Juno scores 10 on 10

The very first time I heard the name "Juno" , I thought it sounded very unique. It was Dominica who suggested  this movie. I have this habbit of asking people to shut up when they start discussing a movie I haven't seen. Just my way of preventing them from blurting out the "entire story in 4 lines"... Hence I was thrusted with just a gist of the movie. The story revolves around a teenager who gets pregnant and its all about how she faces it. The moment I heard this, I labelled it a "must-watch" movie. I wasn't surprised when Domi told me that this movie has won the Academy award for Best original screenplay in '07 and has earned three Oscar nominations. Expecting a very serious and emotionally challenging movie in store, I settled down with a cup of coffee, propped comfortably on a cushion. The title soundtrack was really different and it somehow seemed to challenge my thoughts of the movie to be an emotional roller-coaster. Sixteen year old Juno discovers that she is pregnant with a child fathered by her friend and admirer Paulie Bleeker. She decides to confess to her parents about her unplanned pregnancy. Unlike "our movies", her parents take it well and agree to her decision of giving the child for adoption. The best thing about the movie is that "it proved me wrong" all the way till the end. It was unexpectedly funny and it had a feeling of wry humour which I thoroughly enjoyed. The dialogues were amazing. Every character had its own "punch" . The movie dealt with complicated things like Pregnancy and Abortion in the most sophisticated way possible, like it was "child's play"! The scene where Juno tries approaching an abortion centre where she meets one of her classmates holding placards against abortion was touching. Juno then decides to find a decent couple for her child. Aided by her friend, Leah, she finds an advertisement in "Pennysaver" where she comes to know of one such decent couple - Mark and Vanessa. Another brilliantly shot scene in the movie is the one at the mall where Vanessa experiences or rather  feels the baby in Juno's womb. It again came as a surprise to me that everyone around were good people. There was not a hint of "villainism", "emotional mockery" or anything which happens in any other "sentiment" portraying movie. All the roles had their say, well characterised with extremely witty lines. Juno has a stepmom, she is pregnant, goes to school covering her "planet" (that's how she calls it) with a normal T-shirt, looking extremely odd and out of place. But this package didn't have the "step-mom cruelty", the "peer pressure", "raw comments" or anything that would bring your eyebrows together. That is something I had to appreciate in the movie. It was portrayed in the best of spirits and it felt more like a happy go-lucky sort of movie to me. No raw sentiments or emotional rigmarole and somehow, even if I accepted defeat in the end, it gave me the satisfaction of having spent my time on a good movie. Paulie Bleeker makes you wonder how he had the guts to actually do it. Well, from the looks of him in the movie, he is portayed as a shy person who romances with his books and goes running every morning wearing a skimpy outfit. He is so kiddish and contrasts Juno's bold feminist character. The chemistry they shared (did they?) was a real point blank statement complementing the line "L o v e simply is ..." On the whole, though I saw it pretty late, I'm glad I saw it atleast now. It does leave an impact on you - good one or bad one is left to your judgement but you better watch it. It's worth the risk...Trust me ! :)