Tongue Twister
by Flick Chick Vique
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Juno delivers 4 Red Vines for growing up on screen |
I patiently waited for weeks to see Juno. The buzz for the quirky comedy penned by a former stripper (Diablo Cody) was off the charts and I bought into it hook, line and stripper-I mean, sinker. So imagine my surprise when a younger, edgier movie loving friend of mine proclaimed, “I know everyone’s crazy about it but not me!” I respect my friend’s opinion and couldn’t imagine why she was going against the popular grain. Well now that I’ve seen it, I totally understand where she was coming from. But I am happy to report that what irritated her to no end, just irritated me at the beginning.
Juno follows the exploits of a 16 year old girl who gets pregnant after her first tryst with her ‘cool’ boyfriend. She decides to give the baby up for adoption to a couple she finds in a Penny Saver ad. This simple enough plot line gets rhinestone embellished, tie-dyed, decoupaged and scrapbooked to cutesy perfection. According to your taste this can either make or break the film.
My main complaint with the film is that for nearly the first half, it simply tries too hard. It tries to be quirky, irreverent, cocky, cute and clever but in the end it simply comes across as tragically hip. The over orchestrated dialogue is what will strike you first. While I understand that we are being hit over the head with Juno’s uniqueness, that argument does not hold up when other characters display a gift of gab only fit for those who orally assault the Blarney Stone on an hourly basis. For instance, when Juno takes her umpteenth pregnancy test at the corner convenience store the clerk (played in unusual dead pan Rainn Wilson style) admonishes her with this pithy display, "That ain’t no Etch-A-Sketch. This is one doodle that can’t be un-did, Homeskillet."
Cute. Clever even. But line after line of that whiz and you’ll be begging for a more refined cheese spread for your crackers.
Thankfully, as the movie progresses and the plot begins to unfold, writer Cody abandons her relentless pursuit of the cute and settles down to some good old fashioned story telling and here is where her characters and her movie blossom into something really special.
While much is being made of its Canadian born star, Ellen Page (who is perfect for the role) the supporting cast is equally fun to watch. Jennifer Garner is engaging and sympathetic while Jason Bateman is properly pathetic as the adoptive parents to be. And it was fun to think that Bateman and the actor who played his son in my personal favorite, Arrested Development, Michael Cera were reunited in a blockbuster comedy. But don’t look for the two to share any scenes. It just doesn’t happen. Once again Cera goes to a comfortable place, that of the awkward, sweet teen. Sure he’s playing the same role over and over again but he does it so well. J.K. Simmons and Allison Janney are standouts as Juno’s dad and step mom, delivering more than their fair share of cute lines with professional panache.
Juno grew on me in leaps and bounds. To say that I experienced a 180 degree turnaround from beginning to end would not be an exaggeration. Much of that credit probably goes to director Jason Reitman (Thank You for Not Smoking). The pacing and carefully picked and placed music do much to put the first time screenwriter’s work in the absolute best of light. While I don’t see it as an Oscar worthy movie as some proclaim, I do see it as a very good movie and I can’t wait to talk to my less than enthusiastic friend to tell her so.
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