"Junior", is a thoroughly entertaining, yet insightful movie that manages in the end to be touching. The story line (man gets pregnant) is sufficiently well-known from the publicity that it need not be outlined here. I have always admired Arnie's refreshing unpretentiousness about his lack of acting ability, but he has indeed come far from the grunting days of Conan and in this movie attains some very good moments. He really does make you believe he's carrying to term.
Good work all around - Emma Thompson (this great actress can't think too badly of Arnie to agree to make a movie with him; then again, is it the dough???) is a delightfully klutzy research scientist, and Danny DeVito plays a sympathetic role but with the inevitable undertones of sleazoid tackiness that he does so well. A good subplot is the relationship between DeVito and his divorced wife, also pregnant.
The commenter who said the premise was 'medically conceivable' [sic] didn't know much about amniotic sacs, placentas, and umbilical cords. That's ok; suspend disbelief and enjoy the humor.
The 'messages' here about gender roles and expectations are delivered with such a sense of humor that they are never preachy (I think of the classic "Tootsie" as a comparable example). An intelligently funny script, good comic pacing, and a hefty dose of outright slapstick make this a winner.
Good work all around - Emma Thompson (this great actress can't think too badly of Arnie to agree to make a movie with him; then again, is it the dough???) is a delightfully klutzy research scientist, and Danny DeVito plays a sympathetic role but with the inevitable undertones of sleazoid tackiness that he does so well. A good subplot is the relationship between DeVito and his divorced wife, also pregnant.
The commenter who said the premise was 'medically conceivable' [sic] didn't know much about amniotic sacs, placentas, and umbilical cords. That's ok; suspend disbelief and enjoy the humor.
The 'messages' here about gender roles and expectations are delivered with such a sense of humor that they are never preachy (I think of the classic "Tootsie" as a comparable example). An intelligently funny script, good comic pacing, and a hefty dose of outright slapstick make this a winner.