, come on, now," I indignantly replied. "Just because this movie is about a successful, ambitious woman deciding to carry an unplanned pregnancy to term doesn't mean it's anti-choice. I mean, she's choosing to have her baby. The whole point of choice is that you can do either one." Mal grunted, unimpressed. I paid no attention, sure (or hopeful, anyway) that the film would approach the issue of abortion even-handedly.
Sigh.
I should be glad, I suppose, that abortion came up at all. I was a little worried that the filmmakers, avoiding a difficult topic, would opt instead to present pregnancy as an inevitable and irrevocable sentence without acknowledging the options that so many people have fought so hard to keep. But it (thankfully?) did come up, if briefly, and I suppose I shouldn't be surprised that I was disappointed with its presentation. Early in the film, Katherine Heigl's character, Alison, is having lunch with her mother after having broken the news. Now faced with a difficult decision - carry to term or abort? - Alison turns to her mother, whose opinion is clear. Mom tells Alison about another woman (a sister? I don't remember) who was faced with the same situation. "And," her mother intones, leaning in, "she got it taken care of." Around the same time, Ben's (Seth Rogan) stoner friends irreverently advise him that Alison get a "shmushmortion" (one character doesn't want to hear the actual word, so they self-censor). Ben looks disgusted and troubled, storming off with his thoughts.
I still believe what I said before - a movie about carrying an unplanned pregnancy to term doesn't have to vilify those who take the other option. But this one does, if not absolutely directly. There is much talk of taking responsibility for one's actions and doing the right thing as characteristic of a decision to keep the baby. Mom's suggestion to get it "taken care of" carries a decidedly ominous note, and it's a bit of a relief when we learn of the tearful outcome of Alison's struggle. Our ambitious career girl has bitten the bullet and made the right decision in the face of pressure.
The whole business should have been handled much better. Screentime isn't the issue; although abortion deserves at least a mention, a movie about pregnancy obviously doesn't have to be a movie about abortion, and a quick no-thanks would have absolutely sufficed as far as I'm concerned. Anyway, it's not like it's always an easy decision, and portraying it like one would have been disingenuous. But it's deeply not okay to portray abortion as an immoral and irresponsible decision, an act of cowardice so shameful that it does not even deserve to be mentioned by name. Having (and wanting) babies, and being willing to make sacrifices for them, does not make anyone a better person. It doesn't make anyone more honorable, more willing to "take responsibility for her actions," more worthy of respect than someone who decides that bringing another life into the world isn't the choice that she wants to make. And it could have been handled differently - mommy could have said, "I know someone who had an abortion, and it was really the right choice for her, but may not be for you. I'll be there to support you no matter what you decide."
Anyway. I'd like everyone to stop thinking about abortion like it's the most unmentionably horrible thing you can ever do as a human being. Then again, I'd also like a pony that poops rainbows.