Season change to Autumn in Juno in at 00:33

Juno, a 2007 offbeat comedy directed by Jason Reitman, follows the pregnancy of the teenage Juno. Following the claim that Reitman is demonstrating the decision-making process of teenagers, we are able to see several film techniques that Reitman employs. One technique, in particular, are the scene changes. Reitman divides Juno into 4 sections each with a specific scene change and a purpose. The scenes are divided by seasons of the year that, conveniently enough, correlate with the terms of Juno’s pregnancy.

Autumn (shown left) is the first of these four big sections of the movie. This scene begins at 00:33 seconds of the film. In this section, we see the surface of Juno’s decision making. Juno goes to the abortion clinic and ultimately decides not to go through with it because she previously found out the baby has fingernails. She also tells her parents about being pregnant and that the act of sex with Paulie Bleeker was based on boredom. These choices are all on a whim and show no logical decision making. 

Season change to Winter in Juno at 37:30

Winter (shown right) is the next section beginning at 37:30. In this section, Juno is learning about the consequences of the actions she makes on a whim. The ultrasound technician makes assumptions because she is a pregnant teenager. She also starts having issues in relationships with her stepmom, with Paulie Bleeker, and somewhat with the adoptive mother Vanessa. 

Season change to Spring in Juno at 59:47

The climax section, Spring (shown left) begins at 59:47. Up until this point all of Juno’s decisions have been surface level and seem to be on a whim. Reitman showed us what adults expect teenager decisions to be. In this section he begins to show what he thinks their decisions are actually made of. Juno’s decisions become more confident and purposeful. Spring is Juno’s third trimester of pregnancy which is the most difficult. Baby is mostly grown and is hard on any mother. Despite the difficulties Juno reveals real purpose behind her decisions. Her choices are made based on her influences such as family and relationships. She wanted to keep the baby and give it up for adoption so a family can be complete. In the end she decides, despite Mark leaving Vanessa, that she is going to give the baby to a single mother. This decision was more than just a whim and Juno realized that family is based on good people rather than simply having a married couple. 

Season change to Summer in Juno at 1:29:24

Summer is the final section (shown right) beginning at 1:29:24. There isn’t much to this section, however, it is showing the consequences of Juno’s later decisions that were made by her actual thought processes. This section closes out the film and everyone seems happy. Juno relaxes with Bleeker and plays music. Vanessa has the baby which is all she ever wanted. Reitman, by showing the choices and consequences, shows viewers that teenagers real decisions are made with actual thought processes that lead to happiness.