Written and Directed by Greg Mottola
Starring Jesse Eisenberg, Kristen Stewart, Martin Starr, Bill Hader, Kristen Wiig and Ryan Reynolds
Adventureland, Greg Mottola’s follow-up to his smash hit Superbad, picks up where that previous effort picks up. It’s not a sequel in the true sense, but rather an account of similar characters of a different age. His high school students are now recent college graduates working summer jobs to pay for their graduate school. Just like Superbad, there is drinking, parties and drugs, and all of it legal… well, not the drugs part, but you catch my drift. This, however, is a different film.
The film starts with James (“Am I pronouncing that right?”) being dumped by his college sweetheart at a graduation party, his parents informing him they can’t pay for his summer vacation in Europe like they promised, and now he has to find a way to get the money himself. After failing to gain employment at every business in town, he takes the plunge (and the t-shirt) at Adventureland, a local theme park--think Six Flags on a much smaller budget--where he’s immediately put on games detail even though he’d rather be working on rides. He quickly befriends most of the staff--there really are no bullies, just a few douches--and becomes entranced by Emily who saves him from being knifed over a giant ass panda, the one prize no one is supposed to win.
If the story sounds familiar, that’s because it is, but don’t let that deter you. There is much to love in this film and the first is the chemistry between Jesse Eisenberg as James and Kristen Stewart as Emily. The two of these young actors create very likable, relatable though troubled young adults who discover they quite like each other but aren’t exactly sure how, or if, to approach it. There is a scene early on in the film where Emily holds a party at her house--cliché, yes, but it’s what kids do--and she and James go swimming alone. They way the two move around each other, look at each other and the words they choose has you leaning forward in your seat, half waiting to see if they will kiss and half admiring the performances themselves.
The script by Mottola himself could have been a major trouble spot, but by setting the film in the late eighties but keeping some Superbad mentalities, he succeeds in giving viewers over the age of twenty-one a protagonist that he or she instantly recognizes without alienating younger viewers. The film is very funny and everyone in the cast is well skilled at dispensing the dialogue without losing their grip on the work. Most of the lines in the movie carry a sense of realism that feel as though they’re straight from the characters themselves.
On a final note, don’t be fooled by the film’s trailer. All of the ads for this film made it out to be Superbad Part Two, a raunchy gut-busting film, and understandably so. (You’ve gotta cash in, baby.) There is something that truly sets this film apart from Mottola’s previous film, though. Adventureland is much quieter and more sincere than Superbad. Perhaps because the film is somewhat autobiographical, Mottola takes great care with the characters and scenes, producing a grin-inducing sweetness that was absent in Superbad and in the trailers for this film. I was pleasantly surprised and very satisfied with the way he handled the movie. On second thought, scratch that and be fooled by the trailer.
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