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Juno Extras: 96 minute movie Audio Commentary by Jason Reitman and Diablo Cody Deleted scenes Gag reel Cast and crew jam Screen tests Various featurettes Disc two – digital copy of movie for portable media players. Director: Jason Reitman Writer: Diablo Cody (story & screenplay) Starring: Ellen Page, Michael Cera, J.K. Simmons, Allison Janney, Jennifer Garner, Jason Bateman, Olivia Thirlby. You may not be an Ellen Page fan before seeing this movie, but the odds favour that you will be after. Ellen plays Juno MacGuff, the teenaged girl whose sexual experiment with casual boyfriend, Paulie Bleeker (Michael Cera), results in her pregnancy. The movie begins with Juno on a lawn drinking from a big jug of orange juice, looking at a chair and jumps into a scene of sex in a chair. Before we get too comfortable, we’re back on the lawn, with Juno drinking O.J. and studying the chair. The scene switches to an animated set of drawings, opening credits with a catchy song. The animation blends into a corner drugstore scene, with Juno grabbing a pregnancy test and rushing into the washroom to use it. She gets a positive result, for the third time that day. She returns home, and calls her best friend, Leah (Olivia Thirlby), to share the news. Juno enlists her aid in moving the chair from the lawn. Juno is ready the next morning, when Bleeker comes out for his morning run, and finds her in the living room suite on his front lawn. She tells him of her plans to abort. He is shocked, but supportive. Juno goes to her appointment, but after a discussion with a “right to life” protester, she cannot go through with the abortion. She gets Leah to accompany her while she breaks the news to her parents, Mac and Bren (J.K. Simmons and Allison Janney). The movie follows Juno’s path in dealing with this crisis in her life, supported by her parents and friends. It all seems to progress well, until her chosen surrogate father, Mark (Jason Bateman), tells her he is leaving his wife, Vanessa (Jennifer Garner), and Juno’s plans for parents for her child are put in doubt. There is so much to enjoy in this movie, but to bring up everything would take a lot more space than available. The ending is especially emotional. The audience is so wrapped up in the characters and their situations, that it is hard not to feel something. Ellen and Michael do a scene with few words that expresses more than dialogue ever could. Ellen Page does an excellent portrayal in the role of Juno. She switches from comedy to drama and into romance without losing the emotion that keeps the audience engrossed in the movie. The dialogue is the perfect mix between teen slang and adult conversation. The action expresses the feelings of the situations and stays in the reality that makes this film work. The music fits well and the artists have certainly seen increased exposure from this film and soundtrack. Jason Reitman, who has become a great filmmaker in his own way, filmed the movie in Vancouver area. He took a script written by Diablo Cody, a previously unknown blog writer, and made it into one of the best movies of 2007, on a budget of about six million dollars. It returned many times that, as one of the top grossing pictures of 2007/2008. The DVD: The success of Juno in the theatres enabled a good assortment of features on the DVD. Besides a full length commentary from Jason Reitman and Diablo Cody, there are deleted scenes, a gag reel and audition tapes and assorted featurettes of the cast and crew making the film and having fun. These provide a very personal insight into making a film that is very personal to view. It makes an evening with this film a complete experience. They also serve as an example of how a great film is made, on what is considered as a low budget by the standards of today. An unusual bonus feature on this package was a second disc containing a digital copy of Juno for portable media players. Now, let me digress here. A while ago, when the first portable media players capable of playing a movie were introduced, I thought, “Who would want to watch a movie on a screen that small?” And I said it, too, as well as , “Who would pay that much money for a player so small?” But that was before I got a “Nano” for Christmas, which led to a “Touch” in the spring, when it went on sale. “Juno” resides on the latter, and I wouldn’t trade it for anything, even though I may only use it once a week, and watch a part of the movie once a month. It resides next to several short films, a few games and enough music, including the soundtrack of Juno, to keep me listening and watching for days. But that’s another topic. Don’t knock it until you’ve tried it. Juno is the type of movie that makes it work for me. Enjoy this film as a rental, or buy it as a keeper for a home library of significant films of the decade. This movie and DVD rise above the average and provide excellent entertainment value. I can’t wait for the next great Ellen Page movie. |