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Juno
Genre: Comedy/Drama
Rated: PG-13
Directed
by: Jason Reitman
Starring: Ellen
Page, Michael Cera, Allison
Janney, Jennifer Garner, Jason
Bateman, J.K. Simmons, Olivia
Thirlby, Rainn Wilson
Released by: Fox Searchlight Pictures
In
Short: Juno MacGuff may have made a big
mistake by getting pregnant at 16, but there
isn’t a single misstep or mistake in
this absolutely charming, funny look at teenage
love and all the weird angst it entails. |
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The
Coolest Teenager Ever
But Maybe Not the Smartest?
by Jenny Peters
From
the moment we meet Juno, the 16-year-old
high school student who has sex with her best friend
on a whim, it is obvious that she's not like
most teenagers. No, Juno is incredibly smart, clever
and cool—but she is also a bit of a dope when
it comes to sex. For her first attempt at it results
in an unwanted pregnancy, which naturally puts her
world into a spin.
But
"Juno" is
not your typical TV movie-of-the-week fodder, no
earnest drama that reminds kids to stay celibate
and pure. Instead, it is an incredibly clever, laugh-filled
look at a girl who has her head screwed on right,
despite her initial mistake.
With
a dead-on script by ex-stripper-turned-first-time-film
writer, Diablo Cody, an Oscar-worthy performance
by Ellen Page as Juno, and super supporting work from
Jennifer Garner (as the desperate-to-be-a-mother
adoptive parent to Juno's baby), Jason Bateman
(her less-than-desperate husband), J.K. Simmons
and Allison Janney (Juno's awesome parents)
and, best of all, Michael Cera as her best buddy
and the baby's dad, this is a gem of a film.
Not
sappy for a moment, yet filled with characters that feel
completely real, "Juno" will make you laugh
out loud, smile with understanding and for those of us
watching who have made it out of the teenage years, giggle
with happiness that those angst-fraught days are finally
over. It's a great movie, and one that is sure
to find itself on the short list when Oscar nominations
are handed out later this month. 
PNJ010208 |
(Updated
01/04/08 NJ) |
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