Do not let the trailers fool you, Adventureland is not Superbad, but this isn't a bad thing. Written and directed by Greg Mottola, the director of Superbad shows that he is great when it comes to directing comedy, but only OK when writing it. Although the story is often predictable, the film is enjoyable and succeeds with moments that actually made me laugh.
Set in the summer of 1987, Adventureland shows James Brennan (Jesse Eisenberg) who has just graduated college with a degree in comparative literature. James has plans to tour Europe with his college friends, something that his parents have agreed to help pay for as his graduation gift. Unfortunately, his father has recently hit a snag in his career and they can no longer afford the trip. With his summer plans ruined, and his future as a Columbia grad student in jeopardy, James is forced to go on the hunt for a summer job. Being deemed unqualified for everything, including manual labor, James is forced to take a job at nearby amusement park, Adventureland, where his "in" is a friend with a love of punching him in the balls. The rest of the film follows his summer as a games operator, as he finds friendship and love in the company of stuffed bananas and pandas.
Adventureland is funny, but it's that muted underplayed humor that elicits gentle chuckles rather than a hearty guffaw. Certain repeating jokes, the aforementioned ball punching, tend to overstay their welcome, although the ball punching joke does have a funny final moment. The film seems to be trying to get us to laugh, but the moments just aren't there. The directing and acting sets up moments that with better writing would be hilarious, but you can't squeeze water from a stone.
The acting is pretty strong throughout. Eisenberg seems to be doing his best Michael Cera impression. It may not seem fresh, but he manages to make it work. I wanted to hate him as the bumbling intellectual youngster, but he is honest enough in his work that I found myself believing him. The main love interest is played by Ms. will-never-live-down-Twilight Kristen Stewart and she plays the typical Kristen Stewart role, brooding, complicated, deep, so damn emo and yet still cute. You've seen it before, and chances are you'll see it some more, since she has become a bit of a hot commodity. While at first I was down with Stewart, liking her in Panic Room and Into the Wild, I've grown tired of her constant lip biting and nervous hair touching. I don't think she's necessarily a bad actor, but she is so deep into her pigeonhole that I just want to see her do something different. The best parts of the film aren't in it enough. SNL members Bill Hader and Kristen Wiig play the owners of the park and are absolutely hilarious. The two have so little screen time but bring so much to the characters that they become fully developed. They have moments that are so subtle, but when noticed, bring so much, I don't know whether to credit the actors or the director, either way it is great.
By setting a film in any time other than modern day, especially the 80s, some end up shoving the period down our throats. This film manages to fit its period but not leave the audience screaming, "I get it, people dressed horrible then". The setting and the story are also treated with enough care, that despite their faults it's hard to hate them. It's no surprise that Mottola wrote the script based on his time working at the actually Adventureland in New York. This isn't just a script that's written to be funny, rather it's written to reminisce on the experiences of yesterday.
For some reason Adventureland was marketed as a raucous coming of age comedy, most likely to capitalize on the success of Superbad, and that is too bad. The film is not a crazy comedy, but it is a good one. Mottola does create a believable and often humorous film that is understated while being a bit more serious. At the very least, it is worth seeing just for Ryan Reynolds as an unlikeable character. The story is predictable and not always funny, but Adventureland is still a good time.
Set in the summer of 1987, Adventureland shows James Brennan (Jesse Eisenberg) who has just graduated college with a degree in comparative literature. James has plans to tour Europe with his college friends, something that his parents have agreed to help pay for as his graduation gift. Unfortunately, his father has recently hit a snag in his career and they can no longer afford the trip. With his summer plans ruined, and his future as a Columbia grad student in jeopardy, James is forced to go on the hunt for a summer job. Being deemed unqualified for everything, including manual labor, James is forced to take a job at nearby amusement park, Adventureland, where his "in" is a friend with a love of punching him in the balls. The rest of the film follows his summer as a games operator, as he finds friendship and love in the company of stuffed bananas and pandas.
Adventureland is funny, but it's that muted underplayed humor that elicits gentle chuckles rather than a hearty guffaw. Certain repeating jokes, the aforementioned ball punching, tend to overstay their welcome, although the ball punching joke does have a funny final moment. The film seems to be trying to get us to laugh, but the moments just aren't there. The directing and acting sets up moments that with better writing would be hilarious, but you can't squeeze water from a stone.
The acting is pretty strong throughout. Eisenberg seems to be doing his best Michael Cera impression. It may not seem fresh, but he manages to make it work. I wanted to hate him as the bumbling intellectual youngster, but he is honest enough in his work that I found myself believing him. The main love interest is played by Ms. will-never-live-down-Twilight Kristen Stewart and she plays the typical Kristen Stewart role, brooding, complicated, deep, so damn emo and yet still cute. You've seen it before, and chances are you'll see it some more, since she has become a bit of a hot commodity. While at first I was down with Stewart, liking her in Panic Room and Into the Wild, I've grown tired of her constant lip biting and nervous hair touching. I don't think she's necessarily a bad actor, but she is so deep into her pigeonhole that I just want to see her do something different. The best parts of the film aren't in it enough. SNL members Bill Hader and Kristen Wiig play the owners of the park and are absolutely hilarious. The two have so little screen time but bring so much to the characters that they become fully developed. They have moments that are so subtle, but when noticed, bring so much, I don't know whether to credit the actors or the director, either way it is great.
By setting a film in any time other than modern day, especially the 80s, some end up shoving the period down our throats. This film manages to fit its period but not leave the audience screaming, "I get it, people dressed horrible then". The setting and the story are also treated with enough care, that despite their faults it's hard to hate them. It's no surprise that Mottola wrote the script based on his time working at the actually Adventureland in New York. This isn't just a script that's written to be funny, rather it's written to reminisce on the experiences of yesterday.
For some reason Adventureland was marketed as a raucous coming of age comedy, most likely to capitalize on the success of Superbad, and that is too bad. The film is not a crazy comedy, but it is a good one. Mottola does create a believable and often humorous film that is understated while being a bit more serious. At the very least, it is worth seeing just for Ryan Reynolds as an unlikeable character. The story is predictable and not always funny, but Adventureland is still a good time.