Review: Juno

* * * *

Ellen Page, Jennifer Garner, Jason Bateman, Michael Cera, Allison Janney, J.K. Simmons, Olivia Thirlby. Written by Diablo Cody. Directed by Jason Reitman. Rated PG-13. 92 minutes.  Twentieth Century Fox.

Director Jason Reitman’s pitch-perfect new comedy Juno, the warmly funny tale of a pregnant teenager who enlists the help of an adoptive couple while coming of age, and coming to terms with her parents and friends, is a real sweetheart of a film and the nicest surprise of this movie season. Brilliantly written by novice scribe Diablo Cody and acted with cyclonic comic timing and pathos by Ellen Page in the performance of the year—a portrait so filled with good humor, spunk and joy that a real movie star has been born—you can’t help but give in.

In her junior year of high school, Juno MacGuff (Page) discovers she is pregnant by nerdy neighbor Paulie Bleeker (Michael Cera), a would-be track star she experimented with "in chair," a Lazy-Boy that consummated their relationship. After a botched trip to an abortion clinic and against the advice of cheerleader best friend Leah (Olivia Thirlby), she decides to carry the child to term, setting her sights on perfect suburban couple searching for an adoptive child. Mark (Jason Bateman) is a failed rock star turned jingle writer, while family breadwinner Vanessa (Jennifer Garner) is an infertile, would-be mom so desperate for a child she doesn’t even realize her seemingly perfect marriage is disintegrating.

Juno’s working class father (J.K. Simmons) and stepmother (Allison Janney) are supportive and in a series of sharply written exchanges, accompanying Juno to the adoptive parents’ home and to a pointed confrontation with a condescending ultra-sound technician. As the school year wears on and Juno increases to the size of a "planet," tensions rise between her and Bleeker, as well as Mark and Vanessa, and Cody’s script continues to take fresh and unpredictable turns, deepening into a human comedy that moves us when we aren’t expecting it to. Juno, initially thinking that carrying a child to birth will be a simple matter of weeks and life will return to normal, underestimates the impact the event will have on all involved.

And it is in these human exchanges that Juno really soars. There’s much truth in the complex marriage of Mark and Vanessa, and both Bateman and Garner are razor sharp. Growing closer to Juno, artsy Mark realizes what’s missing in his life and gets cold feet, while Vanessa’s desire for a baby heightens. Both actors hit career highs here. With effortless charm, Bateman delicately dances toward a chaste flirtation with pregnant Juno that leads him to unexpected realizations about what’s missing in his life. And the sensationally focused Garner, tightly coiled, sad and nervous, hits powerful notes during a touching scene set in a crowded shopping mall. The actress, on her knees and speaking to Juno’s very pregnant, bare stomach and her intended child-to-be inside, is affecting and vulnerable.

And then there is the fresh and unpredictable magic of Ellen Page in the title role, delivering a star-making performance of such exuberance that she not only walks away with the film, but with our hearts. Page, impressive in last year’s thriller Hard Candy as a troubled, manipulative teen locked in a power struggle with an older suitor, has a firm grip on the seen-it-all modern teen, but what’s so special about her work here is how the actress balances the comedy and pathos, and how she flowers in the film’s final reel. Until then, she’s made us laugh with her irreverence and smart-assed sophistication. But in some very sweet and openhearted scenes, she drops her defenses and allows Juno to feel, hurt and grow. In one superb scene, she eloquently confesses her love to Bleeker in dialogue so right on you have to wonder if Cody lifted from her personal diary when writing the exchange. Ditto a poignant, simple hospital scene late in the film.

Director Reitman, who helmed last year’s impressive satire Thank You for Smoking, never makes fun of Cody’s well-developed characters, infusing each with realism where they could have easily been caricatures. Allison Janney’s dog-obsessed nail technician step-mother is particularly gritty and memorable, while gruff J.K. Simmons aces a late scene with daughter Juno regarding the nature of lasting love.

Juno is a gem of a human comedy, and one of the best movies of the year.

- Lee Shoquist