Can't Go Wrong With the 'Mats on the Soundtrack
Added 11/8/2009
Give props to writer-director Greg Mottola for not repeating himself. The temptation must have been great to copy "Superbad" but "Adventureland" is a completely different animal. Both are coming-of-age flicks but the tone here is bittersweet. "Adventureland" is funny in part but it's mostly poignant. I like this film alot but it didn't resonate in my subconscious like "Superbad". This is not to slight the film but only fair warning to anybody expecting something else.
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The only thing from the 80's this movie has, is the soundtrack. As a matter of fact, why the heck did the film makers decided to make it a period piece is beyond me. It could have easily taken place today. This movie was just plain bad! Very depressing as well. It should have been pushed as a drama over a comedy. The comedy that was in it was very lame and sleep inducing. Tom C.
0 out of 1 people found this helpful.
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Mismarketed but very enjoyable
Added 11/3/2009
The Bottom Line:
An endearing coming of age drama/slight comedy with Jesse Eisenberg in top form as Jesse Eisenberg, Adventureland is not the Superbad-like comedy that the commercials promised but it's all the better for it; a sweet movie that develops characters into believable human beings and eschews pratfalls in favor of earnestness and plot developments that feel organic to the material, Adventureland is quite a little movie.
3/4
1 out of 1 people found this helpful.
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A Nostalgic Look at the Eighties in a Meandering Coming-of-Age Romance
Added 10/23/2009
I worked in food service at Marriott's Great America theme park when I was just out of high school, so I can well imagine how the young protagonist of director/screenwriter Greg Mottola's 2009 coming-of-age dramedy must have felt when he was relegated to an inelegant amusement park after his hopes for a European summer are dashed by his father's demotion at work. Granted my experience was a few years earlier than this story's setting, the Reagan era of 1987, as James Brennan, having just graduated from Oberlin College, prepares to enter Columbia's graduate school of journalism in the fall. Unenthusiastically manning the park's horse-race booth, James finds a friend in Joel, a sympathetic cynic, but more importantly, becomes drawn to sad-eyed Em Lewin.
Sharing a predilection for marijuana and moody rock, James and Em embark on a romance, but she is already caught in a doomed relationship with Mike Connell, an older, married ride maintenance man who moonlights as a rock musician. Mottola wrote and directed Superbad, so he knows how to extract laughs from the foibles of youthful indiscretion. This time, however, he favors the human drama over the comedy, and the result meanders into a few too many subplots to sustain genuine interest in the two principals. Playing a far more sympathetic version of the teen he played in Noah Baumbach's The Squid and the Whale. Jesse Eisenberg makes us care about James' fate even though the actor seems to be working off the same geek mojo as Michael Cera. Currently flying high as Bella Swan in Twilight, Kristen Stewart brings the same sullen quality she displayed in that movie and as Meg Ryan's daughter in In the Land of Women to her portrayal of Em. The two actors banter in much the same way that Cera and Kat Dennings did in Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist.
Playing the polar opposite of the put-upon assistant in The Proposal, Ryan Reynolds lends surprising depth to Connell even as his character's pathetic nature reveals itself, as does Martin Starr (Knocked Up) as sardonic nonconformist Joel. Saturday Night Live's Bill Hader and Kristen Wiig have a few funny moments playing the eccentric husband-and-wife park managers. Between the golden-hued cinematography by Terry Stacey and the period soundtrack, which is full of period hits like Hüsker Dü's "Don't Want to Know If You're Lonely" and Falco's "Rock Me Amadeus", the 1980's are captured most faithfully here. The 2009 DVD has a standard set of extras - a clever commentary track from Mottola and Eisenberg, three brief deleted scenes with optional commentary, and a standard making-of featurette.
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An incorrectlymarketed adventure
Added 10/17/2009
So, I first saw this movie in theaters the weekend it came out. I was pretty excited because I was a huge Superbad fan, and this movie was marketed as "From the Director of Superbad." This marketing tagline was coupled with a few really funny shots from the film. After seeing the movie, I sat in the movie in question. I wasn't quite sure how I felt about it. On one hand, I was disappointed at its lack of humor. On the other hand, I was amazingly impressed with the depth of the storyline. If you get this movie, go in knowing a few things:
-First, this movie isn't another "Superbad" funny movie. It has a few good laughs, but all-in-all, it's a pretty serious movie. Don't be fooled by the trailer, especially the "red band" version"
-Second, serious isn't a bad thing. For me, it brought to light a lot of interesting thoughts about love, partying, and even religion. If you go in recognizing that there is something deeper in the plot, you'll enjoy the movie so much more.
-Last, the movie had an amazing cast. The unknown Jesse Eisenberg puts out a good name for himself, and Kristen Stewart looks spectacular. If you're a guy, you'll be teased, but pleased.
I say rent it to give it a go. I bought it after seeing it in theaters because I wanted to try to dive deeper into the, what I feel are, "Hidden Themes." Happy watchings.
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Can't Go Wrong With the 'Mats on the Soundtrack
Added 11/8/2009
Give props to writer-director Greg Mottola for not repeating himself. The temptation must have been great to copy "Superbad" but "Adventureland" is a completely different animal. Both are coming-of-age flicks but the tone here is bittersweet. "Adventureland" is funny in part but it's mostly poignant. I like this film alot but it didn't resonate in my subconscious like "Superbad". This is not to slight the film but only fair warning to anybody expecting something else.
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
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The only thing from the 80's this movie has, is the soundtrack. As a matter of fact, why the heck did the film makers decided to make it a period piece is beyond me. It could have easily taken place today. This movie was just plain bad! Very depressing as well. It should have been pushed as a drama over a comedy. The comedy that was in it was very lame and sleep inducing. Tom C.
0 out of 1 people found this helpful.
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Mismarketed but very enjoyable
Added 11/3/2009
The Bottom Line:
An endearing coming of age drama/slight comedy with Jesse Eisenberg in top form as Jesse Eisenberg, Adventureland is not the Superbad-like comedy that the commercials promised but it's all the better for it; a sweet movie that develops characters into believable human beings and eschews pratfalls in favor of earnestness and plot developments that feel organic to the material, Adventureland is quite a little movie.
3/4
1 out of 1 people found this helpful.
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