I couldn’t wait to see Adventureland. I think it’s because I don’t want to admit that I’m not that age anymore, just out of college and trying to decide what to do next. So I was excited to see this movie and get a little bit of that retro feel. Granted, this movie is set in 1987, so not quite my generation, but you know all about those universal themes. The action takes places in a so-awful-it’s-cool theme park, with clown heads on the trash cans and games and rides (with more clown heads) that can barely make it through the day. So basically, the place everyone wants to be.
James Brennan (Jesse Eisenberg) is forced to take a job at Adventureland after he graduates college and realizes that because of his father’s demotion he won’t be able to afford his trip to Europe over the summer. He also desperately needs money to move to New York City in the fall and begin his graduate degree at Columbia. So he dons the “Games” t-shirt and begins working doubles every day to achieve his dream. Here he meets a whole crew of similarly stuck co-workers and falls head over heels in love with Em (Kristen Stewart). The whole movie is your basic coming of age tale, where Brennan realizes that what he wanted is maybe no longer what he wants.
I thought the movie was extremely funny. There is such a good cast of misfits and ridiculous situations (and a large amount of puke) that it really makes it fun to watch. My two favorites are Martin Starr as Joel, the sad, smart, pipe-smoking nerd, and Matt Bush as Frigo, Brennan’s childhood best friend who has morphed into an evil little elf bent on making Brennan’s life miserable (he has the most laugh-out-loud moments). And really, who can resist those outfits? Yeah, me either.
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