Adventureland, released this Friday, is about as much of an adventure as the theme park it takes place in. The film is yet another soft indie comedy about young adults with mellow indie music in the background (think Juno, Nick and Nora’s Infinite Playlist); however, within the realm of the genre, Adventureland is touching, funny, well-acted, and well scripted, and as such worth spending an evening watching.
The film stars Jesse Eisenberg (an adorably awkward male version of his sister Hallie Kate Eisenberg, aka “the Pepsi girl”) as James Brennan, a recent college grad told last-minute that his parents not only cannot sponsor his post-graduation trip to Europe but won’t pay for his tuition to Columbia’s school of journalism. “Not even qualified for manual labor,” in James’ words, he takes a summer job as a games operator at the sleazy theme park called “Adventureland,” where games are rigged, rides dismember their passengers, and “nobody ever wins a giant f-ing panda.”
The movie is extremely realistic. It almost feels like someone filmed a bunch of adolescents working at a theme park and placed it on the screen. The dialogue is sparse in places, but in a way that suggests that the screenwriter personally went and listened to conversations to get a feel for the natural rhythm and style of speech and molded it carefully into dialogue. It’s easy to see the film and feel not only a connection but a familiarity in the characters, aided in part by the acting.
Jesse Eisenberg is delightfully awkward as James and should have a decent career as the innocent young adult type. Kristen Stewart plays the same type of realistic pretty yet troubled young girl that she usually plays, but as she plays it well, the audience can forgive the typecasting. Martin Starr and Bill Hader provide consistent comic relief, with Starr as the overzealous manager of the park and Hader as James’ apathetic coworker. Ryan Reynolds is every bit a movie star among a cast of character actors as sleazy maintenance man Mike Connell. And Jack Gilpin gives a wonderfully understated performance as James’ father, saying no more than five lines but communicating at least forty more with his facial expressions.
The film does go on for a bit longer than necessary. There are several unnecessary subplots that add to the realism of the film but slow the pace and the drama. The film borrows heavily from other films in the genre plot-wise, and some of the jokes and plot twists wax cliché. There is the young-looking park virgin slut Lisa P. who takes up far too much screen time, and apparently vomit jokes are essential to any movie about roller coasters. That said, there may not be an adventure in “Adventureland,” but the viewer will still have the pleasant experience that comes with the lazy days of summer torture-jobs that we hate and then miss for years on end. Such is the experience of Adventureland.
Grade: B+
