It seems Jason Bateman has officially escaped the faded-shadow of his famous sister and the credibility-chomping shackles of a dubious 80’s sitcom career to become a viable middle-aged actor. Bateman’s turn on the revered “Arrested Development” allowed him to make a sizable deposit to the credibility bank, and he’s now thrown down his first truly accomplished dramatic role in a feature film, the teen-pregnancy dramedy “Juno.”
“Juno” stars “X-Men: The Last Stand”’s Ellen Page as the title character, Juno, who downs a jug of Sunny D and discovers she’s pregnant as the film opens. Like Jared Hess’ “Napoleon Dynomite” or any Wes Anderson picture, “Juno” is highly stylized. It’s hard to imagine any 16 year-old speaking like Juno, with an endless stream of screenwriter Diablo Cody’s whip-smart dialogue spewing forth in all directions and at all times. Regardless of the otherworldly dialogue, Page creates an entirely likable and multi-dimensional high school heroine. 
Juno and best friend Paulie Bleeker, “Superbad’s” Michael Cera, have sex out of curiosity and boredom, but their relationship evoles to more-than-friends after Juno discovers “her eggo is preggo.” The always marvelous J.K. Simmons (“The Closer”) and Allison Janney (“The West Wing”) play Juno’s progressive and understanding father and step-mom. Jennifer Garner (“Alias”) and the aforementioned Bateman play yuppie couple Mark and Vanessa Loring. The Lorings live out in the ‘burbs and are extremely eager to adopt. They find Juno after she answers their Penny Saver ad. Bateman’s character turns out to be a conflicted ex-rocker, merely masquerading as a happily married dad-in-waiting.
Page’s performance anchors the piece, but she’s got incredible backup. It centers around two fabulous teen characters, but the reactions and relationships Juno experiences with the adults in the story are what makes the film so much more than a CBS after-school-better-safe-than-sorry-special. 
Early awards buzz has done its best to over-hype this film, but it can stand up to the pressure. “Juno” has genuine charm and substance. Director Jason Reitman (“Thank You for Smoking,” and son of Ivan Reitman) seems the perfect match for Diablo Cody’s screenplay, and its clever combination of sweetness and snarl. Reitman’s brilliant use of contemporary music adds depth and recalls two other highly-stylized films-destined-to-be-or-already-classics, “The Graduate” and “Royal Tennenbaums.”
As for Bateman, we can only hope its onward and upward from here, this break-out performance shows an unexpected range that should land him plenty of work. He’s certainly come along way from “Teen Wolf Too.”
YAY, I’m glad one of you reviewed this! Don’t you totally want a hamburger phone now?!