I feel a little sheepish writing a review about a movie that’s been nominated for an Oscar. For what it’s worth, I first wrote this before the nominations came out. I said I wouldn’t be surprised if it was nominated for an Oscar. Ellen Page certainly deserves it and the script is phenomenal. It was nominated for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actress in a Leading Role, and Best Original Screenplay. I am officially not surprised.
Juno is about a young girl struggling to find a place in an adult world. It takes place in what could be any small town in America and centers around a bitingly sarcastic 16-year-old girl named Juno (Ellen Page, aka Kitty Pride from X-Men 3). The film begins with Juno chugging a gallon of Sunny D as she walks to the local convenience store to take what we soon learn is her third pregnancy test of the day. It’s positive. Juno is pregnant.
We then follow Juno as she goes through the roller coaster that ensues thereafter. She eventually decides to keep the baby and put it up for adoption. Looking through the PennySaver, she finds the perfect couple, played by Jason Bateman and Jennifer Garner. What happens for the remainder of the movie can best be described as Juno “dealing with things way beyond [her] maturity level,” as she uses her sarcasm to shield her from the reality of her situation. Juno’s classmates turn on her and she turns to Mark (Jason Bateman) as the only person who sees more in her than a pregnant belly, or so she thinks.
Juno is a movie with heart, but that doesn’t keep the punches from flying. This movie is hilarious without being crude. This is a very adult movie, shown through the eyes of a sarcastic 16-year-old girl. The director, Jason Reitman, is very true to those eyes and because of this, no emotion is cheapened. You feel every hit. In the end, Juno is about a 16-year-old girl trapped in an adult world who discovers that love can be “really beautiful but really mean. Like Diana Ross.”
– 432.7 arbitrary stars