bdkjunkies
bdkreviews
bdkreviews
AdventurelandGenre: Comedy
Released: 2009
Rating:
Adventureland is the perfect coming of age story with great performances and a beautifully written script. I was thinking of being hacky and writing a line like; "I just visited Adventureland and really enjoyed the ride." That line has probably already been used by someone. No offense if you are a critic and used that line. I thought of it too! No matter how old you are, there is always a film you can relate too or that reminds you of a time when you were younger. Stand By Me is probably one of the more famous films in that category. Growing up, The Sandlot was the go to for my age group. I was just able to recognize parts of my life in each of the characters. A similar experience happened for me when I saw 2007's Superbad. To me, that was the most accurate representation of high school I had seen on screen, at least for my age group.
Ironically, Adventureland had a similar effect on me but deals with the college years. Both films were directed by Greg Mottola, but this time around instead of Seth Rogen writing a script about his high school years, Mottola steps into the writer's chair. Mottola actually worked at the real Adventureland theme park in Farmingdale, New York on Long Island. The film is based on a summer in 1987 and stars Jesse Eisenberg (Rodger Dodger, The Squid and the Whale), Kristen Stewart (Twilight, Panic Room), Bill Hader (Superbad, Hot Rod), Kristen Wiig ("SNL"), Ryan Reynolds (Van Wilder, Smokin' Aces), Marin Starr and Margarita Leviena (The Invisible).
The film takes place in Pittsburgh, PA at a theme park called Adventureland (the flick was actually shot at a theme park called Kennywood according to Wikipedia.com). It is the summer of 1987 and James Brennan has just graduated college. He is all pumped up to go on this trip to Europe with his college buddy but when his dad is transferred to PA and loses most of his income, James is forced to give up the trip and move with them. He was planning on spending the summer in Europe and then going right to Grad school at Columbia in New York City. Plans change, as they always do. Considering his parents cannot support him anymore, James (Eisenberg) is forced to get a job at a low rent theme park so that he can afford to live in NYC. The movie takes place over the entire summer and all of the experiences he has as a kid in his 20's. The park is managed by the wacky Bobby (Hader) and his wife Paulette (Wiig). One of the park's employees, Em (Stewart), catches James' eye and becomes a huge part of his life. The only problem is that she is having an affair with a married man named Connell (played by Ryan Reynolds). The story line may not sound that intriguing but it is a very natural coming of age story.
I am aware that many people have a dislike for Kristen Stewart but when you watch her in a film like this, what is not to like? She is such a natural actress and really just owns her character. Her on screen chemistry with Jesse Eisenberg is so natural. There was not one second where my mind left the movie. I was 100% locked into the film and always believed that these characters were into each other. This is how I felt about Stewart's performance in Twilight. She is just great on screen and always makes me believe her character. The same goes for Eisenberg. I especially related to him because of personal reasons, but he really captured that awkward phase guys go through when they are trying to find that special someone. I especially enjoyed the music that played when these two characters were together. There were some great 80's rock songs pumping throughout the movie as well! It was great to hear Rob Halford's voice on the big screen.
Mottola's script and overall film will really resonate with a lot of people. A lot of people will expect Superbad. The funny story about that is I tried to book an interview with Mottola and I told the publicist that I loved Superbad. She literally stopped and said, "Kevin, this movie is nothing like that at all." The sad part is that all of the advertisements state that the film comes from the director of Superbad. The advertisements are doing exactly what they are meant to do though. It will get people in the seats but they don't care how the person takes in the movie. All they care about is whether the movie makes money.
My only real criticism with the movie was the fact that the actors seemed a little young to be playing these parts. They had a very high school feel to them. Eventually, I was able to get over that fact but there was a little bit of a disconnect in the beginning.
The movie makes you feel good and is very light, while being heavy at the same time. I am giving the flick a 4 BDK rating out of 5. It is totally worth the matinee rating. You will be laughing throughout the film. Don't let me discourage you when I say it is nothing like Superbad. It is still very funny but it is not that same style of gross-out humor. The comedy is actually a little more thought-provoking.