SNMR 6.1: "Juno"

Welcome to Saturday Night Movie Reviews, series six. This is the 151^st review that I've done for this weekly feature.

Tonight's SNMR feature is "Juno" (2007, PG-13, 96 minutes), starring Ellen Page, Michael Cera, Jennifer Garner, Jason Bateman, JK Simmons, Allison Janney and Olivia Thurlby. The film was directed by Jason Reitman. Writer Diablo Cody won an Oscar for best screenplay written directly for the screen in 2008. Juno was also nominated for three other Oscars, including Best Picture, Best Director and Best Actress in a lead role.

PLOT SUMMARY: Sixteen year old high schooler Juno McGuff (Page) has sex with her best friend (Cera) and finds herself pregnant. Realizing she's not ready to be a mom herself, keeping the baby is not realistic. That leaves abortion or adoption as the options. What should she do? Once the course of action is decided, Juno tells her dad and step mom (Simmons and Janney). The rest of the film follows Juno dealing with the aftermath of her decision.

MY OPINION: When I watched the 2008 Oscars and saw this film getting lots of acclaim, I thought it was crazy. I mean, who wants to see a film about teenage pregnancy, right? Still, it had Jennifer Garner in it and well, that meant I had to see it eventually. What I didn't realize is how good Ellen Page was going to be. She is the reason this movie is as good as it is. The 21 year old actress going to be a force in Hollywood for a long time to come. Michael Cera is perfect as the goofy looking, awkward teenage best friend/love interest. Diablo Cody's script is excellent and director Jason Reitman (son of director Ivan) keeps the story moving crisply. I highly recommend this entertaining film.

****½ out of *****