Brilliant.
A jewel of a film ... one of the tightest scripts I've ever heard, delivered by right-on actors, each perfectly cast for their role.
Tender, entertaining, a message without sledgehammer.
Lots of genuine belly-laughs for me. I found myself getting into these fascinating characters: a bright 16-year old with the philosophical maturity of someone many years her age, her quite "boyfriend" - the father of her child - her father, at once tough and so profoundly loving, her stop-mother, her high school friends, the potentially adoptive parents, and a host of lesser characters who enrich the story at every point.
It reminds me a bit of "Lars and the Real Girl" - there is no greater love than that of a community standing by someone, and it takes a community to give full expression to the power of love.
Intended or not, the film offers thoughtful sex education and a fascinating "anti-abortion" message - I use quotes because abortion isn't condemned as some hideous affront to God and humanity, but as a choice to be made, and when given the opportunity, she chooses to go through the pregnancy and give the child up for adoption.
In one of the most tender moments I've ever seen, her father sits by her bedside, stroking her head after the delivery and says, "Someday, you'll be here on your own right."
Hats of to this father! And to everyone else in this fine film for making the best of it.
As John Wooden said, "Things turn out best for those who make the best of how things turn out."
