The quirky, teen-sex comedy has never been this good. Ellen Page, (unbelievably good in 2005's Hard Candy, her only other major role) carries this stimulating little film into geek perfection. A bored night with best friend Paulie Bleeker (Michael Cera, fresh off his Superbad mojo) turns into a life-changing, baby-toting accident.Her parents (a never better J.K. Simmons and Allison Janney) are supportive in their own, odd way, while Juno tries to find a family to take her soon to be child. Jennifer Garner (giving something here) and Jason Bateman (stepping outside a little) are the couple in need as worlds collide and words are used as weapons of comic bliss.
Director Jason Reitman (son of Ivan) uses great, indie-funk tunes to fuel the movie right along, but it’s Diablo Cody’s refreshing screenplay that's the real star. Each actor delivering their lines with brilliantly timed perfection, each one-liner better than the one before, Juno uses words better than most films this year.
A highly entertaining, and original piece of comedy, Ellen Page proves after two roles that she is one of the most gifted actors of her generation, and Cody announces herself as a real Hollywood player. A
Hype-wise, I remember thinking at the time that Juno was similar to Napoleon Dynamite. I didn't think ND lived up to the hype, but Juno was exactly as good as claimed. Considering it now, I'm not sure if that's a fair comparison or not.
ReplyDeleteHmm, it is an interesting comparison, for sure. But man, I'd never give this movie an A today. B at best. I like it, but it had virtually no staying power with me.
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