Juno by Lexan

TALK STORY

Juno

POSTED BY: LEXAN
UPDATED: Monday, January 14, 2008 00:26
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VIEWED: 3356
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Sunday, December 23, 2007 7:21 PM

I have been dying to see this movie. Has anyone seen it yet? It's been released in cinemas for a few days, so I would figure quite a few people have. Unfortunately, it doesn't come out in Australia until January 17, so I have to wait.

There are several things that draw me to this film- For one, Ellen Page is an absolutely phenomenal actress, her only performance I wasn't too impressed with was as Kitty Pryde but it's not as though she had a lot to work with or a particularly large role in that film. It's not that there wasn't potential; I think I read in an interview somewhere Joss say he would be keen on doing a Kitty Pryde movie and that he too thought Ellen Page was really good. Does anyone else think that's a good idea?

It's also directed by Jason Reitman of Thank you for Smoking, which I liked and has both Jason Bateman and Michael Cera from Arrested Development. How can it not be good?

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Sunday, December 23, 2007 7:53 PM

WHISPER

I haven't seen the movie yet, but want to.

I have read the script here ► http://www.foxsearchlight.com/awards/
If your interested in reading it. It's very funny and sweet.

http://whispergraphics.deviantart.com
http://www.myspace.com/vet_techtiff

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Sunday, December 23, 2007 8:07 PM

ECGORDON

There's no place I can be since I found Serenity.

My son saw it a couple of days ago, and he said he was very disappointed with it. A very contrived and manipulative script, amateurishly directed and acted (with the exception of Jason Bateman and Michael Cera).

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Monday, December 24, 2007 1:28 PM

LEXAN

That's interesting, because I've heard nothing but praise for both Ellen Page and the script. For both, the awards just seem to keep on rolling. It's likely that Ellen Page will nominated for a Best Actress Oscar. If she wins, she'll be the youngest actress to ever win that award.

Don't get me wrong, I love both actors...but I don't think Michael Cera or Jason Bateman would perform any better than the others. Michael Cera is adorable but in most of his roles he just seems to play himself and I didn't know Jason Bateman could act or be funny until I saw him in AD.

I'll definitely wait to see the movie before I read the script. Hopefully, I'll be able to get preview tickets, so I'll see it a little earlier.

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Monday, December 24, 2007 2:26 PM

ECGORDON

There's no place I can be since I found Serenity.

I didn't mean to imply that my son's opinion would be shared by others, it's just the only one I've heard from someone who has seen it. He did specify that he did not think Ellen's performance was that impressive, seemed too calculated and unrealistic. Your mileage may vary.

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Wednesday, January 9, 2008 6:39 PM

LEXAN

I was fortunate enough to get preview tickets and saw it last night. It was fantastic! Very original, sweet, witty and poignant, also having an inherent humbleness to it. Ellen Page and her portrayal of Juno was certainly the standout, probably the best single constituent of the film. She manages to be adorable, quirky and controlled with an air of vulnerability to her as well. Everything about the film just fit; the writing, particularly the dialogue, was superb, the directing and cinematography were perfect and impressively stylised (you can see in the correlation to Reitman's previous work his directing style and influence on the actors, though not plethorically so), the soundtrack seemed thoroughly thought out and the characters were extremely well cast. I would rarely recommend a film to almost everyone but I think a movie like this deserves such a compliment.

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Wednesday, January 9, 2008 6:56 PM

YINYANG

You were busy trying to get yourself lit on fire. It happens.

I went with a friend, and we both loved it. What I liked the most was that it allowed the story to be told without trying to spin it, allowing the characters to stay true to themselves. Juno's parents are great, and the adoptive parents are well-fleshed out IMO. I actually think most of the characters are well-fleshed out, though I'm not a huge fan of Michael Cera's character (I don't know if that was the writing or acting).

The only part neither of us really cared for was the beginning. Once we got through the first five minutes, though, the rest was gold. There were a few scenes where everyone in the theater (and it was packed on an early Saturday afternoon) was laughing so loud and so long we missed the next few lines, and I almost suggested to my friend that we go back to the ticket seller, dole out another $5.75, and see the movie again. The ending was cute without being too sweet or cliché, I thought, and... just go see it. Now.

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Wednesday, January 9, 2008 7:06 PM

REGINAROADIE

I have to admit that I was a bit nervous about seeing the movie due to all the hype that was attached to it. And I'd have been more pissed if this was a let-down as opposed to a summer blockbuster. Also, I was afraid that this would overshadow KNOCKED UP, which is still one of my favorite films of the year.

But I have to admit that I was really taken in by it and really enjoyed it. It still doesn't beat KNOCKED UP in my mind, but if Diablo Cody wins an Oscar for her screenplay, I wouldn't chuck something at the TV.

