Juno by Jason Reitman - Film Review

In the film Juno by Jason Reitman a positive experience that Juno has is in the mall scene. When Vanessa and Juno bump into each other and Juno decides that Vanessa is going to be a great mother. Through the use of camera shots and dialogue we see that Vanessa shows great mothering skills, her want to connect with Juno's baby and her response to the baby kicking.

In this scene we see attributes of Vanessa that shows us she will be a good mother. Vanessa shows us a youthful side of her as she plays and laughs with her friend's toddler. A technique used to show this is a high angle wide shot of Vanessa playing with the toddler on the playground in the mall. Sound effects enhance this as we hear screams of laughter coming from the toddler as they fool around. This is important for Juno because of the instinctive way Vanessa acts like a great mother around the baby making it have a very positive influence on Juno, and this scene is very crucial is Juno decision later on in the movie, as she decides weather to carry on with the adoption or not.

Vanessa surrenders herself to Juno in the middle of the mall to feel Juno's baby kicking. The way Vanessa kneels down and speaks to Juno's stomach, is very out of character for Vanessa, showing her desperation to connect with Juno's baby. Jason Reitman shows this through a over the shoulder, medium close up shot of Vanessa on her knees holding Juno's stomach with both hands. Dialogue backs this up as Vanessa says "can you hear me baby....... Sweet angel." This is a positive experience for Juno because Vanessa's want for the baby and need to connect with it in this scene is of complete contrast of that in other scene's, the way she personally tries to connect with the baby in this scene really impresses Juno.

Vanessa's response of awe to the baby kicking completely surprises Juno. The way Vanessa makes herself so venerable just to feel the magical kick of the baby is of complete amazement to Juno. Jason Rietman has shown this through a lack of dialogue from Juno in the last 60 seconds of the scene, and Vanessa does all the talking "that was magical..... Thank you, thank you," This shows how much Vanessa treasures motherhood showing to Juno that she is dedicated and how much she will value having Juno's baby as her own.

In conclusion through the use of dialogue, camera shots and sound effects this scene is a positive experience for Juno because she sees sides of Vanessa that we haven't seen but most importantly it certifies her decision of Vanessa being a good mother.