Movie Review: Juno
Listen, if Ellen Page doesn’t win two Oscars for Juno (one for Best Actress and another for—I don’t know—attendance) then there is no justice in the world and I renounce my membership in the ACLU (it’s the only organization I officially belong to, so it’ll have to do).
As you’ve no doubt heard, Juno is about the last girl you’d expect to get pregnant getting pregnant. Juno McGuff is smart, independent, and has a fairly stable relationship with her father and step-mother, but still winds up pregnant in high school, trying to navigate the stigma, her boyfriend’s mute terror, and the adoption of her baby. In the end, the movie does a brilliant, explicit job of interrogating the idea that something as maudlin and incoherent as love can even exist. And it’s funny.
The dialogue threatens to be too witty for itself in places, but never crosses the line, and I like to think I’m pretty sensitive to that particular brand of bullshit (I’m looking in your direction, Brick). As far as being a movie with both emotional resonance and an awesome soundtrack, Juno puts the last two Wes Anderson movies to shame (and since Royal Tenebaums is easily my favorite movie of the last ten years, I hope you understand how mad I am about this). So, if you were looking for one more person to tell you that Juno was worth paying money for, I’m that guy.
Mon., Jan. 14, 2008
Reader Comments (8)
Oh man, I didn’t think we’d disagree on anything ever except Led Zepplin. I loved Ellen Page’s presence - my beef was with Diablo Cody and Jason Reitman. The two tastes were like eating a combination of used condoms and astronauts. I swore to myself I'd never travel that road twice.
On the subject, I was trying to remember a movie we saw years ago, I think you had it on video. I only remember a guy being interrogated by police, a lie detector, maybe a suicide? It was a modern-crime-noir-type. I remember liking it so much I forgot it.
Oh, burn. The movie you're thinking of was "Deceiver" and might be Tim Roth's finest moment.
Yes! That's the one. I think I came down a little hard on Juno. I love Ellen, but Cody rubbed me the wrong way, like all the other Codys in my life. Here;s to your memory though, I'm going to track that down.
If it helps, her real name isn't Diablo Cody.
I wouldn't call her anything else, a good whore takes to the grave her sobriquet. I think that's a quote from either Marcus Gravey or Grimace.
Shit, Garvey... but Gravey works.
Marcus Gravy is the best Alt-Funk band name I've ever heard.
Geez. Get a chatroom you two.