Juno

I was expecting a really honest movie where the humor would come from the funny ways we deal with bad situations. Instead I felt like I was watching the Gilmore Girls. For most of the movie (and it got better in this respect toward the end) Juno's character was devoted to witty commentary, replete with randomly inserted Spanish words ("silencio, old man!") and hipster slang ("rad","boss"), rather than showing any kind of emotional insight. I kept thinking: "Someone needs to tell this girl that she is not Janeane Garofalo." Michael Cera was good as always, but he could have been used a lot more before the latter parts of the movie, particularly in some way that would indicate he was fazed in the slightest by fathering a child. Meanwhile, if anything saved the film it was Jason Bateman's performance. Dead on.

Bottom line: This looked like a film that would be funny because we could all imagine we'd act the same way in a bad situation. Instead, the lines were too pretentiously witty and the characters, particularly Juno, too emotionally numb to strike a chord.

Juno ID# 1677

I saw this movie at a special screening at UCLA, just as a last resort for something to do on a free Thursday night. I'm so glad I went, because it was amazing! I had no idea what the movie was about; I only knew Michael Cera (Superbad, Arrested Development) was in it, which was enough incentive for me to go.

I walked out literally skipping alongside my best friend, both humming to the tune of the great original songs from the movie. The theme of love existing in so many forms where you least expect to find it just lifted me right out of my doldrums, and made me look at life again from a different perspective. There's just too much to love about life, so many places you'll find it, and the only way to do it is just to live. Juno shows you reality, but it highlights the tiny details about love and life that you might start missing or forgetting about.

Excuse me for sounding so corny, but that's exactly what this movie did for me. To put it easily, it's a "feel-good" movie that leaves you FEELing GOOD. If you're down or just in the mood to be lifted up even higher, I recommend this movie for you.

Enjoy it :) and remember, love is always worth it.

"Juno" is an incredibly cute movie, and for once I don't even mean that in a patronising sense. If the movie universe was some sort of gigantic petting zoo, "Juno" would be the adorable little lamb standing in the corner making the jealous other lambs look like death incarnate. It's not a sugary sweet tale by any means, in fact it's a real down to earth kind of story that's not always pretty, but the approach to it couldn't be more right. It's humble, it's little, it's low-budget, and that's exactly what makes it so great. What I also liked about it, hell what I like about a lot of independent movies, is that it's never predictable. There is no formula, you don't know what's coming, you don't sit there quietly ticking of all the clichés: you just enjoy yourself tremendously. Finally, one last addition to the heap of praise and I swear I'll stop: it's been ages since I've seen an ending scene this beautiful. It's exactly the way you want it to be, and the camera zooming out at a barely noticeable speed is a brilliant touch. I quite liked "Juno".

Anybody who gets to see the promos or the DVD covers would have enough clue about what the movie is about.Well I can tell you this,its not only the story which was brilliant - Its the wonderfully written screenplay,great acting by the casts,captivating photography with great locations and of course Ellen Page's incredible acting which has made a mark. There is generally a specific group of audience who could appreciate a certain movie,but when it gets to Juno...anybody above the "PG13" audience will definitely love it.The movie is about emotions,friends,innocence,parenthood,commitment and of course the fun in living it up! I enjoyed watching the movie over a Sunday afternoon at home,I just fell in love with it :)

The thing that separates "Juno" from so many other films about teen pregnancy is that, in this case, the 16-year-old who finds herself in that predicament refuses to become a victim of her circumstances. From the moment she confirms the unwelcome news, Juno studies her options - abortion, raising the child as a single teen parent, adoption - then takes matters into her own hands. Like the Roman goddess who is her namesake, Juno is a bright, often sharp-tongued individual who prides herself on her observant cynicism and her way with a sarcastic quip. However, she's not above appealing to the adults in her life when the problems of the world get to be too much for her (though, in some cases, the grownups are coping with more serious issues than she is). Yet, Juno makes certain that it is she and she alone who will have the final say when it comes to determining the course of her own future and that of her child.

"Juno" is that rare low-budget, independent feature that finds unexpected success in the mainstream by striking a chord of recognition in audiences across the demographic spectrum. First-time screenwriter Diablo Cody hits pay dirt with a clear-eyed, largely unsentimental script that is not afraid to go off in unexpected and interesting directions and that avoids patronizing its Middle American characters. Juno's father and stepmother manage to take the news in stride, while the yuppie couple Juno alights on to be the child's adoptive parents are given a depth and complexity far beyond what a lesser writer might have afforded them. Director Jason Reitman keeps the quirkiness to a minimum and allows the scenes to play out in a naturalistic, unhurried way. Confident in the strength and appeal of his material, he lets the gentle human comedy speak for itself.

In a star-making turn, young Ellen Page takes a daring approach to her character, often bringing Juno right to the brink of un-likability, then pulling back at just the crucial moment, making us see how utterly likable she truly is. As the child's father, Michael Cera is virtually the same lovably passive nerd we found so endearing in "Superbad," while J.K. Simmons and especially Allison Janney give rich shadings to Juno's supportive parents. Jason Bateman and Jennifer Garner also make their mark as the couple who post their picture in the "baby wanted" section of the local throwaway.

"Juno" faces the downside of any independent film that unexpectedly finds itself ripped from the confines of the art houses and suddenly duking it out at the multiplexes with all those high-budget, high-octane, testosterone-laden blockbusters - namely the risk of over-inflated expectations. Thus, my advice is to look beyond all the hype and box office records and simply let "Juno" sneak up on and take a hold of you in its own quiet, inimitable fashion. I think it works best that way.