Pregnancy and other shenanigans...

So I just finished watching "Juno" for the (I believe) fourth time. I must say...I LOVE THIS MOVIE!

Everytime I watch it, I think that I love it even more. For those of you who don't know, "Juno" is a movie that is mostly about a teenage girl who gets pregnant. Sounds hilarious, right?

The movie, while being funny, doesn't make light of the situation, though. Juno is a confident young girl who has that aura of "untouchability" about her. Nothing phases Juno. She's always equipped with a sharp retort to anything anyone says to her. When this life-changing event happens to her, she tries to keep up her "tough girl" persona. Eventually, it gets to her, though, and she lets it effect her, as it should.

I think that's one of the things that I like most about this movie. Things change. At the beginning, most of the characters seem pretty stereotypical and one-dimensional, as Juno (a teenage girl) sees them. She's the spunky girl. Her step-mom, Brenda, is over-bearing. Her father, Mac, is focused on his work. Mark is the "cool guy" who watches horror movies and plays a guitar. Vanessa is an obsessive neat-freak and controlling wife. Paulie Bleeker is a geek. This is the world as Juno sees it and how we, as viewers, are shown her little world at the beginning.

As the movie progresses, though, every character actually develops. Brenda shows herself to be caring and sacrificial. Mac gets very involved in the adoption process and has some very good conversations with Juno. Bleeker stays a geek pretty much, but is shown to be very caring. Mark ends up being afraid to move forward with his life. Vanessa has been burned in the past, and ends up being very genuine. Juno lets her situation effect her.

Everyone changes...and that's just it. Life's events change people. Sure, it seems like an obvious message, but we don't really see it too often in movies. It's refreshing.

I suppose that there's one exception, though. Juno's best friend Leah is an idiot and remains an idiot throughout the movie. She does, however, say that she loves Woody Allen, which is hilarious in the context of the movie. So I forgive her.

I think my favorite scene in the movie, though, is when Juno is telling her parents about the pregnancy. After breaking the news and talking for a bit, her father says, "Junebug, I always thought that you were the kind of girl who knew when to say when."

She pauses for a minute, letting the thought sink in, and replies, "I don't know what kind of girl I am."

It's about growing up and how we continue to grow up, even when we get older.

All in all, great movie with sharp dialogue and an unbelievable soundtrack. I'll likely listen to it all day tomorrow now. Just catchy music that sticks in your head. (Except for that "Vampire" song...that one's awful.)

And you better believe that I'm figuring out how to play that "Anyone Else But You" song...(It's just two chords, really.)

So on The Spartan Scale, I think I give "Juno" 7 Spartans. It's just that good. Check it out if you haven't already.

Much luv,
Rob
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Song of the Day: "Tragic Comic" by Extreme