MovieChat Forums > Nine Months (1995) Discussion > Sexist, predictable, and genre-challenge...

Sexist, predictable, and genre-challenged


I'm in full agreement with those viewers who complain that this movie can't figure out what it wants to be when it grows up. And that it's too predictable. I admit that an inevitable outcome won't destroy a movie, but in such cases, the journey should be worth it. Even so, I don't mind a little mindless entertainment now and then. The problem with this film, for me, is that its initial premise is so blatantly sexist. There's no evidence that the Julianne Moore character got pregnant on purpose, so I can't complain that she was malicious. But c'mon, does the guy always have to be the villain in the beginning? Why is he always painted as a jerk for not wanting an unplanned baby? In the movies, when a pregnancy is accidental, it seems that the guy is always the one who's not getting with the program. There's rarely any talk about alternatives like abortion or adoption. No, it's daddyhood, all the way, or he's a complete cad. It's sexist.

Some might say that this movie was brave enough to mention abortion. As I remember the course of events, the subject didn't even come up until more than three months had gone by and an abortion was out of the question. It might be argued that only poor single women should give up their babies for adoption and that middle-class people of reasonable means should bring up the kid themselves, even if they don't want kids. Well, that's great for a child's psychological development, isn't it? You can also argue that the Moore character wanted the child, so her boyfriend should at least be forced to support her financially. Okay, granted; having sex is a risk, and there are consequences. In a more ideal world, I would like to see the female character being mature enough to say, "Well, this wasn't planned, and you didn't want any part of it from the beginning, but I want the baby anyway. Since I'm making the decision for both of us, I absolve you of any responsibility whatsoever. I don't need you or your money. No hard feelings, eh?" Or she could say, "Well, this wasn't planned, and you didn't want any part of it from the beginning. I'll abort the fetus/give up the baby for adoption, and we'll only have kids when and if we are both of the same mind on the subject."

I don't see such attitudes becoming de rigueur in Hollywood (or necessarily even in society) anytime soon. The only way to resolve the "nine months" dilemma in Hollywood is to artificially force the male protagonist to have a change of heart and become uberdad. Such films imply that the guy will get with the program--HER program--or he isn't a real man. She's automatically right, and he's automatically wrong--until he comes around to her point of view, and then it's all violins and pink hearts and happy happy family man.

That's the attitude that I find so distasteful about this film. This movie automatically assumes that the man is wrong to not want a child, it forces the baby on the man, and then impending fatherhood turns the man into a stand-up guy who really does want a kid after all. Puh-lease. I don't find that funny at all.

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THANK YOU! Geez, I thought it was just me who was annoyed with this movie... I hate that idea that if a guy doesn't want an unplanned baby then there's something wrong with him and I really hated the implication by the other parents that having a life without kids in it is in some way lacking or less worthy.

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That probably depends on the laws in your state/country. Here in the Netherlands the answers are (in order)

1. See Below
2. No
3. Yes
4. No
5. Of course not! (Not the Middle Ages anymore)
6. No.

As soon as the woman is pregnant, the man is basically screwed - that is, if he doesn't want to have kids. The final decision is 100% the womans, and if she decides to keep the child he has to pay tuiton until the child is 18. In return he *might* get visiting right (assuming man and woman are not a couple anymore), but this can easily be frustrated (and is) by Mom.

Judging by the amoujtn of people standing on top of famous buildings in the UK, I presume it's the same over there.

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"As soon as the woman is pregnant, the man is basically screwed"

Um, doesn't it usually happen the other way around?

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This was a very good movie and truthfully I did not read into it that deeply when I first saw it, however, there are many valid points made.

I do agree that too many movies make men out to be terrible just like they do in real life if they do not want to be a father. Plus, I think men should have just as much say as a woman when it comes to deiciding whether to have the baby or not. A while back, there was a high profile case about a woman who did not want the baby she was pregnant with but the ex-boyfriend(father of the baby) did. She wanted to have an abortion but he did not want her to. He begged her to have the baby and wanted full custody so he could raise the child. The woman and the feminist crowd said that how dare he think he had a right to get involved and say what he thought. Hello.........I have something to tell you. A woman can not exactly impregnate herself.......it takes sperm to do that. This society is so screwed up!!!!!

