All The Young Dudes

Rating: 9/10 (15 December 2007)

Greetings again from the darkness. Much ado about screenwriter Diablo Cody's stripper past. If this script is any indication, maybe stripping should be mandatory for all Hollywood writers. It is funny, touching and moving ... all with a major dose of reality and social commentary. Director Jason Reitman ("Thank You For Smoking") has a definite feel for human angst when life delivers one of its many blows. Cody and Reitman deliver a fascinating story and an entertaining film at the highest level.
Ellen Page (kinda creepy in "Hard Candy") plays Juno, a spirited 16 yr old who winds up pregnant after seducing her best friend. Because of her age, Page's performance will probably not receive the notice it should. It is among the year's finest. Her sharp with and telling eyes and deadpan delivery make Juno someone we instantly care about, but not in a sappy way. Anyone with this much soul and spirit warrants our interest. Michael Cera ("Superbad") plays the track star-unlikely lover-boy, who maintains a sense of cool despite everything. Cera is fine casting, but the whole track star thing was impossible to buy for any guy who has ever run at all. Still that one minor quibble doesn't drag the film down at all. Some of the best scenes in the film are Cera and Page together, battling through teenager emotions.
What takes this film to a whole other level is the peak behind the suburban utopia with Jennifer Garner and Jason Bateman. Unable to conceive on their own, they take out an ad and end up in the middle of Juno's world, and part of her hard life lesson. Garner flashes NONE of her usual annoying perkiness and is actually quite serious and focused on her somewhat unlikeable character. Bateman plays the guy who got forced into playing grown-up and is now looking for a way to escape. Pretty good stuff without going over the top.
Juno's parents are played well by Allison Janney and JK Simmons, and her friend and confidant is played by the up and coming Olivia Thirlby. Thirlby and Page will team up (literally) again in next year's "Jack and Diana". Rainn Wilson, from "The Office", has a couple of hilarious lines ... also seen in the previews ... but doesn't show up again.
Yes, any film whose soundtrack includes Mott the Hoople and Velvet Underground gets points for coolness. This film has to be put in with the "small" films that dedicated film lovers live for, but the masses rarely even hear about. Of course, due to the subject matter, it isn't for everyone ... but it is extremely high level story telling, with terrific acting and direction. One of the year's best for sure.