We continue our look at end-of-year films finally making their way to our area. Up this week is the indie film, Juno (PG-13). Ellen Page stars as the title character, who, while in high school, confronts her unplanned pregnancy. She decides on her own to give her baby up for adoption to a yuppie couple played by Jennifer Garner and Jason Bateman. Micheal Cena also co-stars in the film. Jason Reitman directs.
Andy: Juno is a very easy movie to like. All of the characters are well crafted, well acted, and reasonable. The story deals with a difficult situation without being preachy or overly simplistic, plus it has a really cool soundtrack. There are really no obvious problems with this film, which makes it one of the year's best.
Ryan: No question about it, Juno is not only one of the year's best films, but it is also one of my favorite movies of the year. The movie is a cross between Napoleon Dynamite and Superbad. It has a quirky charm to it with a crass sincerity. Juno is an independent film but it isn't overly artsy. It has a mainstream movie feel but it's one of authenticity not superficiality. It's a fantastic film that might just sneak a Best Picture Nomination from the Academy, which would be all right with me.
Andy: At the heart of Juno is the performance of Ellen Page. High School movies frequently operate on a superficial level, so making a movie about high school pregnancy that attempts to be genuine completely hinges on the performance of the pregnant teenager. Page plays it with an authentic, defensive sarcasm that only sometimes masks the shock of her situation. Without Page's performance, Juno is a pretty questionable movie.
Ryan: The breakthrough performance of the year belongs to Ellen Page. She is simply outstanding as the unconventional pregnant high school student. If she doesn't get nominated for an Oscar it will be a cinematic tragedy. Not to be out done is the rest of the cast. Michael Cena seems to have perfected playing the geeky high school student (TV's Arrested Development and last summer's Superbad). Jason Bateman continues his string of solid supporting work and Jennifer Garner again showcases that she has the skill to deliver solid silver screen work.
Andy: Every performance in the movie is great. Jason Reitman, who got a string of really solid performance in his first movie, Thank You For Smoking, has securely established himself as one of the most exciting (and viable) young directors working. The only questionable element to Juno is the unnecessary final scene, which is pretty easy to overlook in retrospect.
Ryan: Even though I have nothing but the highest praise for Juno I feel that I've been a disservice to the movie. Andy and I saw the film a few weeks ago. Over that time I've been asked, “What's a good movie that's out there?” My reply is, “Juno.” Immediately I hear the same thing, “I haven't heard of that movie. What is it about?” I start by saying that, it's about a high school girl that gets pregnant. By that time I've lost them. I'm going to amend for my mistake and just say that Juno is a stupendous film that needs to be watched. Case closed.
Juno is certainly one of 2007's best films. Final grade: A-.
1 comment:
Indiana folks---make a point to see Juno at the Wolf! This is something that should be encouraged!
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