Ellen Page

Ellen Page’s ‘Smart People’ Only as Scholarly as Zealous Senior in High School

HollywoodChicago.com — Fri, 11 Apr 2008 00:30:45 -0700

CHICAGO – I’m flummoxed. I know “Smart People” was supposed to be comedic drama with a splash of romance. Instead, I have been misled. It’s not a comedy. It’s not a tragedy. It’s not even a tragicomedy.

“Smart People” is a blandly scripted “poor me” with an attempt at a plot and some glitzy Hollywood names thrown in for good box-office measure.

While I know this was no “Juno,” I couldn’t help cursing first-time writer Mark Poirier for not taking a much-needed page – or a full-fledged course of mentoring – from Oscar-winning “Juno” inker Diablo Cody.

Read Adam Fendelman’s full review of “Smart People” in our reviews section.

View our full “Smart People” image gallery.

“Smart People” is also a product of another newbie: first-time director Noam Murro.

Since her “Juno” stardom in 2007 – and actually her big-screen break out even before that in 2005’s “Hard Candy” – 21-year-old Ellen Page has righteously warranted her way on Hollywood’s “A” list.

My draw to “Smart People” was Page and Page alone. While she’s always a professional who crafts the best she can from the material she’s handed, an actor ultimately is a slave to his or her script. “Smart People” offensively held Page back whereas “Juno” unleashed her.

Ellen Page in “Smart People”.
Photo credit: IMDb

Thomas Haden Church and Ellen Page in “Smart People”.
Photo credit: IMDb

Read the full review…

Hookup: 10 Advance-Screening Passes to New Uwe Boll Comedy ‘Postal’ on April 3, 2008 in Chicago

HollywoodChicago.com — Tue, 25 Mar 2008 01:35:08 -0700

CHICAGO – Following our sold-out ticket giveaway to the upcoming Ellen Page comedy “Smart People,” HollywoodChicago.com now announces another ticket giveaway to the advance screening of the new Uwe Boll comedy “Postal”. The film, which opens on May 23, 2008, will show to downtown Chicagoans at a screening on April 3, 2008 at 7:30 p.m.

“Postal”.
Photo credit: MovieSet

In this edition of HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: Film, each winning ticket allows you to bring one guest. We have 10 admit-two tickets available in total for this special screening. Before we share your simple task to score free tickets, let’s explore its plotline.

“Postal” is insulting, irreverent, politically incorrect and funny as hell. It follows two days in the life of the Postal Dude in the regrettably named town of Paradise. Just when he thinks he has hit rock bottom, things get worse.

After a humiliating job interview and a nearly lethal trip to the welfare office, Dude finds himself on the doorstep of his Uncle Dave. Despite being the successful leader of the town cult, Dave is also finding himself in financial difficulties. Together, Dude and Dave hatch a plan to steal some valuable merchandise.

Unfortunately for them, the much better organized and much better equipped Taliban has converged on Paradise for more sinister reasons. Things spiral out of control when Osama bin Laden is forced to call in friend George W. Bush as back up. Few are left standing by the time Dude turns his back on Paradise.

The movie poster for “Postal”.
Image credit: IMDb

To snag your tickets now, make sure you’re logged into your HollywoodChicago.com account. If you don’t yet have one, you can quickly register here. Next, click “Add new comment” below. You must include your real name in the comment as all winning names will be on a list at the screening. In your comment with your full name, include your answer to the following question:

If you were to meet Osama bin Laden in person and could
say one sentence to him, what would you say?

Disclaimer: Winners must be present at least 10 minutes prior to the start
of the film or their seat is not guaranteed.

In partnership with:

Click here for our full “Postal” image gallery!

By ADAM FENDELMAN
Editor-in-Chief
HollywoodChicago.com
adam@hollywoodchicago.com

‘Snow Angels’ an Essential Examination of Yin, Yang in Our Vulnerable Lives

HollywoodChicago.com — Sat, 22 Mar 2008 16:56:43 -0700

CHICAGO – Staying sane is truly an edge-of-the-knife proposition. We are all the sum of our past environments, our present circumstances and our future worries. The sludge that is generated by such a mixture becomes the psyche that’s ready to interact with other psyches we deem important or are forced to be around through family or commerce.

