Knee-jerk rewind: "Juno," "Atonement," and "Charlie Wilson's War"

Juno
1. Very funny, very satisfying.
2. But its Best Picture nomination is a bit of a reach. This thing gets released in April, no way it gets the Oscar nod (see also: the ignored Zodiac). More proof that Academy voters have inexplicably short attention spans: they nominate films with fall releases. And Hollywood happily obliges them, stacking fall slates with Oscar bait. Hey, that rhymes. Let's make T-shirts.
3. Ellen Page is great, the anti-Lohan, all rough edges and slouchy confidence. Worth a look: the dark thriller Hard Candy in which Page's character takes hostage a possible hostage.
4. An exceptionally strong cast. Jennifer Garner's never been better.
5. The media's fallen in love with screenwriter Diablo Cody, fawning all over her in a way that suggests Cody's completely re-invented the very fabric of cinematic storytelling. It's frankly a little annoying and probably part of the reason for the growing Juno backlash. But the real fascination with Cody is surely the fact that she's an oddball character herself: an ex-exotic dancer and blogger. In any event, Cody gives the film a distinctive point of view and snappy dialogue that's really pops, which is what any good screenwriter should do. Don't be surprised if it takes the Best Original Screenplay Oscar.
6. Bonus points to everyone involved for not letting the Ellen Page/Jason Bateman dynamic get too icky.
7. The last scene's duet of "Anyone Else But You" is infectious in its charm. Just try to resist.

Atonement
1. The textbook Oscar nominee. Big sweeping story. Period setting. Lush costumes. World War II. Drawing room sex. English accents. Stylish chain smoking. Tragic ending. Doomed romance. The thing practically writes itself.
2. Keira Knightley is surely the hottest anorexic-looking actress working today. Seriously, like, whoa.
3. Some call the ending a cheat, but it's no more a cheat that any other twist movie ending that Changes Everything. If you go with it and try to understand the "why" behind it (hint: look at the movie's title), you'll be fine.
4. Lesson to be learned: if you're going to send a bratty teenaged girl to deliver a letter to her sister, please be sure you give her the right letter.
5. It's most certainly better than the vastly overrated The English Patient.

Charlie Wilson's War
1. Philip Seymour Hoffman steals the movie.
2. It's a lot of fun, thanks mostly to the sharp dialogue and political scheming by "West Wing" auteur Aaron Sorkin. But then you start to realize... there's no conflict. Once Tom Hanks and his cronies decide to fund the mujahadeen in Afghanistan, that's exactly what they do. No hiccups, no detours, no obstacles.
3. Critics have complained that the film takes liberties with the truth. On one hand, hey, it's a movie, not a textbook. Then again, the media culture is slowly but surely blurring the lines between reality and fiction and many in the audience may think this is how it all happened because Tom Hanks says so. But what's the solution? Stay tuned for this argument to get kicked up another notch come fall when Oliver Stone's biopic of George W. Bush may hit theaters.
4. The appeal of Julia Roberts is frankly lost on The Cheese Fry. If you're honest with yourself, digging deep, you'll agree that she's really been interesting in just one film: Erin Brockovich. Her work is typically of the softball popcorn variety that calls for her to just flash that twangy smile. Even Tom Cruise sometimes mixes his Mission Impossibles with his Magnolias. She's kind of dull here as well.
5. Consider it a push. Some concerns, yes, but the running time's only 90 minutes. Get in, make some laughs, score some satirical points, turn Hoffman loose, let Hanks shine, get out.

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