Pedophilia and Ellen Page's characters

I haven't yet seen "Smart People", though I am going to watch it just because of Ellen Page. I'm a fan. I love the movies Hard Candy and Juno, and I'm constantly seeking out other Page movies, because she's beginning to show a wider range. Her characters in Hard Candy and Juno are entirely different. In Hard Candy, she's a mildly psychopathic, very vengeful girl whose age they pin at about 14-15. In Juno, she's 16-year-old who went a little too far when she got bored with a good friend, and I found the movie a very accurate depiction of teenage pregnancy.

Regarding the scene with Juno and Mark, I believe that Mark was not trying to seduce her. He liked hanging out with her because she had similar interests, and she liked hanging around because he was someone outside of family that she believed she could count on. I have similar friends myself. Keep in mind that Juno was the one who always called or showed up at the house, not Mark. When they're dancing in the room, please remember the scene before it where she finds out about Bleeker going to prom with some other girl, and please understand how upsetting this could be a girl who's eight months pregnant with his kid! She's upset and she falls back on someone outside of family, someone who has proven himself fairly dependable. She's in a vulnerable state of mind and just needs some comforting, which Mark provides. I didn't find anything sexual in the scene. I believe you might be reading into things a little too much.

I believe that the rigid 18-year-old rule is a little out-dated. Age has nothing to do with maturity or experience, and often people judge by it far too much just based on the legal standpoint of jailbait. Please understand that I am not advocating pedophilia AT ALL, but am trying to get across the point that teenagers vary a lot in maturity and experience, especially actors. Most actors and actresses that began acting at a young age are far more mature than their age, as can be seen in the cases of Jodelle Ferland in Tideland, Abigail Breslin, Drew Barrymore, and countless other child actors. I agree that it may not benefit them in the end, but some of them do come out on top, and they should not be judged just by their age, but by their ability to handle a part with maturity.

You're something beautiful, a contradiction
I want to play the game, I want the friction.

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I don't think the man in Juno was interested in her. He just wanted to live free of his wifes rules and be able to pursue his career and have fun.

Come on ... this is obviously a demographic to appeal to baby boomer old men who are getting older, have a lot of money, more of them are single and/or divorced, and women are bitches these days, it is a feel good trend to make this audience feel like a teenage girl could fall in love with them.

That is how I see it, it has always been true to some extent. Women are always falling for these old guys ... look at Sean Conneries last movies, egad!

It is all about money. Movies are sickening anymore for this pandering. At least "Smart People" was semi-smart enough to be self-conscious of it and not take it so seriously.

Perhaps you should look up pedophilia. An older man's attraction to a 21 year old isn't pedophilia. An older man's attraction to a five year old is. Pedophilia is sexual attraction to children. It's not anything to do with age difference.

It's natural that people (including men) seek out partners in their prime (usually late teen to late 20s). It's unnatural when they seek out children, which is what pedophilia is.

The attention is better paid to real-life pedophilia (such as happens in the Catholic church) and not to imagined pedophilia, by people who don't understand the definition, in movies. If you really want to take a stand, combat the real crime, not the figments of your imagination.

Pedophiles are attracted to "children". Ellen's character is not a child but a teenager. What is or is not underaged varies from state to state even within the US and varies from country to country.

I think Pedophiles are sick and should be locked up but let's not confuse terms here.

I also think it is damaging to treat teens over 16 as children. Society seems to be sending mixed messages especially in the states. On the one hand, teens can drive vehicles which can kill people and sexual innuendo is used to sell products to teens (Axe body spray) but they cannot have sex even with other teens without risk of imprisonment.

Protect children and let them be children and let the 16+ year old teens be who they really are, young adults.

Teen age pregnancy will only go away as soon as you start holding teens accountable for their actions and providing proper sex and health education in a mature manner.

She was 17 in Smart People. Hardly a pedo.

this is one of the stupidest threads i've read

Mark wasn't interested in Juno

in Smart People she's 17 and hitting on her uncle

you're legal at 16 to bang whoever you want. shut up