"JUNO"
Starring Ellen Page, Michael Cera
Released: Dec. 5, 2007 (limited);
Jan. 4, 2008 (C-U)

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I absolutely loved 'Juno' and could find nothing wrong with it.

IT ALL STARTED with a chair.

And it became one of the most critically acclaimed films of 2007, and my new favorite.

Juno MacGuff, played by Ellen Page, is a witty, sarcastic, fast-talking 16-year-old girl who decides to have sex with her best friend, Paulie Bleeker (Michael Cera).

As a result, she finds herself unexpectedly pregnant and unsure of what to do. Supported by loving parents, Mac and Bren, played by J.K. Simmons and Allison Janney, and a similarly fast-talking best friend, Leah (Olivia Thirlby), Juno embarks on a hilariously heart-warming journey of self-discovery.

You might say that a "journey of self-discovery" is possibly the most clichéd phrase in all of film descriptions, but in the case of "Juno," there is a surprising lack of clichés.

In fact, there's hardly one to be found in the entire movie, which, even without the hilariously witty dialogue, perfect acting, and beautiful photography, sets the movie far apart from the other films of last year.

Much of the dialogue might not seem realistic, because few people speak or know anyone who speaks like Juno and her family do, but it seems to me that this is part of the point. Juno is different, as are her parents.

Most parents would not, in the event that their 16-year-old daughter had just announced that she's pregnant, react quite as supportively and almost nonchalantly as Mac and Bren do. It's a very weird but close, loving family to start out with, and probably becomes more so as the movie progresses.

Juno fits no high school stereotype that I've ever heard of. She listens to totally obscure, almost tuneless music. She wears bright orange sweater-vests paired with red sweatshirts and vintage T-shirts (which somehow double as her maternity clothes, too). She's truly confident, happy, and only cares about the opinions of her closest friends. Aside from the fact that she's kind of pregnant, she makes a good role model for girls everywhere.

The snappy, clever dialogue, written by Diablo Cody, would probably not work at all if Page weren't such a great actress, rightfully deserving her nominations for best actress. It's all said so perfectly, with exactly the right sarcastic tone. You know she's constantly joking, but you can't help but to take her seriously as a person.

Janney and Simmons are quite perfect, too, and it's easy to tell where Juno learned to speak like she does. Unlike in the show "Gilmore Girls," which is characterized by a lot of very similar dialogue, Mac and Bren MacGuff seem like real, caring parents who happen to have a natural talent for wit and comedy, instead of just a cool teenager in a grown-up body, like Lorelai Gilmore.

While Juno may seem like no one you've ever met before, Bleeker is easily imaginable as a real person. He's sufficiently awkward, modest, and dorky, and talks very normally for being around Juno so much. Cera makes you fall in love with Bleeker right away, as soon as you forget that one of the film's opening sequences is of him putting deodorant on the inside of his thighs, which is just a little bit weird.

Rainn Wilson, of "The Office" fame, also makes an appearance as Rollo, the slightly strange store clerk who sells Juno pregnancy tests. He is another character who has an undeniably unrealistic way of speaking, but the few things he says are just so hilarious and quotable that I'm going to let that slide.

For instance, as Juno shakes the pregnancy test in an attempt to make it a little less positive, he delivers what is possibly the best line of the film: "That ain't no Etch-A-Sketch. This is one doodle that can't be undid, Homeskillet." I am pretty sure that if you've got an opportunity to use a line like that, you should, no matter how unrealistic it may be.

Mark and Vanessa Loring, played by Jason Bateman and Jennifer Garner, make up the seemingly perfect couple who are set to adopt Juno's baby.

They live in a neighborhood full of expensive mansions and perfect lawns, and provide what looks to be a splash of extreme normalcy in this movie about a girl who couldn't be any more anti-normal. Both Bateman and Garner are very fantastic, and portray perfectly the emotions that go along with realizing that your relationship has unforeseen problems.

Possibly the only thing in this movie that I did not like was how uncomfortably close Juno's relationship becomes with Mark, the soon-to-be-adoptive father of her baby. They do have a lot in common when it comes to music and movies, and maybe it was just me, but for a while I was very afraid of what this movie was going to turn into. Now that I know how things end up, though, it doesn't bother me anymore.

The coloring of the film also provides an insight into the characters. Juno's world — her home, her school, her friends' homes — is bright and clashing, full of color and haphazard randomness, a very young and immature look.

Then we see the MacGuffs' beat-up bright blue van drive into the Lorings' neighborhood as a perfect transition from Juno's colorful adolescent world into the white, beige, more neutral grown-up world of the Lorings. The contrast really helps to convey the idea that Juno is going back and forth between being a teenager and an adult.

The soundtrack is like the deliciously sweet and creamy icing on an already unexpectedly delicious low-fat chocolate raspberry double-layer cake. The obscure artists and strange but calming tunes work perfectly, complementing the flavors of the film extremely well and causing you to make a mental note to pay a visit to iTunes when you get home.

Perfect. I know I've used that word many times, in multiple forms, but that's because this film is simply perfect. That's not to say that it's the best film ever. The plot may not be anything clever or complicated, but it's engaging, with a soundtrack you'll want to buy, actors who will soon become among your favorites, and lines you'll be quoting for years. For what it is, it couldn't be any better.

However, if you are looking for a film that tells you how terrible and life-ruining it is to get pregnant as a teenager, this is not it. That's not to say that teen pregnancy is portrayed in a positive light. It's just not really portrayed in any light. The plot may be based around the fact that Juno gets pregnant at the age of 16, but that's not really what the movie is about. It's about relationships — how they work, how they change, what really keeps them going.

I'm predicting that this will be one of those movies that will stay around for a long time, to be watched at sleepovers at 2 a.m. and in Agora Days classes devoted to it, endlessly quoted in senior quotes and Facebook pages of the future.

You don't even have to like it. I know that a lot of people don't, but you can't deny that "Juno" really is unique. It manages to stand out in the endless sea of overcomplicated plotlines, under-developed, two-dimensional characters, and boring, realistic dialogue. So, even if "Blair Witch" is about to come on Starz, and you're like, "I haven't seen this in forever," and you want to watch it, just be like, "Oh no, I'll go see 'Juno' instead." La la la …

Basically, if you're one of the two people who hasn't seen this movie yet, do so immediately. See it even if only to understand my totally unfunny references and be able to chuckle at how very clever I am. I highly recommend it.

“Juno” is currently playing at Boardman's Art Theatre, 126 W. Church St., Champaign; the GKC Beverly 18, 910 Meijers Drive, Champaign; and Goodrich Savoy 16, 232 W. Burwash, Savoy.

“JUNO” AT A GLANCE

• Starring: Ellen Page, Michael Cera, Jennifer Garner, Jason Bateman, Allison Janney, J.K. Simmons, Olivia Thirlby
• Directed by: Jason Reitman
• Written by: Diablo Cody
• Genre: Comedy, Drama
• Rated: PG-13
• Runtime: 96 min.
• Release date: Dec. 5, 2007 (limited); Jan. 4, 2008 (C-U)
• Summary: Faced with an unplanned pregnancy, an independent-minded 16-year-old girl has to decide what to do next.
• External sites: IMDb entry, Official site