JUNO: Close reading of scene: Ending
MISE-EN-SCENE
CINEMATOGRAPHY
POST-PRODUCTION
 Character action:
Juno goes into labour and gives birth. Bleeker runs all
the way to the hospital to see Juno, who is in recovery.
Mac puts his hands on Bleeker’s shoulders, signifying
that he has forgiven Bleeker and sees him as more of a
man now. He climbs on her bed and cuddles her close to
comfort her, suggesting that this is a tender and quite
sad scene. We find out why when we see Vanessa
looking at the row of babies in the neo-natal unit and the
nurse bring out “her son”. She cuddles him tentatively,
then relaxes and smiles – an expression of total bliss.
Vanessa is shown in her now less-than-pristine house
cuddling the baby close, with Juno’s note framed on the
wall. The season changes and Juno cycles to meet
Bleeker. The two of them play a duet together and the
final scene is of them embracing among the beautiful
summer gardens.
 Set design:
Three main sets are shown: the hospital, Vanessa’s
house and the exterior of Paulie’s house and garden.
Hospital: Juno has a private room for her recovery,
which is unusual as it would be very expensive. This
foreshadows that Vanessa still has a part to play in the
process as Mac could never afford a private room. In
Vanessa’s house, the baby’s room is painted yellow
(linking back to her discussion with Mark about what
colour to paint it). There is a rocking chair and lots of
clutter. Juno’s crumpled note is mounted on the wall in
a beautiful frame, as though it is an expensive piece of
art work. The clutter contrasts with the obsessive
 Lighting:
The harsh, bright light of the hospital in the
birth scene is contrasted with the warm,
dimmed lighting of the recovery room. There is
also a gold filter used to give the room a glow.
EFFECT: Intimacy, quiet, peace, reflection. Juno
is exhausted and both grieving for her baby and
happy for Vanessa. The lighting helps to lend
some comfort and tenderness to the scene.
Vanessa’s house: soft, dim lighting also, again
lends tenderness to the scene.
 Shot types:
ECU on Juno’s face as she realises she is in
labour – we see her expression change to one of
watchfulness and fear. Most shots of Juno in
labour and giving birth as mid-close-ups or
close-ups either on her face or that of Bren or
Leah. This allows us to see their expressions
and to understand the passage of time as Juno
becomes more tired and sweaty. Recovery
room: Juno’s expression as the voiceover
reveals the reason for her decision to give the
baby to Vanessa is shown in close up, then
camera zooms in to an ECU as we see a tear roll
down her face, at the same time she smiles.
EFFECT: the audience sees her conflicted
emotions at this point: sadness and joy. This is a
very clever piece of camera work AND acting
as a whole range of emotions is conveyed with
no dialogue and very few words.
 Music:
Two main pieces of music in this scene:
“Anyone Else But You”, sung twice, and “Sea
of Love”. When Juno goes into labour, “Anyone
Else But You” plays softly in the background.
The sound is acoustic and folksy, with a
speech-like intonation in the lyrics and simple,
repetitive tune that continues in the same
fashion for many verses. This reflects the
process of labour which is earthy and usually
drawn out. “Sea of Love” Frames a series of
scenes – first, Juno in the recovery room with
Bleeker, then Vanessa meeting her baby for the
first time, then Vanessa at home cuddling the
baby and finally, back to Juno and Bleeker in
the recover room. EFFECT: The slow tempo of
the song and the lyrics “Come with me, my
love/to the sea, the sea of love” underscore the
spirit of tenderness and giving in this sequence.
Juno’s act was one of selfless love and the
director has conveyed this by framing this
sequence with this love song. It is also a song
she shared earlier with Mark and further
develops the idea of her increasing maturity, in
that her “sea of love” does not include Mark
but is deep and layered.
