Knocked Up Continued: Readers Respond

These comments are just too good to leave as comments, so I'm elevating them to post status. Thank you, Veronica, Marco, and Feminist Review for weighing in on my recent post about Knocked Up! The points you all make are quite excellent and astute.

Veronica said...

I haven't seen it, but I know I will. My lust for Paul Rudd aside...Isn't it just horribly difficult to watch a movie without our feminist alarms going off? I try so hard to turn it off and enjoy a movie, but like you, after some time that 'guilt' creeps over me and I have to face the fact that if they had done this or that, well you get the picture. From 40yr Virgin to Ron Burgundy, we get just enough feminism to keep us smiling.

Marco Acevedo said...

OK, boyly-boy Marco here... I thinks it's fair to say I loved the movie with some of the same reservations... it's clearly a geek fantasy dressed as cautionary/coming-of-age fable, while managing to feel honest in its character interactions. But I resent the idea it's an every-guy movie. We don't all feel the need to bond by nesting together in our own refuse, or to be that crass in front of the ladies. The constant pop-culture-referencing, though, is pretty spot-on.

FeministReview said...

While I agree that the female anatomy (esp. when being used for procreation) should not be on par with fart jokes as a grossout gag, I think that some might be taking this a little too seriously. Your entry is a balanced review of this film (I viewed the film in much the same way), but the Slate review annoyed me. It's not necessarily Apatow's job as a director to address abortion as a viable choice for women. But he does. Katherine Heigl's character considers it and decides that she wants to keep the baby. She made a choice. And it was completely her's. That's something. Just because the character doesn't choose abortion doesn't mean that she's the product of a man's misinformed imagination. And I also think that Apatow shows that even though his male characters are completely clueless, they are harmless schlubs. While much of the guy bonding is comprised of misogynist endeavors (porn sites, sex mimicry, blow job jokes), it's not malicious. I am not saying it's right and I don't think Apatow is either. He's not claiming that he or any or his characters are in touch with the female psyche. At least they are trying.