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‘Adventureland’ a sweet, fun ride
No jungle cruise or pirates of the Caribbean can be found in the new movie Adventureland, but it captures the roller coaster of teenage angst remarkably well, making this one of the best movies of the spring.
The movie is the creation of writer-director Greg Mottola, who scored a hit with Superbad but got almost no credit for it, with most of the kudos being reserved for the ubiquitous comedy maestro Judd Apatow, who produced that film.
This time out, however, Apatow is nowhere to be found except under thank-yous in the closing credits. This is all Mottola’s show, and Adventureland proves he’s a real talent, outshining Superbad. The new movie reveals that Mottola has a keen eye for detail, a great ear for dialogue, and a strong feeling for how teens think.
The film is set in 1987, when James (Jesse Eiesenberg, of The Squid and the Whale) has graduated from high school and is looking forward to a trip to a Europe. Hard times dash those plans when James’ dad is forced to take a lower-paying job, so James is forced to find the lowest of the low-rent work at Adventureland, a midway-style amusement park where the employees wear T-shirts that say “Rides Rides Rides” and “Games Games Games.”
James’ miserable existence enlivens when he meets and quickly develops a crush on Em (Kristen Stewart), a girl who also works in games. Em likes James, but she’s carrying on an affair with the park’s maintenance guy, Mike Connell (Ryan Reynolds), who’s a married man.
The cast is one of the movie’s best assets. Eisenberg is endearingly nervous as James, and Stewart’s performance ought to remind our celebrity cult that she’s not just the girl from Twilight who doesn’t interview well. Stewart gives the best performance in the film, revealing striking and touching layers of complexity to her character, making her much more than an object of desire.
Even Ryan Reynolds, who made his name in smarmy comedies like National Lampoon’s Van Wilder, gives his second performance I liked, after his strong turn in Definitely, Maybe. Saturday Night Live veterans Bill Hader and Kristen Wiig play off each other hilariously as the slightly daffy couple who operate the park.
What made Adventureland work for me more than anything else was the writing. The characters, for the most part, aren’t stereotypes, but three-dimensional people. I particularly related to Jesse, because I also was a well-read, well-meaning geek who was incredibly awkward around girls. I liked these characters and rooted for them. As an added bonus for local residents who remember the amusement park LeSourdsville Lake/Americana, Adventureland is bound to recall many memories.
The movie runs a touch longer than it should, and is overloaded with one-joke supporting players who don’t add much to the story. What Mottola has made, though, amounts to the one of the best John Hughes movies Hughes never made. Mottola’s even smart enough to know that “Rock Me Amadeus” is indeed annoying when you hear it 5,000 times a day.
GRADE: A-
Permalink | Comments (4) | Post your comment | Categories: Reviews
Comments
By Kim
April 3, 2009 10:37 AM | Link to this
Thanks for the clarification, Eric - I appreciate it! I may give it a try and plug my virgin ears - ha ha! ;)By Sir Critic
April 3, 2009 10:15 AM | Link to this
Kim - I was actually a little surprised at the rating myself. It’s a very soft R. The movie is not nearly as raunchy or ribald as the marketers would lead you to believe. However, there is at least one f-bomb used as a verb in the sexual sense. I believe under MPAA guidelines, that’s an automatic R. Laura: Thank you!By Laura
April 3, 2009 10:04 AM | Link to this
Great review Eric! I’ve seen very few unfavorable reviews, in fact. I soooo can’t wait to see this film! I am headed there as soon as I get off work today!!!By Kim
April 3, 2009 8:39 AM | Link to this
Thanks for the revue, Eric! It sounds like one I’d like to see - but I was bummed to see the R rating for a film like this - what’s up with that?