Juno
I loved this movie and it made me cry. It did! But seriously, I was really impressed with how Ellen Page, the lead actress, interpreted the screenplay to describe a real situation in an engaging way. The movie's reach is remarkable - from talking to people who have seen the film and reading reviews, people of all ages seem to be able to connect with Juno and/or the other characters in the movie to understand and identify with the situation. Many of us at least know someone who has had to make a decision on what do do with an unexpected pregnancy, so the issue of abortion is there. But the movie is far from a moralizing rant on what or whether to choose. Juno chose not to abort, but that doesn't make her stance ideological - it's purely personal, and I'd venture to say that she was glad to have been able to make the choice for herself. I think the film gave this issue in the delicate and multifaceted treatment that it deserved.
Ellen Page was great, though some criticized her (and her lines) as too snappy and smart, to the point of being unrealistic. I felt like it was more noticeable at first, when her language was a little too smart and biting, but after a while you get used to her take on things. It becomes less about her being capable of taking care of it all and more about her realizing that she might need some help, so the whole approach gets toned down as the viewer gets used to hearing her use of language.
Page takes the cake, but I also loved the entire cast. Jennifer Garner was excellent as the hopeful adoptive mother, and the way she deals with her husband, played by Jason Bateman, I found to be very real. She is overly controlling, but he's also unrealistic and stuck in the past. She knows what she wants and when she wants it, while he feels stuck in a suburban nightmare that doesn't fit who he really is.
I also loved Juno's father and stepmother, played by J.K. Simmons and Allison Janney. I though they were very real, and I especially liked watching Juno's relationship with her stepmother evolve. At first Juno wouldn't let her in, but as time went on she found in her a real source of support.
I saw Juno in a little arty theater in a small town in Massachusetts long after it had left the larger theaters. It had been there as the only film for about six weeks, but there were still people in there when I saw the movie with my mom on a weeknight. I think that says something about the attention and regard this movie will get in the long term. People are hearing about it by word of mouth, and they'll keep seeking out this unique film in the years to come because of its sensitive take on a tough issue.