The ‘JUNO’ phenomenon

I’ve been talking about ‘JUNO’ a lot lately, “honest to blog.” ;) I am dragging my fiancé to it this weekend. I have told my parents they MUST see it this week. I’m quoting it on my friends’ Facebook ‘walls.’ Just visiting the official site makes me cry and I’ve YouTubed just about every interview with Page, Cody, and all the promotional bits starring Cera & Bateman. (Yes I am officially an internet whore.) I’ve even been singing the praises of Garner, who I’ve hated in every other t.v. show/movie I’ve seen her in; I don’t know if becoming a mother, working with Reitman, or just finally playing closer to her real type did the trick, but she is WONDEFUL in ‘JUNO.’ (And of course, one of the main reasons I saw the movie in the first place is because the forever fierce Allison Janney is in it.)

So why do I love this movie so much? Some who know me might be tempted to interject here that I love lots of movies. And it’s true, I do. I hope to be in more some day. And this is hardly the first time I’ve touted a film as a “must-see.” Don’t believe me? Just search my previous posts and you’ll find reviews or plugs for at least a half a dozen other films. But most films that wow me only compel me to blog and talk about them for about a day and then they slide to one of the back burners of my mind. ‘JUNO’ has not.

Not since ‘MAGNOLIA’ has a film really touched me to the point of dancing in the streets afterwards. Not in exactly the same way, mind you: the two friends of mine who were with me when I saw P.T. Anderson’s ’99 epic may remember me almost throttling a woman who dared to walk out 90 minutes in, and shouting to the NYC universe that P.T. is a prophet afterwards. After seeing ‘JUNO’ in L.A. last week, I merely called my fiancé to gush about how much I can’t wait to have children with him while jumping around the fountain at The Grove, all teary and bleary.

What these two very different films both represent to me are great examples of how I believe people should learn to treat each other, how easy it is to abuse each other instead of taking the risk of getting hurt and trusting and loving. They are also both condemnations of bad parenting and unfaithful spouses, they both hail good parents as the ultimate salvation of joy and life, and they both see the beauty and innocence of children as the most precious and valuable gift we have.
So maybe I answered my own question. Maybe I love the film so much because I am about to marry my best friend and can’t wait to have a baby of my own. In any case, again, I highly recommend it. =)