Sitting alone in a theater with a friend, I beheld the quirky oddness that is Juno, resplendent in the distinctly average being of Ellen Page as the title character. One night, bored and inquisitive, Juno and her “boyfriend,” Paul Bleeker have sex, and that one-time unprotected act leads to her pregnancy. What might serve as a warning against unprotected sex, or even as a pro-life propaganda, becomes instead the discussion of adoption, of family, and of what love is really about.

Juno is delightfully entertaining, but there is more than a bit of melancholy and self-discovery involved (as you might expect) in a movie that has been nominated for an Oscar and thrust Page into the spotlight. I was amazed by the blend of funny, witty humor and insightful takes on coming of age, parenthood and relationships in general. Juno seems to speak her own language, a blend of current and past “code” of the teenage years, while those around her stumble toward realization of themselves and their role in her life. The other language of the movie is its delightfully quirky soundtrack, echoing the inner thoughts of Juno, and providing a soulful, folksy feel to this indie movie made good.

Imagine the traps and pitfalls of pregnancy at sixteen, tied with the realization that you don’t know who you really are, who your true friends are and what you want for your life. Then, inject the most broken (and subdued) onscreen couple in the works of Jason Bateman and Jennifer Garner, and you have the straw that stirs the drink. Over time, and odd interaction, Juno closes in on this couple, Mark and Vanessa, as the recipients of her baby. And then what she has experienced in tragedy gets worse.

When talking to Mark, Juno says that she doesn’t want her child’s foster parents to be broken like the rest of the families she knows. He finally admits to her that he and Vanessa aren’t in love anymore. “Well, you can be in love again!” Juno argues back to no avail. Juno’s idea of what love should or could be is so much different than her parents’ relationship, her father’s relationship with her stepmother, or what she now sees of her intended foster parents. What is it about love that Juno wants that she can’t find? Why do the other relationships let her down? Is it part of the human condition that we’re self-destructive and lacking in compassion?

It seems that this worldview, often based by Christians in the fall of Adam and Eve, finds relevance in Juno’s story. But for Christians, and for Juno’s initially sad tale, we find hope in human beings rising above the mud and muck of our own lives by exploring the love we share with others. We know that Love through the life and teaching and subsequent sacrifice of Jesus, but we know love through each other, and what grows between us. Juno’s quest for love, the intricate minefield that she navigates without much help, becomes our quest for love, with humor, hope, and the belief that she can rise above it all.