Director David Gordon Green inspects the tipping point of this interaction in the unsparing new film “Snow Angels”.

Arthur (Michael Angarano) is the teenager who walks through all the lives of this multi-storied road. His old babysitter, Annie (Kate Beckinsale), is amid a separation from her husband, Glenn (Sam Rockwell), who has attempted suicide because of the relationship’s fallout.

Click here to read Patrick McDonald’s full review
of “Snow Angels” in our reviews section!

Click here for our full “Snow Angels” image gallery!

Sam Rockwell and Kate Beckinsale in “Snow Angels”.
Photo credit: IMDb

Michael Angarano in “Snow Angels”.
Photo credit: IMDb

Hookup: 25 Admit-Two Screening Passes to Ellen Page’s ‘Smart People’ on April 10, 2008 in Chicago

HollywoodChicago.com — Tue, 18 Mar 2008 15:58:17 -0700

CHICAGO – HollywoodChicago.com on Tuesday announces that – in cooperation with the film “Smart People” with Ellen Page from “Juno,” Dennis Quaid, Thomas Haden Church and Sarah Jessica Parker – we are in this HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: Film giving away 25 admit-two screening passes to the new movie.

While the film opens wide on April 11, 2008, the Chicago screening for this film is on April 10, 2008. In order to win your pair of tickets, all you need to do is remember what you learned in fifth grade. In the same vein as the TV show “Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader” on FOX, we have five easy-peasy questions below (source) for you to answer.

Left production still: Ellen page in “Smart People”.
Right production still: Dennis Quaid and Sarah Jessica Parker in “Smart People”.Photo credits: IMdb

We know you can cheat in lots of ways with this. Don’t, though, in the spirit of fun and to reassure yourself that someone much younger than you isn’t smarter than you. To answer, just click “Add new comment” below and leave your answers like this: 1a, 2b, 3d, 4a, 5b

To win, you need only be among the first 25 respondents who muster a passing grade. In this case, that’s 60 percent, which means you need to answer three out of five correctly. We highly prefer you to be logged into your HollywoodChicago.com account to do add your comment. You can quickly register here if you don’t have one.

Winners will be contacted via e-mail with exclusive codes for digital movie passes along with the time and location information for this special screening. “Smart People,” by the way, is about a widowed professor finding a new love and grappling with an unexpected visit from his adopted brother. Good luck!

Left production still: Thomas Haden Church and Ellen Page in “Smart People”.
Right production still: Dennis Quaid in “Smart People”.Photo credits: IMdb

1) What type of consumer eats both plants and animals?
a) herbivores
b) carnivores
c) omnivores

2) A right angle is…
a) 75 degrees
b) 90 degrees
c) 45 degrees

3) The French gave America a gift of friendship to honor independence for the U.S. What was this gift?
a) The liberty bell
b) The national anthem
c) The statue of liberty
d) The American flag

4) Bulls is to horns as deer is to _________.
a) antlers
b) head
c) hoof

5) What are igneous rocks formed from?
a) magma
b) chemical composition
c) other rocks

By ADAM FENDELMAN
Editor-in-Chief
HollywoodChicago.com
adam@hollywoodchicago.com

HollywoodChicago.com Analyzes 10 Oscar Contenders For Best Actor, Actress

HollywoodChicago.com — Sun, 03 Feb 2008 17:15:41 -0700

CHICAGO – HollywoodChicago.com film critic Adam Fendelman has analyzed the 10 nominated contenders (five men for best actor and five women for best actress) and reveals his selections for the top prize. Hosted by Jon Stewart, the 80th Academy Awards ceremony will be presented in one form or another on Feb. 24, 2008.

Best Actor Nominees

George Clooney for the character Michael Clayton in “Michael Clayton”
Adam Fendelman says: Clooney upgrades himself from the “A” list to an “A+” grade and his report card earns him a richly deserved fighting chance. Leading this masterful but underrated film the way a leading Hollywood man should, Clooney – led by first-time director Tony Gilroy – will fight for “blood” and come up short.

