Movie Review: Juno

Before the movie I was debating which film to see: Juno, which I had heard good things about, or Bonneville, which I had also read good things about. I asked the ticket sales clerk which she would recommend. She said, "I've heard Juno's funny, if you're not easily offended." Hmmm, well, I'm not easily offended, so I chose Juno.

I expected it to be an edgier "Napoleon Dynamite," a charming, coming-of-age reflection. Wrong! Juno was entertaining and well acted, but watching it I felt like I was wearing a shock collar. Could the heroine be more insensitive and irreverent? I don't think so. Nonetheless, she was realistic, I suppose, and that's something. I never was 'that kind' of teenager myself (the mouthy kind) and never particularly liked that kind of teenager, but, hey, they're out there and I applaud Juno for being realistic.

It also deserves kudos for its no-doubt unintentional anti-abortion message. Why waste a perfectly good baby? Juno continues to attend high school while carrying the baby to term, then wisely gives the baby up for adoption. Her monotone lack of emotion throughout the film indicates that she is emotionally scarred herself by her own mother's abandonment, which is mentioned in the film's first scene.

The couple who wants to adopt Juno's baby are caught in a stifling marriage. Juno relates primarly to the man who wants to be a kid again, but ultimately recognizes and rewards the maturity of the woman, who needs Juno's baby in order to release a lifetime of pent-up emotions.

Bleeker, the father of Juno's unborn child, is a normal high school student, outside of his association with Juno. She has singled him out as someone special. Despite the pregnancy, their relationship continues on an adolescent trajectory toward an uncertain future.

The film is really about dealing with adult pressures from an immature position. It's an exposee on why not to be sexually active until you have your own nest and someone you love to feather it with you.

At the climax of the movie, Juno declares to her father, "I need to know that it is possible for two people to stay happy together." In Juno's world, there is little evidence that such a possibility exists.

Juno summarizes the film in one line when her step-mother asks where's she's been: "Out dealing with things way beyond my maturity level." I think that about sums it up.

If you can disregard the shock value punctuation thrown into the script, the movie may be worth seeing.