As someone who loves the English language and watching it get stood on its head and played with, I am also a huge fan of 2007’s Juno. Not only do I think it’s a great and, at times, hilarious movie about the fairly serious subject of teen pregnancy, I think Ellen Page should have won an Oscar for her portrayal of the exasperated, increasingly inflating teen who finds her baby new parents by picking them out of a Penny Saver. I love the rhythms of language Diablo Cody (who did win an Oscar for the script) picks for Juno. When I was a teen, and really still, I think phrasing things the way everyone else does is boring, and am constantly making up new words to fit my needs.
My favorite scene in the film, though, is one that is one of the best father/daughter talks I’ve ever seen in a movie. It’s wise and funny, showcasing not only Page’s talent but that of JK Simmons, who is one of the best additions any movie can make to its cast. Juno’s dad has a pretty realistically bad reaction to the news that she’s pregnant and that’s one of the movie’s most painfully real reminders of how serious this all is, but by the time this scene takes place, he’s calmed down and gives her some of the best advice any father could ever give his daughter. The question is, “Can two people fall in love and stay in love together forever?” Simmons answer is better than any summary I could write.
A gem of a movie. It’s reasonably lighthearted, but does not make light of its subject. I only saw it once, when it came out, but it stuck in my memory, and I can recall it almost exactly. I would say that JK Simmons is a god, but that would be hyperbolie. What he is is a demigod. I never cared for Micheal Cera, except for his astonishingly funny four minute cameo in the Twin Peaks revival. It’s on You Tube, but for some reason the scene is not funny unless it’s surrounded by the entirety of the series. So I don’t know how much of the brilliance was due to Cera. Paige is always wonderful, if you’ve ever seen Woody Allen’s To Rome With Love, she was great channeling a certain type of young sociopath.
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I actually did a review of Juno if you want to read it. I adore the movie.
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One of my favourite scenes! Thanks for sharing 😀
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