George Clooney in “Michael Clayton”.
Photo credit: IMDb

Daniel Day-Lewis for the character Daniel Plainview in “There Will Be Blood”
Adam Fendelman says: Like a bat, Daniel Day-Lewis goes into Hollywood hibernation and only comes out when the pickings are prime and perfect. “There Will Be Blood,” which is only his third film in the past decade, is a monster of an epic and he’s nothing short of brilliant in it. This best-actor shoo-in should fit snugly.

Daniel Day-Lewis in “There Will Be Blood”.
Photo credit: IMDb

Johnny Depp for the character Sweeney Todd in “Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street”
Adam Fendelman says: Watch closely and you’ll see Depp in “Sweeney Todd” superbly slip back into his haunted, quirky “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” mindset. His vengeance, though, is bittersweet, his melodies serve justice to Stephen Sondheim’s music and Depp’s creative license merits a formidable runner up.

Johnny Depp in “Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street”.
Photo credit: IMDb

Tommy Lee Jones for the character Hank Deerfield in “In the Valley of Elah”
Adam Fendelman says: No. No. No. While Paul Haggis’ “In the Valley of Elah” pulls at your patriotic heartstrings on an important and niche topic, Tommy Lee Jones delivers an adroit but subdued lead performance that won’t compete with the memorable punch and power of the other gentleman in this year’s best-actor race.

Tommy Lee Jones in the film “In the Valley of Elah”.
Photo credit: IMDb

Viggo Mortensen for the character Nikolai Luzhin in “Eastern Promises”
Adam Fendelman says: Viggo Mortensen has clout and solid industry backing in his “Eastern Promises” performance and especially earns theatrical kudos for a particularly difficult and raw fight scene in the nude. Mortensen, though, deserves to stay among his mammoth peers on the best-actor nominee list.

Viggo Mortensen in “Eastern Promises”.
Photo credit: IMDb

Best Actress Nominees

Cate Blanchett for the character Queen Elizabeth I in “Elizabeth: The Golden Age”
Adam Fendelman says: Yes. Yes. Yes. After winning best-supporting actress for “The Aviator” in 2005 and being recognized as not only one of the most successful actresses by Forbes but one of the most influential people in the world by Time, it’s Cate Blanchett’s time to shine in this year’s best-actress limelight.

Cate Blanchett in “Elizabeth: The Golden Age”.
Photo credit: IMDb

Julie Christie for the character Fiona Anderson in “Away From Her”
Adam Fendelman says: Julie Christie in “Away From Her” authentically portrays the ghastly and evocative battle that is Alzheimer’s disease with conviction, reality and heart. She’s making lists across the U.S. as a best-actress nominee but has at least two adversaries who deserve the ultimate prize more.

Julie Christie in “Away From Her”.
Photo credit: IMDb

Marion Cotillard for the character Édith Piaf in “La Vie en Rose”
Adam Fendelman says: Chicago and Boston film critics along with various film festivals say she’s their best actress. She’s nominated by the Broadcast Film Critics Association and the British Academy of Film & TV Arts. Industry experts speak loudly: Marion Cotillard is this year’s top foreign-language selection.

Marion Cotillard in “La Vie en Rose”.
Photo credit: IMDb

Laura Linney for the character Wendy Savage in “The Savages”
Adam Fendelman says: Any daughter who deals with a dad who literally writes wall messages with poop is a fine sibling indeed. In “The Savages,” though, her somewhat memorable performance is trumped by the always dominating Philip Seymour Hoffman, which reminds you she’d more appropriately be up for a supporting role.

Laura Linney in “The Savages”.
Photo credit: IMDb

Ellen Page for the character Juno MacGuff in “Juno”
Adam Fendelman says: Though many haven’t heard of the meek Ellen Page until now and interpret her “Juno” performance as a breakout, she actually broke out in “Hard Candy” in 2005. In 2007’s “Little Miss Sunshine”-like film you can’t help but love, she’s the underdog with a shot at being recognized for coming full circle.

