Visually stimulating and 1980s nostalgia inducing, Adventureland contains all the intrigue of high school drama surrounding people who are older and quicker-witted than the average 10th grader. The film is about a recent college graduate, James Brennan, played by Jesse Eisenberg, whose plans to summer in Europe are ruined when his parents experience a severe financial down grade.
Instead of exploring the streets of Paris, Brennan is stuck working at an amusement park in order to pay for his graduate school expenses in the fall.
Through this experience, Brennan encounters several interesting people and quickly falls for Kristen Stewart’s character, Emily, as hilarity ensues.
The typical amusement park faux pas are present including a spoof on the constantly repetitive play of popular songs and the age old question of whether or not carnival food is harmful to your digestive system, giving the audience insight into the hilarious reality of the theme park lifestyle.
The protagonist James Brennan is feeble, quirky and kind of pretentious, once remarking that he does not celebrate Independence Day but instead looks forward to Bastille Day, a blatant and pompous allusion to the popular uprising of peasants during the French Revolution.
Otherwise likable, this dynamic character’s interactions with his coworkers are humorously facilitated by illegal drugs that he receives in the beginning of the film which subsequently serve as a social lubricant between the “carnies” and himself.
Contrastingly, Kristen Wiig and Bill Hader are a dynamically hilarious duo. Famous for their stints on Saturday Night Live, the two actors play off of one another’s completely opposing characters with such accuracy and precision that the audience cannot help but be entertained by their idiosyncrasy. The two sketch comics seem to in fact steal every scene that they are in.
Any slapstick-esque vulgar comedy is dispersed sporadically within the witty and intelligent script by Mottola, in this semi-autobiographical project about his own experiences working at a Long Island amusement park of the same name.
Moved to suburban Pennsylvania, this movie contains some surprisingly dark moments through which the humanity of each character becomes abundantly clear as they grow to three dimensional beings without the veil of comedy surrounding them.
Mottola has a knack for making his characters seem relatable and real, which is evidenced in the recent Superbad and once again within Adventureland.
Also, the irony and humor derived from writer/director Greg Mottola’s choice of quick scene changes and forward thinking in direction could definitely be categorized as new and inventive.
As the pet project of the acclaimed director of Superbad, Greg Mottola, Adventureland proves to be an intense and hilarious blend of comedy and sincerity leaving the audience with a final project worth watching. As writer and director of Adventureland, Mottola had a clear image of what he wanted from the film.
Mottola’s vision combined with the on-screen antics of Saturday Night Live cast members, promising young actors such as Jesse Eisenberg and Kristen Stewart, and an unconventional setting all work to create a crowd pleasing experience complete with light-hearted laughter and an atypical love story.
