A little bit dazed and confused
Every decade it seems like the world of Hollywood has to make a ‘coming of age’ film that ends up becoming epic for that particular generation. For me it was Dazed and Confused as I was dying to reject the film’s message of being young and finding yourself (not as bad as it sounds), for this generation it might have been Adventureland.
James was a smart kid ready to move on to bigger and better things in his life, but he hits a road bump. When his father gets pretty much laid off from his job, James’ parents can’t afford to send him to graduate school in New York. Completely over qualified and forced to live with his parents, James turns to the only job he can get…. a games employee at the local theme park called Adventureland. While there, James meets a group of rejects who are stuck in the same hole as he is. He really gets to know a girl named Em in the group, who likes what she sees in him (and vice-versa). Not is all that it seems though, as James learns about Em’s secret life while coping with the harsh life of Adventureland and of his own.
Shot mostly with a dreary blue lens and trying to mimic the 80s (which is tough enough to do without vomiting), the movie has all the elements of a generation’s ‘coming of age’ film. The movie gets way too serious for its own good though and it ruins the fun a bit. Before we get too far into the movie itself, let’s talk about acting.
Jesse Eisenberg’s James is nothing short of entertaining. He has that bumbling, mumbling idiot acting ability down perfectly. He carries himself well through the film as someone who wants to get out and succeed, but just can’t seem to find his way out. His character is built by those around him as they offer him different pieces of advice that, when combined, equal out to his solution to get out of town. He takes this progression of each piece of advice with stride and helps to develop a stronger character as the movie goes on. His character feeds off the misery of others and learns not to do what they did. With that said, the movie fails because of this. You’ll regretfully witness sad stories left and right because of each character. Em (Kristen Stewart) has a problem with her stepmother who showed up shortly after her mom died. She abuses herself through handyman Mike (Ryan Reynolds), who is having an affair with her on the side. Another sad note in the film is Joel (Martin Starr), who is basically shunned by girls and people alike. He looks sad, he acts sad and he is sad, which is incredibly sad. The only really happy person, outside of James, is Frigo (Matt Bush); he is James’ nut hitting friend (yes, just like it sounds). The movie makes all of these fun looking characters incredibly depressing. The situation that got James here in the first place is depressing enough, but seeing the lives of these kids spiral simply doesn’t make for good film.
Maybe I missed it here. Maybe the real intention of the film is to show one man’s escape from a town that traps people. Maybe it’s not a ‘coming of age’ film, but rather it’s a ‘great escape’ film. James is a character that is destined to more with his life and simply doesn’t want to settle; that is understandable and different. By the end of the film you get confused on this point as you’re not sure whether the film was about James getting free from his dreary, nowhere confines or it was about a relationship between James and Em. Either way, the film clearly doesn’t define what it’s trying to do, it simply does it.
With that said, the film doesn’t live up to its marketing. My biggest disappointment about Adventureland is that it was advertised as a comedy/romance. There unexpected drama in the story that completely outweighs the other two genres. Maybe my expectations of what I was looking for simply came up shy; regardless, I wanted more from Adventureland and got less.
As pretty as an 80’s sky
As much as I didn’t want to be transported by into the 80s, the movie really shined in terms of visuals. You’ll get all the majesty of a theme park in 1987. The details of the worn rides and the shimmering puffy hair of typical woman will have you dreaming of loafers with long pants. The visual details really help the movie’s atmosphere out tremendously. Even better than that, which is shocking, is that the audio featured in this film is so good. Coming to you in beautiful HD that only blu-ray can deliver; you’ll be transported back with some good 80s tunes.
As for features, here’s what you’re looking at:
– Deleted Scenes
– Commentary (director/writer)
– Just My Life: The Making of Adventureland
– Frigo’s Ball Tap
– Lisa P’s Guide to Style
– Welcome to Adventureland