Ellen Page in “Juno”.
Photo credit: IMDb

Discuss this on our discussion boards here!

By ADAM FENDELMAN
Editor-in-Chief
HollywoodChicago.com
adam@hollywoodchicago.com

Color-Pencil Animated Opening Credit Sequence For ‘Juno’ Surfaces Online

HollywoodChicago.com — Fri, 28 Dec 2007 11:08:03 -0700

The color-pencil animated opening credit sequence for “Juno” has surfaced online thanks to its creator: Shadowplay Studio. I learned about this from a Dec. 27 post on /Film.

Watch the “Juno” opening sequence here!

Ellen Page and Michael Cera for “Juno” on Sept. 8, 2007.
Photo credit: WireImage.com
Since “Juno” director Jason Reitman also directed “Thank You For Smoking,” you wouldn’t be surprised to find out that Shadowplay is also responsible for creating that film’s opening titles, too.

Diablo Cody (left) and Ellen Page for “Juno” on Nov. 5, 2007.
Photo credit: WireImage.com
There’s universal agreement (as much as there can be universal agreement) that “Juno” is one of the best films of the year and perhaps the best of the independents.

Jennifer Garner for “Juno” on Sept. 8, 2007.
Photo credit: WireImage.com

Ellen Page (left) in “Juno”.
Photo credit: IMDb
Reitman says the following about the sequence in a blog post from Aug. 2007:

They were created by Shadowplay Studio, which is the same team who did the badass opening titles for “Thank You For Smoking”.

I met them back in 2000 when we both had short films playing the festival circuit. Their short (“This Guy is Falling”) was a really impressive half live-action/half animation piece they did in college.

When they did “Thank You For Smoking,” the titles were rendered on a series of computers in one of their mother’s living rooms. Now they got a fancy place in an art-deco building on Wilshire.

The “Juno” opening titles are out of control. I don’t want to give away too much, but the whole process was really labor intensive.

The Shadowplayers would have parties in which friends and family would help construct the whole thing. I can’t wait for you all to see it and then I can explain how it was done.

My interview with “Juno” star Ellen Page and “Juno” screenwriter Diablo Cody can be found here. The HollywoodChicago.com film review of “Juno” by Shane Hazen can be found here.

“Juno” screenwriter Diablo Cody.
Photo credit: WireImage.com

Ellen Page and Michael Cera in “Juno”.
Photo credit: IMDb

Jennifer Garner (left), Jason Bateman and Ellen Page in “Juno”.
Photo credit: IMDb

From left to right: J.K. Simmons, Ellen Page, Allison Janney and Jason Bateman for “Juno” on Nov. 5, 2007.
Photo credit: WireImage.com

Interview, Part Two: Why Hollywood’s Addicted to ‘Juno’ Scribe Diablo Cody, Star Ellen Page

HollywoodChicago.com — Thu, 06 Dec 2007 23:05:39 -0700

Editor’s note: This interview contains explicit language.
This is part two of this interview. Part one is here.
CHICAGO – The sale of Diablo Cody’s “Juno” script has become the opening of her career can of worms.

“Juno” screenwriter Diablo Cody.
Photo credit: ViewImages
In Oct. 2007, it was announced that Fox Atomic purchased Cody’s script for the comedic supernatural thriller “Jennifer’s Body”. Mason Novick and Jason Reitman are both on board as producers. Cody added: “I think [Reitman is] done with high school movies.”

While Cody has been painted with “the new Tarantino,” Page has been flattered by being likened to Meryl Streep and Audrey Hepburn.

“That seems outlandish. I don’t feel special,” Page said as if she’s not a flourishing Hollywood star. “I’m just doing what I love to do. That’s a crazy thing to think about. Having an opportunity to do this is an enormous gift. Getting all this attention just weirds me out.”

Cody laughed – and we won’t know why – except to say it was a “private joke” on the topic of Page’s modesty.

Page returned to her diffident direction: “It’s nice when people give you compliments, but it’s not always easy to take compliments. I have really awesome friends who are 10 times cooler than me doing really [amazing] things they don’t get attention for.”

