Monday, May 19, 2008

Two More Takes on the Fertility Film 

Yale blogger Helen Rittelmeyer says the rise of the "fertility film" is "a good thing":

I’m not sure why Quart is unhappy about the move towards seeing mother- and fatherhood as redemptive, given that it moves us away from trying to charge romantic relationships with the burden of making overgrown adolescents man up (which was always a bad bet on our part). Movies are full of men who start out juvenile, sullen, self-absorbed, or humorless, only to fall into relationships with women who offer a promise of salvation. I’m not sure why; confrontation with the responsibilities of fatherhood seems to have more raw valence than “love of a good woman.”

Louise Sloan, single mother by choice and author of Knock Yourself Up, thinks there's plenty funny about being a single mom, but that Baby Mama doesn't get it:

The critiques of Baby Mama find it to be superficial and predictable, lacking fully drawn characters and the kind of emotional depth that takes a funny sketch and makes it a great movie. And that's where I start to lose my sense of humor. Because this material is both hilarious and highly emotional--there was no reason for Baby Mama to be shallow.

I found plenty to laugh about as I encountered exploding semen vials and was twice mistaken for an animal breeder ("I swear, it's always you semen people who get the late deliveries!" one FedEx clerk loudly exclaimed).

posted by Cheryl Miller | 8:27 am
File As: Assisted Reproductive Technologies, ART in popular culture, Single Mothers by Choice