Dealing with stuff way past her maturity

Rating: 7/10 (22 February 2008)

This is a hugely enjoyable film. Juno is a high school kid who has to deal with an unplanned pregnancy. She does this in a very matter of fact way and after toying with the idea of abortion decides to find foster parents. The remainder of the film takes us through to the birth of the child.
The real pleasure in the film is the acting and the interplay between the characters. The supporting cast including father (J.K. Simmons), step mother (Allison Janney), best friend (Olivia Thirlby), boyfriend (Michael Cera), and potential foster parents (Jason Bateman and Jennifer Garner) all put in fine performances. Ellen Page will obviously take most of the plaudits for the lead role and deservedly so, as she makes Juno into both a very strong and sympathetic character.
In many ways Juno reminds me of Leon. It is a testament to Ellen Page that her performance certainly stands comparison with Natalie Portman although I suppose Portman was at then other side of the teenage years when she filmed Leon. Juno is also considerably more upbeat and whilst an unplanned pregnancy normally leads to much angst in movies it is simply something else to deal with for Juno. My only slight reservation is that it may run the risk of glamorising teenage pregnancy.