Cody said maternally: “You should learn to take compliments, girlie, because you’re gonna be getting some.” Page pressed on: “I just run around for 30 days talking. Thanks, but what am I?”

Cody interrupted: “I’m sorry about this bloody rag. It’s out of control.” Cody was referencing her ever-bleeding finger in our interview.

“Juno” star Ellen Page as Kitty Pride in “X-Men: The Last Stand”.
Photo credit: EllenPage.net
Back to Page’s retiring persona, she said: “Insults are fine. I don’t care what people think of me. Criticism [usually] feels honest.” Returning to maternal mode, Cody became protective when asked for criticism on Page’s performance of her adolescent, pregnant character.

“I would criticize nothing about her,” Cody retorted. “Ellen’s one of my heroes. She’s one of my favorite actors.”

Speaking of her motherly instincts, we shifted gears and discussed that vital topic in her personal and work life. Cody is a stepmom.

“That’s very important to me,” she said. “I honestly don’t think there’s any character more vilified in folklore or film than the stepmother. The reason I have a problem with it is not just because I am one but because a very, very large percentage of American children have one.”

As for the disapproving perception often associated with a stepmom in society today, Cody said: “I don’t see how that’s sending an uplifting or healthy message to anybody to tell them they have a villain in their family or to tell them they’re abnormal or tainted.

“If I could create a positive portrayal of a relationship between a stepmother and a stepdaughter – particularly at this fraught adolescent time [in the film] – maybe that will impact somebody. I always say evil stepmothers aren’t born. They’re made. There are bitchy stepmoms out there just like there are bitchy moms.”

She continued: “As a stepmother, you feel like ‘if society’s going to treat me like a villain, I’m going to fucking act like one’. And then the cycle continues. So let’s break the cycle!”

Speaking of breaking cycles, the timing of our interview was smack dab in the middle of the current writer’s strike by the Writers Guild of America (WGA).

Diablo Cody on strike on Nov. 7, 2007 in Los Angeles.
Photo source: Diablo Cody’s “The Pussy Ranch” blog
Cody is a card-carrying member of the WGA. She supports its national exclamation aimed at awarding the same residuals to writers for online sales as others already receiving such benefits. Cody’s support of the strike, though, isn’t at all for benefits she wants personally.

“I’m very pampered as a writer. I get recognition. I’m well paid,” Cody said. “The strike benefits all of us. I’m not really supposed to be talking about it, but the new-media issue and residuals issue affect everybody. I do feel like a lot of writers get the short end of the stick in general, but not me.

“I wish every writer can have the treatment I’ve had so far in my career. I have no complaints [personally], but I have complaints on behalf of my peers.”

Beyond “Jennifer’s Body,” Cody is also in bed with Toni Collette (“The Sixth Sense”), Steven Spielberg and Showtime. She says Spielberg conceived the concept of a mom with multiple personalities and Cody pitched a story to him based on that plotline. Showtime bit and Cody says she’s looking forward to meeting with Collette.

“Slutty,” Page offered. Confused, this critic said: “Collette’s slutty?” Page purified: “No!” Cody’s media training stepped in: “That’s why you can’t just randomly say that in interviews. That’s just her all-purpose adjective. It just means ‘cool’.”

Cody has also penned a female “Superbad” screenplay she coins “Girlie Style”. As it’s a college sex comedy with female protagonists, by now the pattern has clearly emerged about her topical fixations on sex and women.

“Juno” screenwriter Diablo Cody.
Photo credit: Scott Walker
“I’m a feminist,” Cody declared. “I wish I didn’t have to be. Initially I was insulted when people would ask me about writing great roles for women. I just wanted to write great roles. I felt like I was [bowing] to the patriarchy if I just wrote ‘women’s pictures’. But now being slightly more seasoned – lightly salted…”

In reaction to being “lightly salted,” Page popped back in with a titter: “Nice. A touch of thyme! A pinch of dill!”

