In 1988, Arnold Schwarzenegger broke out of his The Terminator, Predator, and Commando action hero comfort zone to play a much gentler character in a film with a much lighter tone. Specifically, Ivan Reitman’s Twins. In doing so he made a friend in Danny DeVito, established a working relationship with both DeVito and Reitman, and had the first movie in his career to cross $100 million domestically. Worldwide it made over 14 times its $15 million budget, making it to this day one of the most profitable films of either lead star’s career. Audiences really took to it, and it’s easy to see why, as it’s a breezy charmer of a movie with a fairly serious plot that is never taken too, well, seriously.
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How is it serious? For one, it’s the story of two people feeling somewhat alone in the universe finding one another. Two, the villain is a criminal delivery man who guns down any associate who’s seen his face. But the tone and sweet soundtrack never make the audience feel as though it’s lining up with any of Schwarzenegger’s more serious action fare. The same could be said of the movie Schwarzenegger and Reitman next collaborated on, Kindergarten Cop, which has shoot-out scenes but also a light tone throughout 90% of the runtime. However, the balance was broken with Reitman and Schwarzenegger’s third and final film (which again brought DeVito into the mix): Junior.
What Is Junior About?
In Junior, Schwarzenegger plays Austrian research geneticist Dr. Alex Hesse, who teams with his OB/GYN colleague and friend Dr. Larry Arbogast (DeVito) to invent a fertility drug called “Expectane.” The duo aims to reduce the risk of devastating miscarriages, but they run into a hiccup when they are prevented from testing the medication. The drug wasn’t approved by the FDA, so it seems their work has ended before it really got a chance to make a difference in couples’ lives.
Larry then suggests they continue anyway, as a Canadian pharmaceutical company has offered to fund their work as long as they find a volunteer to take the drug. Alex doubts any pregnant woman will take a drug unapproved by the FDA, so it’s decided that Alex will impregnate himself via an Ovum.
The impregnation is successful, but now Alex must contend with all of the discomfort women experience while pregnant. And much to Larry’s dismay, Alex decides that, even though they’ve proved their medication works, he wants to carry his pregnancy to term, as he’s grown attached to the concept of giving birth to his child.
Along the way to the birth, Alex also strikes up a relationship with Dr. Diana Reddin (Emma Thompson), a geneticist who donated the ovum Alex put within himself. Furthermore, Larry’s ex-wife is also pregnant. Not by him, but rather by Aerosmith’s personal trainer. Worse yet, an unscrupulous colleague is now trying to take the credit for having come up with this whole experiment.
Why Doesn’t Junior Work as Well as Twins or Kindergarten Cop
Junior isn’t a movie that would be made today, now that the public’s perception of gender isn’t so dead set on there just being two sides of the coin. But it’s admirable that it does try to say something about how a man would feel if put in a woman’s shoes during pregnancy.
The issue is that it’s carried out with in such a goofy way. On paper it’s somewhat funny to have the hulking Schwarzenegger complain about sensitivity in his nipples (or have a nightmare about a baby with a CGI Schwarzenegger face on it), but the viewers’ level of enjoyment will definitely vary. It was all just such an odd direction for the trifecta of Reitman, Schwarzenegger, and DeVito to go after Twins. But, at the same time, that movie focused on genetics, this movie focuses on genetics, so perhaps many see them as fine companion pieces.
All due credit to Junior though, as even when it has Schwarzenegger in a dress in the third act, it never has anything but respect for the subjects of gender dynamics and the process of growing and birthing a human being. All in all, Junior is a good enough pick for a Saturday afternoon viewing, but it’s doubtful you’ll be picking it up for a rewatch any time soon.
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Image courtesy of Paramount+