I remember once a doctor said "A woman could force a man to become a father, but a man could not force a woman to be a mother." Of course.....this is in reference to how a woman can easily go to court and get court ordered child support from the father where as in a situation where he wants the baby but she does not.......women believe that the man should have not right to dictate what she can do even though it is his child too.


Also......I have always believed women need to take more responsbility involving sex since they are the ones who get pregnant and would have to be a parent whether the guy chose to be involved or not.

By the way......I am a female and I think this which is not to popular with other women.

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The previous poster's comment, as well as your response, are both representative of the sad state that this world is in. Children are not burdens. They are gifts. It's a shame that there are so many people (yourself included, apparently) who think otherwise. Do you have any idea how many people would love to become parents, but are not able to due to infertility? If someone doesn't want to be "burdened" with a child, why not give that child up for adoption so he or she will have a chance to be taken care of by people who actually love that child?

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"Well, this wasn't planned, and you didn't want any part of it from the beginning, but I want the baby anyway. Since I'm making the decision for both of us, I absolve you of any responsibility whatsoever. I don't need you or your money. No hard feelings, eh?"

That would be a lucky guy, huh?

You sound like a sexist who just wants the man let off the hook, freed from responsibility. You seem to want the women to LET the guy out of all responsibilities.

If the guy doesn't want an unplanned baby, he better not risk it by having sex. He better not complain later. Same goes for women.

Simple solution, stop screwing around. The man should pay for his own child too, even if he wanted it or not. It is HIS baby too whether he likes it or not. You can't get the fun and not take any responsibility afterwards. Guys like that are too immature to have sex. Period.

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Svanen, rights and responsibilities should go hand in hand. I believe that any man whose partner INADVERTENTLY becomes pregnant--or whose partner intentionally becomes pregnant against the man's wishes--should have the right to be informed immediately of the woman's condition. The man should also have the right to have an absolutely equal say in whether HE will be put in the position of having any further responsibility if the pregnancy proceeds to term. Under such circumstances, if the man does not want children, the woman would have three options that I can think of: abortion, adoption, or solo motherhood without the man's financial support. A truly responsible woman will recognize that although she has equal complicity in having sex, she has unequal power when it comes to the result, should a pregnancy occur. I believe that a responsible woman should recognize that her decision regarding a pregnancy affects someone other than herself, and so she bears the onus of making a responsible choice that is also in line with what the man desires.

You're right that sex is risky. You might feel that the man's "having an equal say" starts with the decision to have sex at all. But I don't believe that simply abstaining is a reasonable option.

People are appalled when a man tries to force a woman to have an abortion or carry a fetus to term. Why aren't they appalled when a woman tries to force a man into the position of being daddy? I find these situations equally appalling. I guess you would respond that if he didn't want to run the risk, he shouldn't have had sex in the first place. That's a valid viewpoint that obviously removes the threat from the outset. But I would respectfully point out that when a man uses a condom or knowingly has sex with a woman who is using birth control, his intention to not father children is clear from the beginning. And so is hers. By engaging in sex and using birth control, BOTH partners are tacitly agreeing that they do not want a child.

There are, of course, situations that fall outside these guidelines. Some women lie about being on the Pill or using other birth control. Shame on them, but does this mean that they can do whatever they want after that? Some people have unprotected sex--this act complicates matters, but I still believe that the man should not be forced to become a father to an unwanted child, even if that definition of fatherhood only extends to financial responsibility.

To me, the bottom line is that once they engage in sex, both parties have to be responsible if the woman gets pregnant. And this means that the woman has to take the man into equal consideration and not just make the final decision for him. After all, he can't force her to have an abortion or carry the child to term; why should she be able to make him support a child that he didn't want in the first place? Just because SHE wants it and doesn't give a hang what he wants? That's rather selfish, don't you think?

I don't consider this perspective sexist. I consider it humanist.

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Again the "men should have the freedom to have sex without the consequences". You know what, life isn't like that. Whenever a woman and man have sex there is a possibility that the woman could get pregnant. If the man doesn't want children then he either gets an operation or he doesn't have sex.


