Juno

Review by Ava Cadabra

THINGS THIS MOVIE CONTAINED: A pregnant 16 year old (no, not Jamie Lynn Spears), hamburger phones, boysenberry condoms, two former cast members of Arrested Development.

THINGS THIS MOVIE DID NOT CONTAIN:  Epic men’s wear, “Samurai Showdown” for SNES, Bob Saget, Hammertime.

The Review: By now, you’ve seen ads everywhere for this tale of a young 16 year old coping with her pregnancy and opting to give up her baby for adoption. Juno MacGuff (Ellen Page), a guitar playing 70’s punk rock fan with a penchant for wit and sarcasm far beyond her years, discovers she is pregnant after having sex with her best friend, Paulie Bleeker (Michael Cera). While searching for potential adoptive parents for her unborn child, she finds the Lorings (Jennifer Garner and Jason Bateman)- the seemingly perfect candidates who are beautiful, rich, and desperate for a child.

Critics, the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, and subsequently most viewers have put Juno on a pedestal. It’s praised mostly for its unique script and lead actress Ellen Page’s performance. As a whole, the film is, for lack of a better word, cute. That’s about it. I didn’t leave the theater under the impression that it was destined to win many prestigious awards. It’s got a certain charm and is indeed watchable, but that’s where the praise should end.

This is Jason Reitman’s latest directorial effort hot off the heels of 2005’s fantastic Thank You For Smoking. Juno is not a bad follow up project at all, but still not as good as his previous film. There are similarities in select shots and style of the way these two films were made, specifically some quick cuts and attention to detail. Collectively, the cast shines. The material they’re given to work with is decent at best, but each cast member brings the satisfactory script to life.

Juno isn’t a date movie, nor is it a goofball comedy a la Knocked Up. It’s a somewhat pretentious “chick flick” that’s best seen for less than a theater price. Wait for it on DVD. It’s worth checking out if the plot intrigues you.

Complaints: We’re supposed to like the main character, but over the course of the film she becomes increasingly irritating. After a while I was hoping they would focus on the supporting characters and leave Juno out for a bit. That’s not good.

On a side note: The lesson here? Use a condom, kids. We don’t need your bastard children running around. Don’t make me use a killing curse.

Ninjasaurus Rex: