Juno – 2007
This was a strange little movie. It was an independent movie, having no backing or support from any major film studio, and it felt like it. It was a film that had honesty without pretension, heart without melodrama, and brains without smugness. The casting was good, the pacing was engaging, and the music was interesting. The characters were real and likeable.
In fact, I think that was one of the things I liked about the movie. There were no really unlikeable characters. There were no bad guys, no villains. Theey were just simple, real, and understandable. The movie is about Juno, played by Ellen Page, a sixteen year-old girl who makes a conscious decision to have sex with her friend Paulie, played by Michael Cera.
Juno gets pregnant, but takes full responsibility for her situation. She doesn’t blame Paulie. She doesn’t get mad at the world in a fit of teenage angst. She makes the decision to have the baby and give it up for adoption, fully realizing that she isn’t ready to keep and care for a child. She bravely holds her head up to face the stigma, and of course the stares, of being pregnant in high school. And best of all, she doesn’t change her mind and want to keep the baby when it is born.
And the character of Paulie is interesting as well. He is a likeable little nerd who loves Juno, even though it is clear that she only thinks of him as a friend. When she tells him of her pregnancy, he doesn’t get defensive and he doesn’t run away. He is fully willing to accept responsibility for his part in the situation. Juno first tells him that she wants an abortion, and he supports her. Then she changes her mind and decides on adoption, and Paulie continues to support her.
Juno’s father, Mac, played by J. K. Simmons, and her step-mother, Bren, played by Allison Janney, while not happy about the situation, don’t blow up at her, they don’t yell at her, and they don’t disown her. They don’t even shame her. Instead, they recognize that she is doing her best to take responsibility for the unplanned pregnancy, and do what they can to help her through it.
Now, all that being said, if the movie had any flaw, I would call it a minor one. Everything seemed too easy. It almost made unplanned teen pregnancy seem like something that was safe and even fun. I get the feeling it downplayed the seriousness of reality. They don’t show her going through morning sickness. They don’t show her being ostracized by her friends. And they don’t show her as receiving anything but loving and caring support from her family. Nice to watch, but maybe a little unrealistic.
The final characters in the film are the prospective adoptive parents, Vanessa and Mark Loring, played by Jennifer Garner and Jason Bateman. She is an anal retentive woman whose deepest desire is to become a mother, though she cannot have a child of her own. Mark is a man who is unsure about his decision to adopt a baby and who feels smothered in his marriage.
Juno just wants to get through the pregnancy and give the child away so she can get back to her life. But when Mark’s insecurities cause him to leave his wife, Juno’s simple plan begins to fall apart. In the end, after shedding a few tears, she gives the child to Vanessa who becomes a single adoptive mother. It was appropriate. And while I’m on the subject, I liked how the movie didn’t turn the baby obsessed Vanessa into the bad guy. Her desire to be a mother was genuine, and was greater than her need to stay married to Mark. And Mark wasn’t portrayed as a bad guy either. Just a nice guy who was in the wrong relationship.
As far as the cast went, Page was the clear stand-out, but I also liked Simmons. He did a good job as the caring father. And you can never go wrong with Allison Janney, who is always good. Even Juno’s cheerleader friend, Leah, played by Olivia Thirby, was easy to watch. Cera was almost adorable, playing the timid young man in love with Juno, and Bateman’s performance was easy and honest.
Like many movies do, Juno was addressing a social issue in an entertaining way. Maybe it took the subject matter a little lightly, but what do you expect? The movie was a romantic comedy. Throughout the movie the idea that Juno is an unconventional girl is repeated several times. And in the end, we see just how much. Most people fall in love and have a baby. But she did it backwards. She had a baby, and in the process, learned that she actually loved Paulie in return. See? Everybody ends up happy. No harm, no foul. Right? Except… I’m guessing reality is generally more complicated than that.