Juno (2007)

Celluloid

Ellen Page owns the screen. I've come to this conclusion after viewing only two of her films: 2005's psychological thriller Hard Candy and her latest effort, Juno. The sophomore effort by Jason Reitman (Thank You For Smoking) is a quirky and intelligent film which stars Page as a precocious 16-year old who turns up pregnant. Rather than resorting to toilet humor and gross-out visuals, the script is smart and provides enough razor wit for the promising young actress to shine in her role as Juno. Judging by the previews for the film, I figured this would be just another one of those wannabe quirky films in the vein of Rushmore, and while there is enough offbeat comedy to appease you indie kids, there's also enough warmth and realism to appeal to a wide variety of people from different backgrounds and ages (there were teeny boppers, elderly couples, and tattooed dudes in the crowd). The film is perfectly cast, and every performance is commendable. Superbad star Michael Cera is charming as the dorky track star who gets Juno pregnant, and Juno's parents are both hilarious. Even Jennifer Garner, who usually couldn't act her way out of a paper bag, is believable as the baby-obsessed adoptive mother. Jason Bateman rounds off the cast wonderfully as her hesitant husband. Juno is balanced with so much sarcasm, wit, and realism that it never materializes into the cheesy prego-romp that it very easily could have become. Kudos to Jason Reitman for making intelligent decisions with his new film, and kudos to Page for turning in a memorable and award-worthy performance. -- Capt. Obvious

Verdict:

Tags: Ellen Page, Juno, Jason Reitman