 Sound effects:
None
 Non-diegetic sound:
Several voiceovers are used: First when the
tidiness of Vanessa’s house in previous scenes. The final
scene, set outside Paulie’s house, serves as a backdrop
for Juno and Paulie’s relationship and suggests that
there is healing and re-birth happening, as the garden is
resplendent, colourful and blooming.
 Properties:
Juno’s note, the little car and the rocking chair. Juno’s
note says “Vanessa – if you’re still in, I’m still in. Juno.”
The parallel structure of this sentence seals the two of
them together as though their fates are now entwined
and inter-dependent. The little car is what she is rolling
around on her belly when she goes into labour – just a
charming little prop. The rocking chair gives circularity
(“It ended with a chair”) as well as completing Juno’s
metaphorical journey towards adulthood: it symbolised
both the beginning of the pregnancy and the end of it.
 Costume:
Juno’s costume at the end is her usual outfit of old jeans
and comfortable shirts. This shows that she has grown a
lot inside but the core of her personality is still the same
– irreverent, sassy and unconventional. Vanessa’s track
suit and old jumper contrast with her earlier spotless,
classy outfits, showing the change she has also
undergone.
 Dialogue:
“Thundercats are go!” – Juno, when she goes into
labour. This line is related to the fact that she has just
been playing with a toy car. EFFECT: she is still a child
and unaware of the ordeal of childbirth. It is also typical
of Juno’s personality.
“Doctors are sadists who like to play God and watch
other people scream” – Bren. This is a comment any
mother can relate to, aimed at the “mature” viewer. It
also shows her concern and develops the idea of her
 Camera movement
In final scene, the camera tracks Juno on her
bicycle going to Bleeker’s house. EFFECT: it
feels as though we are travelling with her and
allowed to be observers of how their
relationship has developed.
 Framing:
The very final scene has Juno and Bleeker
framed at the front of his house They sit on
either side of the fence post, each with a guitar,
and as the camera pans back it looks as though
the scene is in perfect symmetry. The backdrop
is revealed as a riotous bloom of colour. The
symmetry of Juno and Bleeker with their
guitars gives a feeling of balance and equality –
a very “Zen” finish to the film where male and
female are in perfect harmony. They even sing
equal amounts of the song, finishing on the
same note.
baby is actually born. Then when she explains
the decision she and Bleeker made: “He never
felt like ours. He was always hers,” referring to
Vanessa, while Juno is in recovery. The final
voiceover is in the final scene, a monologue on
her relationship with Paulie – “he is the cheese
to my macaroni” and a piece of self-awareness
that we as the audience can appreciate: “I know
people are supposed to fall in love before they
reproduce but I guess normalcy isn’t really our
style.” This reinforces the fact that Juno is still
Juno, despite the changes she has undergone
and the maturity she has attained – she is still
herself and her true character remains the same.
 Editing:
As Juno’s labour intensifies, all dialogue is cut
and the camera moves in slow motion. EFFECT:
This slows down time and also focuses on the
actual intensity of the process of giving birth –
it is a long, painful and exhausting process
(which is why it’s called “labour” – it’s hard
work).
At the beginning of the scene, there are fast
camera cuts as the family leaves the house and
gets into the car. This gives the feeling of slight
panic, conveying the need to hurry.
In Vanessa’s house, the camera shots dissolve
one into the other, from the chair to Juno’s note
to Vanessa holding the baby. EFFECT: There is
a softness to the scene, reinforcing its
tenderness. The fact that there are “no sudden
moves” here also makes the audience
subconsciously quieter, so as “not to wake the
baby”.
growing relationship with Juno when she is concerned
for her and yells out for the “spinal tap”.
“Someday you’ll be back here. On your terms.” – Mac.
This foreshadows the fact that Juno doesn’t keep the
baby as the viewer has no idea at this point what her
decision has been. There is very little dialogue in this
segment – it mainly consists of voiceovers, forcing the
viewer to focus on the character action and to get clues
about what is happening from their expressions and
body language. This also helps to slow the pace down
after the panic of the birth, suggesting a period of rest
and recovery.