Fox Searchlight Pictures/Mandate/Mr. Mudd
Released December 5, 2007
I often await the holiday movie season with an ounce of trepidation. It seems that the majority of the releases this time of year either rise to occasion and deserve the awards praise bestowed upon them or fall completely flat on their face. It’s safe to say about half the movies I see between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Day never fail to disappoint. However, Juno is not one of those films -- it is a refreshing and humorous gem laying hidden in what could be one of the biggest holiday seasons yet.
The movie is about Juno MacGuff (Ellen Page): an edgy, intelligent, smart ass with a penchant for punk rock, who finds herself pregnant after an evening that “started with a chair.” It’s a typical story about a pregnant teenager and the struggles that she has to face. What sets this film apart from all the other after school specials and health education movies is the strength of the script and characters. Page anchors the film with a brilliant performance that has already earned her both SAG and Golden Globe nominations. She truly deserves these nods as she showed a range of acting ability in Juno as she evolved from an almost Punky Brewster-esque quirkiness to a heart wrenching breakdown and the back again seamlessly.
Page is joined by an equally talented supporting cast including Justin Bateman who plays Mark Loring. Loring is the man who is set to adopt Juno's baby but is not sure he is ready to be a father let alone a grown up man/husband. I’ve become quite a believer in Bateman’s ability to deliver comedy (especially Arrested Development) but here I actually got to see him in a more dramatic role and I would like to see more. He’s truly an underrated talent.
Also guest starring in this film is Michael Cera as Paulie Bleeker: a gawky member of the high school track team who is also the father of Juno’s baby. While Cera’s boyish charm and comedic delivery are perfect for this film, it seems he is certainly being type casted. It is very difficult to see the difference between Paulie Bleeker and Superbad’s Evan or Arrested Development’s George Michael.
These days, it seems that comedies are laden with low brow dick and fart jokes that, don’t get me wrong, are hysterical. Still it is also nice to see a movie that can deliver comedy with an abundance of higher brow intelligent humor that has a great script to match a great cast. This movie is a perfect example of what happens when you have that award winning combination.
3 out of 4
(Review by CMill)
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