Like a breath of fresh air....sort of

Rating: 6/10 (3 February 2008)

I saw this movie last week and thought it was excellent. Now I'm starting to wonder why I liked it so much.
The premise of the story (as we all know) is this: 16-year-old Juno McGuff gets pregnant and gives the baby away. There really isn't that much plot to it. In fact, your average Spot book has more plot than there is to be found in this movie. What really makes Juno unique however, is the approach with which they deal with the subject matter.
In the real world Juno would probably have been disowned, had an abortion, or committed suicide. But instead she is portrayed as a brash, disgusting, overconfident tomboy, with a Gung-ho attitude about everything. Her parents are surprisingly supportive and there are just a lot of cultural issues (such as abortion clinics, condoms, and drugs) to poke fun at.
Here's what I didn't like about the movie:

The joke with the boys in their short shorts got lame pretty quickly.

The Paulie Bleaker character doesn't do anything to own up for what he did to Juno. Sure, I know he doesn't have much confidence to begin with, but it sure makes for a weak and unlikeable character. Juno ends up having to do everything.

And that love song at the end destroyed my suspension of disbelief. In what was already a whimsical and zany world, I find it difficult to find two lovers (er, kids) singing love songs simultaneously to one another. Did we really have to sit through the full two minutes of it?

Bottom line: This is probably the most original movie I have seen in a long while, offering one of the most memorable characters in ages. It's freshness is akin to eating a piece of moldy bread and liking it because of the flavor.