Unreal Movie Review: Adventureland

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“Wow, you are SO not Robert Pattinson.”

Adventureland was not what I expected.

From the director, the cast and hell, even the poster, I expected it to be Superbad at an amusement park, but aside from those three things, the two films have nearly nothing else in common.

I was getting upset about ten minutes into the movie, when I wasn’t laughing out loud at any of the jokes, and began silently bemoaning the absence of Seth Rogen and Adam Golberg.

But then Ryan Reynolds took Kristen Stewart’s pants off.

Adventureland was not what I expected.

James Brennan (Jesse Eisenberg) is just your average rich white kid in the ‘80s, set to attend Columbia for journalism grad school in the fall. But tragedy strikes when his rich white dad transfers to a less robust position, one that doesn’t have a budget for rent and tuition attached.

So James has to get a summer job, and finally settles for working at Adventureland, which is like your local state fair, but with more puke and game-rigging. The park is run by Bobby (Bill Hader) and Paulette (Kristin Wiig), and during the course of employment he meets fellow carnies Em (Kristen Stewart), Joel (Martin Starr) and maintenance guy Connell (Ryan Reynolds).

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A rare instance of “comedy.”

But this isn’t your average loser-pines-for girl scenario. In fact, James gets it together with Em in barely any time at all, and then even has an alternative option of super hot booth babe, Lisa P (Margarita Levieva). He’s not exactly a fumbling, bumbing Michael Cera, despite his best efforts.

Adventureland isn’t a funny movie. It just isn’t. Attempts at clever lines miss way more than they hit, and most of the humor is centered around nutshots and boner jokes. And when you’re going in expecting to see a smart comedy, this is most disappointing.

But Adventureland does work partially on a dramatic level. The characters are much more complex than those you encounter in a typical Apatow-fest, and the film really goes out of the way to make even potentially throw-away characters relatable.

The movie is a lot deeper and darker than you’d ever expect going in. Substance abuse, extra-marital affairs, identity crises, Adventureland has a lot more than you bargained for.

So overall, with the lack of comedy and the expected presence of heart, is Adventureland worth it? I’d say no. It’s nice to have brief flashbacks to a brilliant ’80s teen drama/comedy like Freaks and Geeks, but without proper writing, or particularly likable characters, the film isn’t just that great of an experience. The swapping of drama for comedy had me feeling duped, like walking into Knocked Up and being shown 4 Months 3 Weeks and 2 Days instead. Sure it feels more real, but it definitely isn’t what I signed up for.

2.5 out of 5 stars

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Don’t you do it Ryan Reynolds!

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5 Comments

  1. I loved Martin Starr so much on Freaks and Geeks, and he’s in so few movies, that I will see anything with him. Even the unfortunate presence of Kristin Stewart will not stop me.

  2. i don’t understand why i keep reading this same review from every person. only a freaking idiot would go in thinking it’s a slapstick apatow-esque movie. it’s a dark comedy-drama. just because you have expectations and know nothing about the movie, doesn’t mean you should give it a bad review. shame on a movie for being something that you have no idea what it is going into it. it’s sad that people like you are allowed to review movies. review it for what it IS, not what you thought it was. retard.

  3. No, it’s trying to have it both ways. It’s totally trying to be a slapstick Apatow-esque movie half the time, but that part of the movie totally sucks. The “dark comedy-drama” works sometimes, but the characters don’t pull enough weight to make to truly effective. So it fails on both counts really, just one less than the other.

  4. Reminded me of some older teen/YA dramedies like Some Kind of Wonderful, Say Anything, Pretty in Pink.

    While they weren’t exactly laugh-fests, I appreciated the way characters were drawn a little deeper than the norm.

    Plus I worked at a local amusement park (holla’ Fantasy Island in NY!) the same year this was set in.

    Still, I was thrown a curveball expecting more yuks based on the previews. 2.5 here as well.

  5. Let me say I disagree with the accusations made that the characters in this movie “don’t pulll any weight”

    I worked at an amusement park the summer after I graduated college and this movie was SPOT ON with its characters! The hot girl every guy is crazy about but really isn’t all that great. .. the “cool” older dude who everyone looks up to but wonders why he works there … the crazy guy who is always embarassing you … the quiet girl you REALLY want to be with but has emotional problems … I lived this life! You have to have worked at an amusement park to fully appreciate it!

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