Junior

The hilarity is not that Arnold Schwarzenegger plays a pregnant person in “Junior,” released in 1994, but that he plays one so well. He has a strange idea of what will and won’t work, and since you watch this expecting almost nothing to work, the result is a sort of deliverance. As an actor with big muscles and a think Austrian accent, you’d think he would be limited, and yet he knows himself so well that it gives him freedom: Is a pregnant Arnold any harder to believe, really, than Arnold as Conan the Barbarian? Roger Ebert said in his review, “He begins in "Junior" as a scientist named Hesse, with no charm and no personality, an automaton whose only reaction, when his research funding is yanked, is to pack his bags and head back to Europe.” Even his partner, another researcher named Arbogast, played by Danny DeVito, doesn’t like him (“You have all the warmth and charm of a wall-eyed pike”). However, Arbogast is convinced they’re going to make a fertility drug that will make millions, and as a last resort, he persuades Hesse to experiment by trying the drug on himself.

This is a doubtful procedure, because Arnold must first have a fertilized human egg inserted into him – unusual for a woman, unheard of for a man. Ebert credited, “It's a good thing Arbogast is a persuasive talker; DeVito plays him with a conspiratorial charm, talking about the "beauty of the plan" as if it's something anyone would be lucky to participate in.” The two doctors borrow an egg, Arnold donates the sperm, they inject the result into his body, and Arnold starts taking daily doses of their miracle drug.

The experiment is not only a success, but Schwarzenegger actually becomes pregnant. Ebert said, “The movie wisely never even attempts to explain how this is possible in a person without a womb; hard science is not the strong point here.” The movie’s comedy, and some other scenes that are sort of touching, all come out of the man’s experience as he begins to feel motherly towards his unborn child.

Ebert credited, “I know this sounds odd, but Schwarzenegger is perfect for the role. Observe his acting carefully in "Junior," and you'll see skills that many "serious" actors could only envy. He never reaches for an effect. He never grabs for a joke. He never wrings an emotion out of reluctant material. He plays the role absolutely straight, trusting the material to make the points and get the laughs.” This is probably the only way this story could have worked, but not every actor would have known that.

Ebert mentioned, “Schwarzenegger is helped mightily by being flanked by three superb comic actors:” DeVito, whose crazy enthusiasm makes the outline almost halfway convincing, Emma Thompson, as the scientist who takes over Schwarzenegger’s old lab and makes an unexpected contribution to the experiment, and Pamela Reed, as DeVito’s ex-wife, who is pregnant herself, maybe by a member of Aerosmith.

Ebert said, “DeVito and Thompson turn their scenes into a seminar for the study and exercise of the double take; the way they react to developments is funnier than the developments themselves.” One of Thompson’s gifts, which is nice here, is a way of happily making the best of obviously terrible situations.

The movie’s plot is more or less destined by the progress of a pregnancy. We follow Arnold through morning sickness, cramps, visits to the ultrasound lab and natural childbirth classes, all given a spin by the need to keep his condition as secret as possible.

The writers, Kevin Wade and Chris Conrad, are continuously inventive with explanations: When the director of an expectant moms’ center, played by Judy Collins, finds it odd that her newest client is a 6-foot bodybuilder, Arnold hesitantly reveals that he is an East German athlete, victimized by illegal hormone treatments.

The most unexpected thing about the movie is not that it’s funny, which we expect, but that it’s sweet. It’s one of those films you sit through continuously smiling. It’s silly and ridiculous and outrageous, and yet it makes you feel good, and there is something weirdly heartwarming about looking at a bodybuilder filled with feelings of protectiveness and maternal concern. The scenes with the Thompson character have a nice feel, too, because in a complicated way, both of these characters have to work both sides of the emotional spectrum.

“Junior” was directed by Ivan Reitman, who also directed two other Schwarzenegger comedies, “Kindergarten Cop” and “Twins.” They make a good team. They both understand that in movie acting, what matters more than range, sometimes, is accuracy. There may be a lot of roles Arnold Schwarzenegger could not play. However, there are also roles no one else could play, and they don’t all involve a guy shooting missiles at a skyscraper. A lot of actors can hold large machine guns and stand convincingly in front of special effects and explosions. Not many can stand in front of a camera and be nine months pregnant, and actually make us care.

In an unexpected way, “Junior” is a good family movie, for parents and adolescents to see together, and then to discuss in ways of male and female roles and responsibilities.

I first heard of this movie by watching Nostalgia Critic’s review of it. He was saying that it was boring because it was being treated like an actual pregnancy and no comedy was in there. However, my cousin said that the movie was good. After hearing these two opinions, I decided to check it out, and I was laughing throughout the movie. I don’t see how this is a boring film. The very thought of having a comedy about a pregnant man, let alone that man being played by Arnold Schwarzenegger, the comedy writes itself. This is not in any way bad, in my opinion, so I would say to check this out and decide for yourself. I believe a lot of people, if they just sit back and carefully watch, will see just how funny of a film this is.

Next week, we will be reviewing a film that is based off of Nurse Matilda in “Emma Thompson Month.”