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It seems that, at least once a year, a quirky indie comes out and steals the hearts of a large number of people, and leave a select few others completely mystified as to why so much is being made of said movie. In 2004, it was Napoleon Dynamite, a film I enjoyed upon seeing, but enjoyed less and less as people turned movie lines into catchphrases for no apparent reason. Napoleon Dynamite also propelled the career of Jon Heder, who has done absolutely nothing of note since being Napoleon Dynamite. In 2005, it was The 40-Year-Old Virgin, a movie much less quirky than Napoleon, but still came way out of left field, and also served to propelled the careers of Judd Apatow and Seth Rogen, as well as give Steve Carrell a place in the spotlight (which he would keep with his wonderful work in the TV series The Office). In 2006, it was Little Miss Sunshine, a quirky comedy that didn't do a whole lot new, but did everything extremely well and managed to propel one career forward (Abigail Breslin) and resurrect another (Alan Arkin).

In 2007, that quirky indie comedy is Juno, the story of a young high school girl, Juno (Ellen Page), who suddenly finds herself pregnant after sleeping with her dorky boyfriend (Michael Cera). While not exactly the normal premise for a comedy, each of the characters in Juno is endowed with strange behavior and language, most notably Juno herself, who generally seems carefree and possesses a biting wit. The story only spans the time of Juno's pregnancy, and yet quite a few events happen. And yet, not really much at all happens. While some movies do very well with a simple premise (Little Miss Sunshine did not have a complex plot), but Juno only partially succeeds. Every character and situation is infused with the requisite sarcasm and quirkiness to make the movie enjoyable, but sometimes it seems to be a little too self-satisfied, a little too amused by its own antics to be completely enjoyable.

It's tough to know who is to blame for the shortcomings of this film. The actors are all competent and play their roles well, although Ellen Page is getting much more attention than she deserves considering her portrayal of Juno is solid but not exactly spectacular. The directing does what it's supposed to do, yet never really gives the movie that extra push forward from being merely good to being great. The music in the film was hit or miss, with many people seeming to enjoy the quirky off-key singing of Kimya Dawson and the Moldy Peaches, whereas I was trying my best not to cover my ears with my hands and run screaming from the theater. The writing is the movie's strongest point, with the style of wit and conversation found in Juno being it's biggest asset, and yet it's also the movie's shortcoming, as the script never really goes beyond the sarcasm to fully flesh out the story. If you don't like the humor in the first five minutes of the movie, you're not going to like the movie. If you're rolling on the floor laughing, then you'll probably think this is one of the best movies of the year.

I was amused by moments of the humor, but was waiting the entire movie for something more. I was expecting something to happen or someone to say something that clicked so well that I couldn't help but say, "Now I see why people love this movie!" That moment never came. In fact, I found the ending to be sweet, but fairly dull, and the last ten minutes of the movie lacked most of the quirk that had oversaturated the previous 80 or so minutes, and movies like this never work out completely when the balance in the material can only be found when taking the average of everything. Juno is an enjoyable movie for now, but like Napoleon Dynamite, I fully expect that I will end up disliking Juno a lot more when everyone starts quoting the movie and the theaters are saturated with uneven writing masquerading as indie genius.

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Copyright 2008 Benjamin Wood