I have been going back and forth for the last 24 hours whether or not to post about this. But my OCD has won out. Because I can't stop thinking about this, to the point of obsession, and I just feel sick about it. I know I won't be able to let it go until I have said what I have to say.
I just want to say that I apologize to anyone who watched Juno on my recommendation and was offended by it. I am mortified. Maybe I'm making too much of this, but I feel like I have a responsibility as the "movie reviewer" to apologize, explain, something! If you know me at all, you know that I care way too much what people think of me and I've spent the last 24 hours thinking that many of my blog readers are thinking badly of me and I can hardly bear it.
I'm not going to go back and say "oh, just kidding, I thought Juno was awful," because I did love it. But what I didn't put in my review was that, yes, the first ten minutes were shockingly risque and totally unnecessary. Yes, the way Juno and her friend talk is crude and raunchy at times. I don't know why I didn't put this in my review, I guess I was having a "positive" day and just said what I loved about it. I see now that this was a grotesque oversight on my part, and I can't tell you the regret I feel over anyone watching this movie based on my review and being shocked and horrified. If this caused anyone's opinion about me or my movie reviews to go sour, I would be devastated. I pride myself in reviewing decent, PG13-only movies. Yes, Juno was maybe a stretch, and I'll admit, I probably wouldn't have reviewed it on my blog except that I had already read so many people's comments about how much they loved it, so I thought it was safe. No, it is not a movie I want my parents to watch. No, it is not a movie I would EVER think a 13 year old should watch. No, I don't condone teenage pregnancy or making light of serious topics. No, I didn't always love the things that were said and yes, I was offended by some of it. But I guess I didn't see it as any worse than the nudity in Titanic, or the sexuality in Moulin Rouge. It's hard to find a movie--even PG13--nowadays that doesn't have some language and sex in some form. I'm not trying to make excuses or rationalize. I guess as a movie lover I've learned to still be able to enjoy a movie despite the worldly aspects of it.
Please see this for what it is--an apology, and explanation, me defending myself in the hopes that people aren't turned off from my future reviews or recommendations. This is in no way intended to be a backlash or anything of the sort. I guess I never in a million years thought that my little ole' movie reviews would ever be taken seriously, that people would go see a movie based on my opinion of it. It's incredibly flattering, but with it comes a responsibility that I'm just becoming aware of. Please know that in the future I will be more careful about giving any kind of a warning if I think the movie may not be for everyone, and know that I have never and will never review a movie that I feel is totally inappropriate. Of course people may disagree with me what is considered inappropriate, and that's fine. I just felt I needed to explain myself, and now I can finally let it go. Thank you for listening.
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