'Juno' DVD review: Extras special

"Juno" the DVD feels comfy and low-key, a lot like "Juno" the movie.

You won't miss the usual three-part making-of documentary, refreshingly absent on this DVD and replaced by better stuff.

Screen tests rarely are worth more than a curiosity pass-by, but the "Juno" DVD delivers something special. The lengthy test scenes are shot like a play, the background mostly black. Most of the main actors are present.

Star Ellen Page (Juno) and onscreen boyfriend Michael Cera are noticeably younger and less polished as they run through their lines. The scenes and their additional dialog feel as if they came from an off-Broadway play you'd want to see, another testament to screenwriter Diablo Cody's Oscar-winning work. Page seems a lot more vulnerable than in the movie, looking rather exhausted as the tryout wears on.

The commentary with Cody and sophomore director Jason Reitman should get a listen from anyone who cares about the best picture-nominated movie (this year's "Little Miss Sunshine" in the big Academy trophy trot). Cody, usually identified as an ex-stripper, sounds a lot like her lead character: alternately cynical and charming, part kid and part baby adult. Not surprisingly, she says "My So-Called Life" was a big influence.

Cody's chemistry with Reitman keeps the commentary rolling effortlessly throughout. They have great friendly chemistry, teasing and playing around while delivering story after story about the production. Cody and Reitman are talking to each other while keeping the listener included in the fun, a good trick.

Reitman ("Thank You for Smoking") gets into some detailed production notes -- which prompts Cody to kid him about veering off into film school.

Reitman and Cody point out a lot of set detail, such as the bit of whimsy in which each major character has a specific chair. Reitman says he was always bugged how movies got teenagers' rooms wrong, so the two point out all the efforts that went into getting them right here.

A staffer drove from Vancouver to the States to get the lip gloss that Cody preferred so Page could use it. (Similar dedication went into underwear, but you'll have to hear that from them.)

Reitman wasn't so set on 100% accuracy when it came to one aspect of teen life. Visiting various schools during location scouting, he noted: "The kids all had cell phones. It was heartbreaking." And so there are no cell phones in "Juno." When our heroine needs to make a call, she uses a phone booth.

The director says the big scene in which Juno tells her parents she's pregnant brought complaints from some viewers. " 'Why aren't the parents screaming at her? Why isn't this a fit of rage?' That never made sense to me. It made sense that (the parents) would be heartbroken" at their daughter's sudden exit from childhood.

Of Page, Reitman says, "The tighter the lens, the closer you go, she just gets more and more beautiful." Page did her own hair in the movie, they say, and wore her wardrobe around on off days.

Reitman several times points out the contributions of day players, who stepped in for a few lines or so. He got a big kick out of the schoolteacher actress who is on camera for just a few seconds as she demonstrates how to unfurl a condom on a banana.

The other extra of note is the deleted/expanded scenes section, which can be played with or without commentary from Reitman and Cody. They run about 20 minutes. One has Page performing a song on guitar.

A quartet of more typical promo featurettes look at Cody, the teen actors, Reitman and the movie in general. There's also an annoying music video in which the cast poses and "jams" with a rock song. And some gag segments for those seeking more bonding time with the cast.

Generation iPod might want to invest in the double-disc versions of the film, including the "Juno" Blu-ray, which includes one of those new legal download discs.

Enjoyed this post? Get this DVD blog via RSS or email.

Comments

[patrick]

i assumed Juno was directed by the same guy that directed Knocked Up, because it's about unexpected pregnancy and Michael Cera stars as Juno's boyfriend (he was in Superbad, a close relative of Knocked Up).

[amy]

I'm shocked that you failed to mention the infamous outtake of Rainn Wilson's meltdown on set, where he humiliates Reitman and insults Page by referring to her as a "pimply-faced, high school musical" amateur.