In defense of Juno
My girlfriend and I went to see "Juno" the other night. We both liked it, making us part of a growing swarm of Americans pushing the film toward the $100 million box-office marker.
I thought the movie was smart and well-paced, and I really liked the performances, especially Ellen Page as the title character, Michael Cera in the copyrighted Awkward Michael Cera Role and Jason Bateman and Jennifer Garner as the troubled WASP couple. That said, I'm not here to provide another glowing review. Instead, consider this post a preemptive measure of defense of the film.
The attack has already begun, mind you, and it's coming from within these very walls. A dialogue-driven indie flick like "Juno" is geared to cater to the blogosphere, so when the mainstream grabs it and makes it their own (see: Dynamite, Napoleon), it's only a matter of time before bloggers revolt with great vengeance and furious anger.
An example of this disgust came from Apple Pop Life buddy and future colleague Bob over at the re-born My Blog Is Poop.
That said, the cutesy script wasn't enough to derail the movie. I know that's the main point of contention for the "Juno" haters chomping at the bit out there. I'm here to say that said haters should step off, yo. Is the chintzy dialogue a footnote that warrants mentioning? Sure. But it ain't worth throwing out Juno's baby with the bathwater.
I thought the movie was smart and well-paced, and I really liked the performances, especially Ellen Page as the title character, Michael Cera in the copyrighted Awkward Michael Cera Role and Jason Bateman and Jennifer Garner as the troubled WASP couple. That said, I'm not here to provide another glowing review. Instead, consider this post a preemptive measure of defense of the film.
The attack has already begun, mind you, and it's coming from within these very walls. A dialogue-driven indie flick like "Juno" is geared to cater to the blogosphere, so when the mainstream grabs it and makes it their own (see: Dynamite, Napoleon), it's only a matter of time before bloggers revolt with great vengeance and furious anger.
An example of this disgust came from Apple Pop Life buddy and future colleague Bob over at the re-born My Blog Is Poop.
"[Juno] had a cute Dawson's Creek-ish response for EVERYTHING. I know she was supposed to be “quirky” and “original” but since when does quirky and original mean “could write for The Colbert Report at 16 while simultaneously pushing a baby out of her vagina”?"Bob makes a fair point and I don't think he's completely off-base. Page's character may have been a little bit too whip-smart for the sake of realism, and the dialogue was indeed burdensome at times (it's been awhile since I was 16, but I'm fairly certain teens aren't talking on hamburger phones and saying things like 'Honest to blog' to each other.) In fact, it sounds more like a 29-year-old screenplay writer trying to think like a 16-year-old. Which is exactly the case here with Diablo Cody.
That said, the cutesy script wasn't enough to derail the movie. I know that's the main point of contention for the "Juno" haters chomping at the bit out there. I'm here to say that said haters should step off, yo. Is the chintzy dialogue a footnote that warrants mentioning? Sure. But it ain't worth throwing out Juno's baby with the bathwater.
posted by Dan Hanzus at 12:19 PM
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