Juno

We watched this film Tuesday evening. It didn't take long - an hour and a half or so. But short is ok; as long as it's long on quality. And Juno is a decent watch.

It features the eponymous heroine - a quick talking, take-all-in-her-stride sixteen year old, whose jogging, not-so-dumb-as-he-looks boyfriend, Bleeker, leaves her in the family way. She can't face a termination, so she decides to give the baby up for adoption to desparately childless Vanessa, and her fly-in-the-ointment partner Mark.

In a series of encounters with the two prosepective adoptees of her baby-to-be, Juno begins to realise that their on-the-face-of-it dream existence is riddled with large, papered over cracks. It's a teen comedy with some great dialogue and some excellent performances - particularly from the Juno character, her father, and the awful Vanessa.

I gather it was written by an ex-stripper turned blogger (blog entitled: ''The Pussy Ranch''!) called Diablo Cody; real name Brook Busey. Happily her scriptwriting is way more tasteful than her blogging, or her pen-name for that matter. Anyway the Juno script won her the Oscar for best screenplay this year.

Behind all the sharp talking this film deals with the moral issues of abortion vs adoption in an understated, but mature fashion.