Review: Juno

Juno is Funny, Sweet and Fun

Juno is yet another comedy to come around dealing with a surprising pregnancy. Knocked Up was very different in its style and execution and was very good. Juno is an excellent film full of genuine laughs and strong, memorable performances. The performance that stands out is Ellen Page as Juno; she is so strong in the role and brings a sharp sense of humor and grace to the role. She is assured and confident and has great comic timing. She carries most of the weight of the film on her shoulders and she carries it well; it is a funny, charming and confident performance that will make you fall in love with her just as she seems to do to everyone in the film.

Michael Cera is great as always as the young man who got Juno pregnant. While Cera's range clearly doesn't vary as greatly as Ellen Page's, he delivers a reserved and effective performance. He is a very gifted actor, especially in comedy, and his scenes were highlights of the film. He had great chemistry with Page and brought a sweet, innocent and like able quality to the role. Jennifer Garner was great as the adoptive mother-to-be, and Jason Bateman was solid as always as the adoptive father-to-be with signs of cold feet.

Juno has sharp, witty dialogue, some of the funniest and most believable heard this year in cinemas. The script by Diablo Cody is really quite refreshing; it is not condesecnding of teenagers or their parents; rather she seems to give a fair, balanced and true voice to the characters. It moves at a quick pace and is divided into four seasons; autumn, winter, spring and summer. Juno doesn't contain any profound lessons but is an uplifting look at the good that comes from a mistake or any bad situation. Big life events can often bring people apart but can also bring them together. Juno is about the power of relationships and different forms of love; the love of her father gave her strength to confront the problem; but her relationship with the adoptive parents, or with the father, proved to be the catalyst to their separation. It is a coming of age story of what happens when a teenager is forced to confront things "way beyond my maturity level." Entertaining, funny, full of delightful dialogue and performances with clever direction by Jason Retiman and a fun, hip soundtrack.

My Grade: A-