Kurt here, back with another installment of Cinema de Gym. Y'all didn't have much to say about the last two episodes, so I'm happy to return with a movie that's more actressy and Oscary, for better or worse. Hopefully it'll get folks talking. Juno is a film that has not sat well in my memory – a hipper-than-thou pin cushion for all my Quirk Cinema complaints. When a post-2007 indie gets under the skin with all its precious, self-negating eccentricities, Diablo Cody usually proves the perfect scapegoat. What hath she wrought with her Millenial-surrealist dialogue, best described as Kevin Williamson by way of the Urban Outfitters library? Well, probably half of what's now in the Urban Outfitters library, for one. Her words are sticky pop contrivance glazed over genuine depth of feeling, a concoction that was wildly validated by everyone from Oscar to Ebert to an army of young adults, who'd found their Clueless – a comedy that shaped their vernacular.
Which, in all fairness, is no small feat, and I tip my hat to Cody for having the wherewithal to tap into the voice of a generation (or, at least, the pseudo-emo white-kid leg of it). But her hyper-stylization is certainly not without its drawbacks, and Juno sees many an honest moment neutralized by an on-cue Codyism. The argument, of course, is that the lingo is what makes the film unique (and, to many, what makes it great). My retort is that its success is hinged on the direction of Jason Reitman (a near-virtuoso among young American filmmakers) and the performances from the cast. Though he operates on the same tonal plane as his screenwriter, Reitman's visualization of Cody's script is what truly shapes the film's identity, speaking to you in a singularly authentic way the words cannot. And the impeccably chosen actors, though no doubt thrilled to have been handed such colorful material, do some astonishing weight-lifting in terms of helping to substantiate the language. Their work, and Reitman's, will make this film watchable in 20 years. Cody's will always live in the "whoa dream big" world of 2007.
I'll admit I rolled my eyes when I saw that Juno was the film of the day at the gym. My retrospective qualms with it tend to blind me of its charms. The segment I caught was highly representative of the film entire: a peaks-and-valleys stretch of time riddled with poignant moments and Codyan pratfalls. I got to see the bit where Jason Bateman and Jennifer Garner's relationship ends, the part where Juno tells Jennifer "I'm still in if you are" (excuse me while I freely mix actor and character names), and the part where Juno professes her love for Paulie Bleeker. This, unfortunately, also means I had to hear an in-labor Juno declare that "Thundercats are go!"; a lovely speech undone by the line, "You're golden, man"; and background song lyrics that whisper, "I like amputees with stamp collections" (though I guess I can't blame Cody for that one). That's Juno for you: it giveth and it taketh away.
Before I go, I wanted to say a word or two about Garner, who's never been lovelier or more assured as an actor than she is in this movie. A fine candidate for Michael C.'s Unsung Heroes series, her performance – easily overlooked upon first viewing – is all heart and earnestness, and she's very much the straight gal to everyone else's buzzing one-linerocity. Does that mean she doesn't do as much weight-lifting? Hardly. Garner more or less carries this movie's weight. I was happy to exit during the scene where she enters the delivery room and picks up her son for the first time. "I think he was always hers," says Juno's narration. It's a perfect metaphor for how I feel about this film: Cody may have carried Juno in the womb, but it's surrogates who stepped in and raised it to its full potential.
Conclusions?
1. Movies may often start with the screenwriter, but they certainly don't end with them.
2. Jennifer Garner should have had a much greater presence in the 2007 awards discussion.
3. I am not exactly looking forward to Young Adult, aka Reitman-Cody Partnership, Part Deux.
4. Just for kicks: Google "Paulie Bleeker" and what do you find? Paulie Bleeker Halloween costumes. I am really tempted...
So, how 'bout it? Has my Juno post left you pregnant with responses?