I know it was mentioned in a different thread but cant find it. The only thing Mark said that makes me think he actually felt something for her was when he said he was leaving Vanessa, he said "I thought you would be cool with this'?
Is that supposed to mean he wants something with HER?
"That is rather slippery of you agent Starling"
Certainly there's some level of crush between them....but it doesn't go anywhere.
sharei was always under the impression that they liked each other and it always grossed me out.
shareI don't think he liked her romantically, but I do think that spending time with her made him realise that he has nothing in common with his wife, as well as that his wife doesn't truly accept him for who he is (which is related to what Juno's dad was saying about lasting love).
Agreed with ms-Trixi that Juno having interest in him (even tho not romantic) made him feel young and also probably sparked his willingness to back out of the marriage and the baby.
shareI don't think he liked her romantically, but I do think that spending time with her made him realise that he has nothing in common with his wife, as well as that his wife doesn't truly accept him for who he is (which is related to what Juno's dad was saying about lasting love).
I almost agree, but I think he did like her romantically, at least to an extent. There was over a decade's age difference between them, and she was still just a high school kid, and on some level, I got the feeling that he knew anything romantic between them was inappropriate, but that said...
Juno was a good-looking young female, and she had the kind of open, free-spirited personality that really appealed to Mark on a deep level, as a kindred spirit. They had many interests in common, and were a lot alike. If Mark had been Juno's age, and they'd met in school, the two of them might have been a natural couple.
But Mark was older, probably had never met anyone like Juno, and had married Vanessa (partly no doubt for her beauty), but then found life with her was, shall we say, rather hard work. Vanessa was high maintenance, very structured, very controlling, very determined to have things her way, everything just so. You can see this when Juno and her father come to visit as they set up the adoption arrangement, and Vanessa has the house arranged right down to how the towels hang in the bathrooms; everything has to look like it's right out of "Better Homes and Gardens." Magazine presentable.
Mark is a creative type, and I am sure he found it stifling. Vanessa even openly belittles his creativeness toward the end of the film. After years with that, I don't wonder that Mark felt very drawn to a young, pretty, free-spirited, non-judgmental, fellow creative type. I am sure that Mark at least entertained the idea of being with Juno, if only speculatively, with no intent to actually pursue it. She was the kind of girl he should have married, if he had found an older version of her before he met Vanessa.
Probably he never seriously considered trying to pursue a relationship with Juno, but she did show him that he had married a woman who was wrong for him -- though Juno was upset by how this epiphany almost destroyed her plans to adopt out her child to a loving family.
I think he had a crush on her that he would never act on. I think he liked having a young girl attracted to him. She made him feel young and cool. That's why he seemed so offended when she called him old- it blew his illusion.
"Getting old is not for sissies."
Bette Davis
This is correct. These sorts of crushes or infatuations are less about liking someone and more about how a person makes you feel about yourself.
The Mark character was interesting, but perhaps a bit overdone. He's the bad guy and the catalyst for the plot, but I think Vanessa was equally to blame for the failed marriage.
Her type is all too common, she's overly controlling and she takes on a guy like Mark as a project, hoping that once the baby comes. he'll fall into line. It rarely works out that way.
Yeah, Vanessa was super annoying and I'm a 40 something yo woman.
I picked up on the attraction immediately, Mark was attracted to the essence of Juno. Juno is kind of a boy/girl. She's very down to earth, a tad snarky (ok more than a tad). She was almost a female version of himself. If Juno had been older, something might have happened between them or they would have been awesome friends.
100% right..
But about Mark changing once he becomes a dad...
well, personally I know people who were immature, did drugs, partied too much, selfish... but once his girlfriend gave birth... he dropped all those and became a mature person, hard working etc.
it was pretty clear something was up. in the scene before he tells her he is leaving vanessa juno puts on makeup. when juno gets to the house she asks something like "is it safe" and mark replies, "yep all clear vanessa is..." clearly showing that Juno was gauging herself up for him, and knew the relationship was inappropriate enough to not want vanessa around.
shareI don't think he liked her romantically, I think he liked her company as a friend. She was a very laid back person unlike his wife so he probably liked that aspect about her. I could be wrong but that's my take.
shareI think it's obvious he had a thing for Juno. The scene with them dancing & holding each other makes this clear enough, and then he tells her he's leaving his wife. Why else would he mention that (while lovingly holding her?) Yeah, it would be wrong for them to be together romantically but they were almost like "soulmates" in that they had so much in common.
Also, Mark was immature. Mentally he was still more like a teenager than a 30-something guy. I think he just felt like he could connect more with Juno than with his wife.
I ship it
share