Cody again sported her grave hat: “I do feel like I have a responsibility to write strong roles for women because I’m seeing so many amazing actresses – or as I like to call them ‘actors’ – who are being squandered. I don’t like the term ‘actress’.”

Page concurred: “When people ask me what I’m doing and I say I’m an ‘actor,’ the old bald white man will say: ‘Oh ho ho ho. Don’t you mean actress?’”

Cody pursued: “The term ‘actress’ sounds like it’s from the silent film era. Like: ‘Actress Clara Beau!’ It’s cheesy. I say actor. In interviews like this, I find myself having to default to ‘actress’ because when I say ‘there are no good roles for actors,’ it gets misconstrued that I’m talking about men.”

Beyond talking about men, what about writing about them? Though time will be the ultimate judge, Cody asserted: “I’ll write about boys. I’m certainly not averse to it. I myself am kind of a dude, so the fact that I’m able to tap into any woman’s psyche is shocking.”

Ellen Page.
Photo credit: George Pimentel, WireImage
To conclude our interview, we returned to where it all began for Cody – blogging – and the burdens and blessings inherent in it.

“You can’t just drop your blog because something [bad happens with it],” Cody stated. “Do you have any idea what kind of shit I’ve been through in cyberspace?”

She added: “How do I deal with that? I make a lot of money and laugh. Sorry. That’s a douche bag answer. I’ve been through a lot with it, but I don’t care because it’s four people in Minnesota who are bitter and ugly. They can eat a dick. They can collectively eat a dick.”

Page related: “It’s the same with what I do. I don’t even write anything personal about myself. I just act. Hardly many people even know who I am yet, but a few do. I just get automatically judged. People are just judgmental in general.”

“The Internet gives everybody a voice. I think that’s gross. Only the most articulate members of society should be allowed to voice their opinion,” Cody said sarcastically. But she concluded seriously: “There are a lot of illiterate trolls on the Internet who can just eat a dick.”

Part one of this interview can be found here.
By Adam Fendelman
Publisher
HollywoodChicago.com

International Trailer Released For 2007 Smash Hit ‘Juno’

HollywoodChicago.com — Thu, 29 Nov 2007 18:07:03 -0700

Fox Searchlight released a second “Juno” trailer on Thursday. While the international trailer takes a different direction than the first, it still features front and center the talent in Diablo Cody’s script. I have uploaded the new trailer to YouTube and embedded it below.

The first trailer, which was released in Sept. 2007, can be seen below.

Part one of my interview with “Juno” star Ellen Page and Chicago-native screenwriter Diablo Cody can be read here. I posted on Sept. 14 that “Juno” would be one of the year’s best.

“Juno” screenwriter Diablo Cody.
Photo credit: WireImage.com
Indeed, it’s proving to be one of the year’s best and certainly one of the year’s top surprises. The film opens on Dec. 5 in limited theaters.

Ellen Page.
Photo credit: IMDb

Interview: Why Hollywood’s Enraptured With ‘Juno’ Scribe Diablo Cody, Star Ellen Page

HollywoodChicago.com — Mon, 26 Nov 2007 12:55:39 -0700

Editor’s note: This interview contains explicit language. Due to length, it is being published as a two-part series to be concluded shortly.
Dec. 7, 2007 update: Part two can now be found here.
CHICAGO – Diablo Cody fittingly ushered in her Chicago “Juno” junket in classic Diablo Cody style: The night prior, she blogged with brevity where she’d be kicking back and when.

“Juno” screenwriter Diablo Cody.
Photo credit: WireImage.com
Though a frequenter of the German bar scene, the Red Lion in Lincoln Park was Thursday evening’s sanctuary with friends off the beaten press path. While legal in Canada at 20, “Juno” star Ellen Page wasn’t at Cody’s side until Friday.

More than most, our interview especially paid no attention to the live recorder.

Instead, the laissez-faire time morphed into a blunt and beguiling conversation replete with cunning perspective, quick-witted commentary, unexpected bloody fingers and all things “adamant” (Cody’s word of the day) and “slutty” (Page’s).