The thing that I liked the most about it was that even though the movie's called JUNO, it's not a one woman show. All of the supporting characters are given their moments to really show off their dimensions and humanity that in turn influence Juno. Like that scene in the mall when Juno and her friend run into Vanessa, and Vanessa kneels and talks to the baby. It shouldn't work, but it does. And what makes it work is the look on Juno's face, as the snarky attitude that she still has up to that point slowly fades as she sees this Martha Stewart wannabe shows the first bit of maternal instinct she hasn't seen yet, even from herself.

I'm sorry if this all sound like a film studies essay, but it's these kind of nuances that make the movie all that much better.

**************************************************
"And it starts with a sentence that might last a lifetime, or it all might just go down in flames. If I let you know me, then why would you want me? Each day I don't is a shame. Each day I don't is a great shame."

Loudon Wainwright III - "Strange Weirdos" off the "Knocked Up" soundtrack

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Wednesday, January 9, 2008 7:33 PM

LEXAN

Quote:
Originally posted by reginaroadie:
Also, I was afraid that this would overshadow KNOCKED UP, which is still one of my favorite films of the year.

By that line of thought, I would expect you to also worry about Waitress, which now has less chance of getting Oscar noms and other recognition because of Juno, moreso than Knocked Up. Because Juno and Waitress are both considered indie films, as opposed to KU. It seemed reasonably plausible that Keri Russell could have been nominated for best actress. These types of films don't usually get nominated but I think Juno probably will be in a few categories (script, best actress, best director, best supporting actors, maybe even best picture), though the Oscars tend to go for what they consider to be the more 'serious' type of films. Knocked Up is the least likely to be there, not because it will compared to other two movies, but because of the nature and content it entails.

Sorry for the Oscar mini-rant, I don't usually care about them but this year has been an interesting one for films and it's fun to classify by means of organised awards... or maybe just alluring...

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Wednesday, January 9, 2008 7:44 PM

YINYANG

You were busy trying to get yourself lit on fire. It happens.

Quote:
Originally posted by reginaroadie:
Like that scene in the mall when Juno and her friend run into Vanessa, and Vanessa kneels and talks to the baby. It shouldn't work, but it does. And what makes it work is the look on Juno's face, as the snarky attitude that she still has up to that point slowly fades as she sees this Martha Stewart wannabe shows the first bit of maternal instinct she hasn't seen yet, even from herself.

I agree. I wouldn't have felt nearly as good about the rest of the movie if those few moments hadn't been shown.

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Wednesday, January 9, 2008 8:26 PM

REGINAROADIE

I know. 2007 has been such a strong year for movies in general that even just regular popcorn movies have been above average.

With KNOCKED UP, it's the traditional Judd Apatow mix of improvised raunch and actual emotion and hard truths. If you look at the really emotional scenes between Ben and Alison, and actually pick apart what they're saying and conveying, it's actually some pretty serious stuff. And the genius of the film is that you can see things from both her and his side. You can watch a scene from the guys' point of view and be laughing with them, and then you can see that exact same scene from the girls' point of view and say "God, these guys are idiots." And the themes that it addresses about love and commitment and responsibility are valid points that it makes. If you read Lisa Schwatzbaum's review of KNOCKED UP, she really goes into why this movie is so awesome on that level. But from an Oscar voter's POV, those themes are hard to see when you have Jonah Hill chewing out Jay about his pubes on the toilet seat or the various stoner gags and digs at Martin's beard (my fave being the Scorsese on coke crack) or Alan and his "tighten" hand gesture. But, their loss.

Personally, I think it's not only about taste, but timing and which movie deserves to be pimped out. WAITRESS never really stood a chance. Might have gotten a Sundance premiere, great reviews and done some impressive business. But it was a late spring/early summer release. It was an attempt to be a summer sleeper hit in vein of NAPOLEON DYNAMITE and LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE. Plus, they couldn't really promote the creator of the film since she was murdered months beforehand. WAITRESS still has that bittersweet, tragic edge to it, which you can't really sell to a wide audience.

JUNO, on the other hand, is a quirky comedy that taps both the teen/young adult crowd of NAPOLEON DYNAMITE and the older, LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE crowd. Has a hot young director and a rising female screenwriting superstar (an oxymoron if there ever was) at the helm and a star in waiting in the lead, as well as an ensemble of veterans filling out the cast. It had a big debut in Toronto, winning the coveted Audience Award (it's the one award given at any festival that pretty much guarantees whatever film gets it will be a big success. The Palm D'or(sp?) at Cannes may be more prestigious, but it doesn't garauntee big box office). It maybe about a teenage girl getting pregnant, but the tone of the film is as light as a cloud. It's not 4 MONTHS, 3 WEEKS AND 2 DAYS which is about a Romanian college girl and her friend trying to get an abortion in Communist-ruled Romania (I think), which pretty much guarantees that it'll only be seen in art houses by serious film geeks and not the general public.

Plus, word of mouth and an internet presence only adds more gas to the fire. All backed by an indie studio that's kinda taken the "indie blockbuster" torch from Harvey Weinstein to turn it into quite possibly their biggest film to date.

It's really all about timing, what to show, how to promote it, who you promote on what talk show, where and when you have your big premiere, when do you release it and in how many theaters for the right amount of time before you go wide. It really is business and science working together so that this specific film has the best shot to make the most money.

