--R-- To start with the marketers of this movie completely misrepresented what it was about and the category in which it should fit. I distinctly remember watching the trailers and thinking that Adventureland was going to be another Superbad, Knocked Up type comedy. So, instead of watching a crude low brow comedy I was surprised to see a pleasant dramedy that had the same look, feel and flow as Juno.
Now, Adventureland isn't Juno, it isn't based on a pregnant teenager that is surprisingly well informed and mature for her age. No, this is about an over-educated kid working at an amusement park trying to earn enough money for graduate school...oh did I mention that it is based in the great bygone era of 1987! You have a couple of social misfits, mixed with an older musician that is living dangerously close to being a pedophile, a couple of misplaced intellectuals and your stereotypical arrogant pretty people that act dumb, and are dumb....Phew!
Okay...okay! I have given you way too much background on the characters. Part of the reason I found it so enjoyable is because I was taken aback at what the movie actually was. In short, this is a character story about a smart boy finding confidance and his relationship with an emotionally stunted, self-destructive, underachieving rich girl.
Adventureland is a movie that I hope everyone can enjoy, not just for it's self effacing humor, or the nostalgia it might illicit, but for the overall story, direction and execution that combined to make this a film that stands out in its misrepresented category.
cah