Page came forthright out of the gates about her kissing scenes with “Superbad” comic phenom Michael Cera. She said: “Yeah, there were quite a few angles and takes, so we made out a lot.” Had there been need for more kissing takes, she said: “Hey, if he wants to dish it out, I’ll take it.”

She likened Cera’s charmingly geeky and blameless character in “Juno” to someone she’d date in reality. A lightbulb came on and Page volunteered: “It’s weird. He’s similar to a very good friend of mine.” Cody knew who and had met him.

Now Cody – who loathes the label of a “stripper turned blogger turned screenwriter” (more the latter than the first) – first spoke in our interview with modesty and irony. She gave props to her Juno persona with relative awe.

“The character is semi-autobiographical even though the story’s not. I feel a definite kinship with Juno. It’s an easy character for me to write. It felt very organic. I really based her on myself as a teenager, but Juno is way cooler than me. I didn’t always have the ready response,” Cody said absolutely with ready response.

Ellen Page.
Photo credit: IMDb
She added: “I was a lot more emotional and immature. She’s a very brave, articulate young lady.”

Without needing to be prompted, Page was eager to illuminate her love for her character: “She definitely hides behind that – behind her sarcastic wit. The whole point of being an actor is learning to just be the person you’re supposed to portray. I really admired Juno and it was really easy for me to connect my heart with her heart.

“Whenever you play someone who’s honest, whole and well written, you’re going to be able to connect with them. Juno has a special place in my heart. I was obsessed with her. I read the script a couple years ago and wasn’t just interested in pursuing it. It was as if this needs to happen.”

At the time, Page had just viewed “Juno” director Jason Reitman’s “Thank You For Smoking” and was about to convene for a general meeting. One week after the meeting had been arranged, the news surfaced that Reitman would be directing “Juno”. Page says on the twist of fate: “I was in cloud nine.”

Wanting the leading gig in “Juno” was just as clear for Page as it was for Reitman. As for Cody: “The instant her name came up from the beginning of the process, I knew she’d be amazing. She’s one of the best of her generation. When Jason came on board, he was adamant about her and I was 100 percent behind him.

“In terms of casting, I put my trust in Jason as I did with many aspects of the film,” Cody said. “He was adamant about the cast he wanted.”

Cody’s one not only to think quickly before she speaks but also to listen to her own words after she does. She then discerned about herself: “I’ve used the word ‘adamant’ twice. That’s the first and second time I’ve used that word in a really long time. It feels kinda good.”

Ellen Page (left) in “Juno”.
Photo credit: IMDb
Page appreciates the fine art of fine vernacular, too, and offered: “My word that I’m using a lot lately is ‘slutty’. It’s good. It can have nothing to do with the word. If someone orders a tuna sandwich, slutty!”

With the film’s screenwriter at her side, Page was posed the question of whether she had to deliver any lines she despised.

“Honestly, no,” Page said. “There were some that felt more awkward and some I totally put my faith into Jason for it not to be ridiculous. Everything she wrote felt extremely organic to me. I didn’t speak the exact same way as Juno did when I was 16, but I did have my own specific language with friends.”

Back to Cody’s past and present, her essence today is drawn from all the good and the shameful of yesterday. While sometimes slapped with the negativities associated with a brief stint as a stripper, it’s perhaps surprising to learn she’s in fact more at odds with what has principally crafted her career.

“I tend to be somewhat ashamed of my blogging past,” Cody offered. “Blogging is vanity. It’s self-publishing. There’s no prestige in it. That’s not to say something has to be prestigious to have merit, but there’s something cheesy about being the first blogger turned screenwriter. I mind the stripper comparisons less.

“But [blogging is] where I come from. I owe my entire career to blogging. I was discovered because of the blog.”

She then interrupted herself due to a minor medical surprise: “I’m sorry. There’s blood all over my hand. I just cut myself really badly. It’s one of those small cuts that produces a ton of blood.” It’s that randomness – that quirkiness – that propels people’s growing interest in her. You never know what to expect with her.