I know this may all sound really cynical and that it takes the fun out of going to the movies. But if you are actually into the business aspect of the industry and just seeing all these massive plans in action and how one minor or major thing can trip it all up, it's actually something of a rush.

The only thing that I kinda lament about all this it is that while the so called "indie" scene may have small budgets and try to go against the grain in terms of subject matter or story structure and made without the backing of a major studio, but they're promoted like regular movies, have big, or at least recognizable names and faces on the poster, are helmed by people who are pretty much household names and are almost indistinguishable from your normal studio fare. Very rarely nowadays do you see a true indie movie, where it's everyone's first time acting, writing or directing, the movie's budget was in the tens of thousands or even the hundreds of dollars, the film itself almost looks like shit, was shot on weekends with friends being cast and crew and that by the end of the movie, you're going "What the FUCK did I just watch?" Stuff like CLERKS, PI, THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT or the Italian neo-realist movies. Yeah, these flicks might be on the indie circuit and play the festivals, or have a really limited release in a handful of theaters and hopefully make enough money so that the financiers can break even and make something of a profit and that the filmmakers can get work afterwards. But I think the days where a movie like CLERKS or BLAIR WITCH can make a big cultural impact are if not dead, then at least in hibernation.

**************************************************
"And it starts with a sentence that might last a lifetime, or it all might just go down in flames. If I let you know me, then why would you want me? Each day I don't is a shame. Each day I don't is a great shame."

Loudon Wainwright III - "Strange Weirdos" off the "Knocked Up" soundtrack

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Wednesday, January 9, 2008 8:34 PM

REGINAROADIE

Not to double-post, but yes. Those moments make ALL the difference in a movie about a specific character. It would have been so easy for her to remain a snarky, quick witted brat who mocks everyone around her throughout the entire movie. But the fact that she slowly evolves and drops a bit of the facade she's put up helps us to actually support and root for the character. It's more interesting to see a character that, if not all out bad, is at the very least difficult to like, slowly evolve and be confronted with actual emotions they've never felt before and end on a note of personal growth. Like Kristen Bell in HEROES. For the longest time, she's a slightly sociopathic brat that get way too much pleasure out of her powers. But in the finale, when actually confronted with gratitude from Mohinder, Maya and Molly for saving them from Sylar, you see this slight shift in her. She's experiencing something she's never gotten from Bob and the Company. You see the small seed planted in that she could very well turn out to be a hero after all.

Sorry for that tangent.

I can actually see JUNO being taught in film studies and screenwriting classes in terms of character and how the script follows the rules up to the point before subverting them.

**************************************************
"And it starts with a sentence that might last a lifetime, or it all might just go down in flames. If I let you know me, then why would you want me? Each day I don't is a shame. Each day I don't is a great shame."

Loudon Wainwright III - "Strange Weirdos" off the "Knocked Up" soundtrack

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Sunday, January 13, 2008 2:23 PM

LWAVES

I've been looking forward to this for a while as I am a big Ellen Page fan and was even more psyched after I saw the trailer and talk that was going on about it.

Well I got to see it tonight and I wasn't disappointed and am totally in love with this film.
The quirky comedy moves effortlessly into a film with a lot of heart and the characters remain believable throughout and they go through the right emotions and show that not everything or everyone is perfect.
Whilst all the cast shine, and Page definitely deserves and Oscar, I have to give full marks to Michael Cera who plays Bleeker. He played it with the right amount of nervousness and uncertainty that he made it the most believable role, for someone that could essentially be seen as a dork and social misfit.

The soundtrack was excellent too. I've never heard of Kimya Dawson who provided a lot of the songs but will definitely be checking them out.

Plus I don't mind admitting that the film got to me when Juno has just found out the news and she is crying in the car. And then her lip trembles.....awwwwwww.

"I don't believe in suicide, but if you'd like to try it it might cheer me up to watch."

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Sunday, January 13, 2008 9:23 PM

LEXAN

I'm a little surprised Juno didn't win any Golden Globes... It lost to Sweeney Todd (best musical or comedy), La Vie en Rose (best leading actress in comedy or musical) and No Country for Old Men (best screenplay...personally I think this was the least deserved of the three wins, even though I liked both the script and the movie).

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Monday, January 14, 2008 12:26 AM

LWAVES

The awards are always funny - they don't always go to who deserves it. Look at how many times Scorcese lost out over the years.

I haven't seen La Vie or Sweeney Todd (yet) but No Country For Old Men was a stunning film, right back where the Coens belong. It does deserve awards but Juno should also be allowed it's fair share.

If it were me I'd give No Country - Best Film, and maybe best Director.
And Juno would get - Best Actress, Best Orig Screenplay.

Gotta say I haven't really looked at the nominations this year so I don't know who they are up against.
Will have to check them out. Have they been announced yet?

Hopefully Juno will get some kind of recognition.

"I don't believe in suicide, but if you'd like to try it it might cheer me up to watch."

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