Juno Special Edition

Filed Under: Film, Reviews | Article Tags : DVD review

By: The Dweeb

 

April 2008

DVD Features Video: 1.85:1 Audio: Dolby Digital 5.1, French Dolby Digital 2.0, Spanish Dolby Digital 2.0 Disc One: - Audio Commentary by Director Jason Reitman and Screenwriter Diablo Cody - Deleted Scenes with Optional Commentary by Jason Reitman and Diablo Cody - Gag Reel & Gag Take - Cast & Crew Jam - Screen Tests - Way Beyond “Our” Maturity Level: Juno – Leah – Bleeker Featurette - Diablo Cody Is Totally Boss Featurette - Jason Reitman for Shizz Featurette - Honest to Blog! Crediting Juno Featurette Disc Two: - Digital Copy of Juno for Portable Media Players Theatrical release: 11/25/2007 DVD released on 4/15/2008 by 20th Century Fox Running time of 92 minutes Starring: Allison Janney, Ellen Page, Jason Bateman, J.K. Simmons, Michael Cera, Jennifer Garner Director: Jason Reitman Plot: Juno MacGuff (Ellen Page) is a cool, confident teenager who takes a nine-month detour into adulthood when she’s faced with an unplanned pregnancy – and sets out to find the perfect parents for her baby. With the help of her charmingly unassuming boyfriend (Michael Cera), supportive dad (J.K Simmons) and no-nonsense stepmom (Allison Janney), Juno sets her sights on an affluent couple (Jennifer Garner and Jason Bateman) longing to adopt their first child.

Juno the Oscar nominated and winning film from director Jason Reitman and newcomer writer Diablo Cody is a most totally awesome film. Honest to blog! The film that stars Ellen Page as the preggars teen Juno MacGuff dares to take on material many would deem hands off for a comedy. Somehow Diablo was able to take themes like teen pregnancy, divorce, and adoption and turn it on its ear and make it into a feel good movie, although in real life of course many teen pregnancies do not have much of a happy ending. It is a charming film, accompanied by a whimsical music soundtrack following the trial and tribulations of a teenager confronted with the concept of having a baby and being forced to grow up before her time. Once you get past the valley girl talk that is. Is this how teens talk nowadays? I am so out of touch.

Juno is an impressive little film, I would almost put it in the same genre that many of Wes Anderson’s films are in. Very arty, has this cool factor to it. You just don’t know where this film is going. It would be hard to fit this into any single genre. Is it a coming of age story? A romantic comedy? A drama? Its just too hard to define. It takes place in a world that is sort of like ours, but not really. The next chapter in the movie is always prefaced with the high school track team running across the screen. The set design and choice of dress make for a cluttered world of discarded kitsch and worn jeans in Juno’s realm. And when she journeys out to her future adoptive parents, its like crossing the ocean into a strange land of all white sterilized staid living in the suburbs. Her bubbly personality just does not fit in.

The writing is excellent for this film, the language is so rich a vibrant between these characters its very hard not to like it. I thought the casting was also excellent, since they had such rich material to work with it was very easy for this cast to fit into the skins of their characters. The entire cast is excellent, especially relative newcomer Ellen Page in the title role. She brings so much energy and zeal to Juno, making for a strong character. Although she was pregnant, I did not think of her as a delicate flower or something like that. Very strong willed, and takes her problems head on. This teen has some spunk! I like that, we need more of this from female characters in film.

I also thought that Michael Cera, as the off again on again teen father to be Bleeker was fairly entertaining. Most of the time, he’s running around like a deer in headlights. What a geek. Why did Juno decide to do it with him? I didn’t think he would have it in him either, just like her dad said. Speaking of which, Mac MacGuff is portrayed by one of my favorite character actors, J.K. Simmons. He’s short, to the point, and blunt. Very blunt, and hilarious. He was great in the Spider Man franchise but here in the dad role he goes beyond the gruff exterior and shows a softer side. I was expecting a fireworks show with the announcement of said pregnancy, but no go on that one.

The other standout character I thought was Mark Loring (Jason Bateman), the one half of the expectant adoptive parents. His character was quite interesting, and I thought as the movie rolled along that it was going to take a certain direction with his interaction with Juno but it did not. Thankfully. He is married to Vanessa (Jennifer Garner), and she has him on a tight leash it seems. He used to be like Juno, played in a rock band, collected comic books. You know, a guy. Then he gets married, and now is just a shadow of his former self. His life has been placed in boxes and a single room in the house. Something in meeting Juno awakens in him, and he hits it off right away with her because they have so much in common. Juno as she is changing changes him in the process and makes him rethink his life. A longing return to the past perhaps?

For the special edition version of the movie (there are two versions), they have packed on the extra features as well as include a digital download for your portable viewing pleasure on the second disc. Seems to be all the rage these days. Anyhow, there a bunch of nice featurettes on the first disc. Most of it is fairly typical promotional stuff, but there are some good nuggets on here. The Gag Take I’m not sure if that was real or fake, but man making movies can get tense. Also I really enjoyed the Crew Jam which was probably a silly thing to blow off steam. But here we get to see a lot of the folks behind the camera strut their stuff. Overall, its got a nice amount of stuff on here.

So, if I were you, definitely check this one out! Honest to blog for schizzel!

Reviewer’s Opinion: BUY IT!!