Ellen Page and Michael Cera in “Juno”.
Photo credit: IMDb
In our Oct. 16 review on “Juno,” we wrote: “Cody is used to clever wordplay to pad earnest moments of connection and soul bearing. Formerly a brief stripper, Cody’s long-running blog gained national exposure with her memoir ‘Candy Girl: A Year in the Life of an Unlikely Stripper’.”

So how did Chicago-native producer Mason Novick discover Cody’s blog? Was he searching for porn?

Page silently nodded her head. Before treated with the answer from Cody, Page’s own avant-garde personality launched her into tangential narrative in response to bloody digits.

“I have scars all over my fingers because I’m a fucking klutz,” Page acknowledged. “I [recently] moved into a [new] place [and] bought nice hiking shoes. I like to hike. I was wearing them in my place. I have a really old apartment and everything’s wood.

“I totally ripped my fingers to shreds with a brand-new knife I bought. It’s the only thing I spend money on. I have used furniture and whatever, but I like cooking and good knives are important. There was blood everywhere and it had gotten all over my shoes.”

Though she seemed apologetic for divulging the glimpse into her personal life, without interruption her mind fired back to: “Oh. Porn. Mason. Searching.” Cody now dished out our answer.

“Mason has never really told me the whole story because we have an extremely professional relationship,” Cody said on reflection while staring into her past. “I believe he said he was Googling ‘pussy’ and found The Pussy Ranch,” which is the title of her current blog.

Jennifer Garner (left), Jason Bateman and Ellen Page in “Juno”.
Photo credit: IMDb
“That means vagina,” Page jested for clarification.

Cody pressed on into the story of her manufacture: “Who hasn’t Googled ‘pussy’ or ‘cock’ during a dark, lonely moment? He was probably at work, though. That’s the funny part.

“He found my blog and started reading it – shockingly. There probably wasn’t a lot of visual material for him to work with, but there was a lot of cynical blabber about the sex industry. He for some reason thought I would make a good screenwriter. I absolutely love that man.”

Cody offers her love for Novick with purely professional undertones, of course, as she has been married to Jonny Hunt for the past three years. They relocated from Chicago to Minnesota and currently reside in Los Angeles. The couple appropriately met where Cody spends much of her personal and professional time: online.

While Cody continues developing a cult following as one of today’s most promising screenwriters, being tagged “the new Tarantino” is her most prized praise yet.

“Ah hah!,” she declared with elevated volume and unadulterated pride. The meek chic geek then returned: “I wish I were that talented. I wish I had one pixel of [Quentin] Tarantino’s talent. He’s an absolute hero of mine. That [praise is] Jason Reitman’s largesse. That’s very nice of him to say. [Tarantino is] a fucking icon.”

Page interjected with sarcasm: “Who’s Quentin Tarantino? Does he go out with Oprah?”

Stay tuned for part two of this interview, which will be published shortly. “Juno” will open in limited theaters on Dec. 5.

Dec. 7, 2007 update: Part two can now be found here.
By Adam Fendelman
Publisher
HollywoodChicago.com

Chicago-Native ‘Juno’ Writer Diablo Cody Takes Stand on WGA Strike

HollywoodChicago.com — Wed, 07 Nov 2007 19:37:59 -0700

Following the launch of the Writers Guild of America strike on Monday, “Juno” writer Diablo Cody went to work on Wednesday to fight for her work. She published the following photo on her blog.

Diablo Cody on strike on Nov. 7, 2007 in Los Angeles.
Photo source: Diablo Cody
To accompany the stark visual, she penned the following with brevity:

The gang is out in force today. Even striking can be fun when someone’s blasting “Sir Duke” and donuts abound.

The best part of this afternoon was when Jeremy Piven drove off the lot and we all screamed “PIVS! PIVS!” at him like love-struck Beatlemaniacs.

Piven was raised in Evanston (just north of downtown Chicago) and Cody is originally from Chicago. She moved early in 2007 from Minnesota to Los Angeles with her husband (Jonny Hunt).

Cody will be in Chicago on a “Juno” press junket on Nov. 16 along with “Juno” star Ellen Page. I will be interviewing them then. Stay tuned for their perspective.