Men can't have it both ways, both having the fun of having sex and then dumping all the responsibility of the outcome on the woman.

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You are *beep* stupid, and I can't believe people haven't responded to this even after 2 years.

"You know what, life isn't like that"

Oh, but it is, because women can opt out and get an abortion and not deal with the consequences

"Whenever a woman and man have sex, there is a possibility that a woman could get pregnant"

Thank you, doctor. I'm glad you are here to educate people on this.

"If that man doesn't want children then he either gets an operation or he doesn't have sex"

Jesus *beep* Christ! A woman can do the same as well!

"Men can't have it both ways, both having the fun of having sex and then dumping all the responsibility of the outcome of the woman"

But a woman can, right? She can have the fun and then get rid of all responsibility by getting an abortion (Even if the man is AGAINST it).

But hey, this is America, the feminist nation.

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You think that having an abortion is not dealing with the consequences? Are you insane?

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No, it's not. That relieves them of ALL responsibility.

And before you come in with the horror stories of abortion, actually look up the statistics of when most pregnant women get abortions. It's VERY early in the first trimester, normally before the 8 week mark. Having an abortion then is not traumatic, painful, or visually horrific.

Admit it, the point you were trying to get across was biased and *beep* stupid. Too bad you are still a moron 2 years after making such a post.

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i agree with maskedrider29, to me its just a cute movie. and i dont have anything negitive about it. and in this movie its kind of hard to have an abortion because its called "NINE MONTHS".
and everybody has diff. reactions to unplanned parenthood he was just not ready.

"A mulatto
An albino
A mosquito
My libido
Yea
NIRVANA FOREVER"

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I thought it was kind of crummy how the woman disregarded the man's entire life style because SHE wanted to have a baby. SHE wanted him to get rid of his sports car, cat, redecorate his apartment. Apparently someone is supposed to sit back and not be opposed to anything when "a baby" is involved with it. I assume since she's a dance teacher he was paying for most of it. Frankly, when they broke up and he found that other girl I cheered some because he could stay the same. I know it's just a movie, and a terrible one at that and this doesn't matter entirely too much but it entertains me to think about these kind of things. Forgive me, but my job doesn't give me enough hours and school has gotten too easy so I watch the E! channel.

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Funny how so many threads about so many movies about pregnancy involve whining that abortion (or adoption, but apparently preferably abortion) isn't brought up as a serious point to consider. Not everybody who gets accidentally pregnant automatically considers abortion, so get over it. And of course, this movie, like so many others, would be an entirely different film if the child was aborted. How about you make a comedy called Eight Weeks and a Curette, about a woman who does indeed choose abortion, and her sperm donor's journey to acceptance? Geez.

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Finally, someone had the balls to say it. I agree all the way. Thank you.

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I agree with cashcrop. People look itno that stuff way too much and there are some people who LOOK for things to be offended about. he movie wasn't saying ALL men hate unplanned preganancies and are jerks, it was saying THIS PARTICULAR CHARACTER wasn't dealing with it well. Hugh Grant doesn't represent all mankind (thank god) so suck it up.

Not that i care of course, i hate men. You don't even know what sexism is and just so you *beep* know, "Nine Months" wasn't what made me think men despicable but whining movie junkies are certainly in a drop kick catagory.

Toughen up, thats what your gender is supposed to do. You stupid.

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I haven't seen this movie in a while, so I could be wrong, but I don't remember any part in the film where Hugh Grant's character says to his girlfriend "I don't want this baby." To us the viewer, it's obvious he doesn't want it and is having trouble dealing with, and yes, it should be obvious to her too, but it's not. So you can't really completely say she was in the wrong etc, also, when she does eventually realise that he doesn't want the child, she does leave without asking him for anything.

"As my mother always said, no man who never did nothing never made any mistakes." - Frank Spencer.

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Some of you are looking to deep into this movie. It's just a comedy with a cutesy plot that tries to convey a nice message. No different than Father of the Bride, The 40 year Old Virgin, Liar Liar or countless other comedies. It wasn't meant to be a "meaning of life" cinematic masterpiece.

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