Adventureland DVD Review

[Brando]

Starring: Jesse Eisenberg, Kristen Stewart, Ryan Reynolds
Directed by: Greg Mottola
Written by: Greg Mottola
Runtime: 106 mins
Rated: R
DVD Release: August 25, 2009

It’s funny, isn’t it, that those anxious, awkward, and often intoxicated teenage and college years are those that we consider “formative,” and which include those experiences we deem most unforgettable and at the same time miserable. Few of us in our late twenties, thirties, forties, or fifties would ever give up stable jobs, families, and situations for those moments of uncertainty before landing the first good one of each. Still, it’s that era of insecurity we in retrospect regard as exciting, audacious, adventurous – and it’s these moments that Adventureland encapsulates so fluidly and wonderfully. Set in Pittsburgh in 1987, it does a fantastic job of channeling some of the most awkward and yet splendidly innocent episodes of those post-college years when the real world rollercoaster makes its first truly frightening descent towards earth.

Adventureland stars the mostly unheard-of Jesse Eisenberg as James Brennan, a recent B.A. grad whose heart is set on Europe and eventually graduate school in New York City – mostly because that’s the only socially-respectable path we B.A. grads can grasp within the first 24 months of completion. Unfortunately, a financial hiccup at home in Pittsburgh means James must switch from the upper-middle class way of raising money – hitting up Mom and Dad -- to the lower-middle class way of doing things – a part-time summer job. And since James’ classical education qualifies him for only the most unlikely of real-world positions – like restoring someone’s fresco – just about no one in the real world will bother hiring him. (As a side-note, Adventureland skips the anxiety many of us B.A. grads have faced with the realization that 4+ years of A-radar grades will not even land you a job shoveling dirt or driving a cement truck. Not that this doesn’t make sense, because it does.)

Thankfully, there’s a lowest-common denominator job just about any place. In my home town it was the grocery store, but in others it’s often a grease-imbued fast-food rip-off chain, like “The Charcoal Pit” or “Burger Royale,” many of which don’t even bother with the resume, just happy that a breathing two-legged creature is interested in the position. In this film that job can be found at Adventureland, a stereotypical carnival that unlike those I knew growing up – the nomadic ones that traveled to small farming towns once a year for four days with the same rides and junk food year-in, year-out – stays plunked right in the same place. This is no robust commercial enterprise in the same vein as Ohio’s “Cedar Point” or Ontario’s “Canada’s Wonderland,” and given all the dirty tricks employed to cheat people out of their money – crooked basketball hoops, glued-on softball targets, and nigh-impossible milkcan ringers – one wonders how Adventureland stays open at all.

Still, the carnival is merely a neon-emblazoned and puke-stained setting for Adventureland’s post-teen drama. But before you dismiss this as just another Breakfast Club copy-cat (like the mostly miserable Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist), be assured that Adventureland features much subtler characters, deeper storylines, and some fantastic acting – the latter being the failing point for most of those other teen or teen-like affairs. There’s a lot of drama here, but I found that I could relate to just about all of it – unlike the pseudo-reality posited by Nick and Norah and their fantastic Playlist. Although he’s sometimes brutally and realistically awkward, I identified most with James, whose bumbling attempt to get a real girlfriend makes him do those things that perform the exact opposite function (i.e., using the ‘L’ word way too soon and taking out the resident airhead brunette bombshell in order to improve social standing). It seems I fell into those same dumb but often inevitable traps myself, and this is where Adventureland does a fantastic job of re-creating the outlandish mind of the twenty-year-old not-so-Alpha male.

As dramatic as it sounds, Adventureland is also a very funny movie. Although I’ve already referred to this humor as subtle, that’s not always the case and there’s a fair share of the goofy slapstick that, ironically enough, made 80s flicks like Meatballs and Porky’s so popular. However, none of these moments are particularly offensive or outlandish, helping the film draw its viewers deeper into a paradoxically wholesome world where the only way to win a giant panda is to out-cheat the house, in which case the acne-laden booth boy loses his job. Adventureland’s duel slapstick goofiness and undertone dialogue are certainly helped by the fact that carnivals are the picture of absurdity.

Video

I watched this movie on DVD and despite the lack of a high-def was genuinely impressed with its visuals, which included a lot of bright night-time landscapes. Although I’ve been pretty disappointed by most comedies that have unnecessarily made their way to Blu-Ray or HD-DVD, Adventureland’s unique setting make this worth the upgrade.

Audio

Your feeling about this movie could be determined by how much you love or hate the song “Rock Me, Amadeus.” It’s one of the 15 more-or-less epic 80s schizo tunes that the Adventureland management uses over and over to the detriment of its visitors and employees, so if you despise the quirkiness of the decade’s anxious pop, then this might not be the movie for you. Seriously.

Special Features

The DVD is fairly light on special features, including just four deleted scenes (all deserving of their fate), a commentary, and a special “making of” vignette. The latter is actually quite entertaining and reveals the way in which writer and director Greg Mottola brought his own experiences on Coney Island in 1985 to the big screen in 2009. Still, the Special Features section of the DVD is certainly its most disappointing, and it leaves one feeling as if the creators forgot this was in fact the year 2009 and a viewer paying at least $19.99 for the disc deserves a bit more than just the film itself.

Overall, it’s hard not to recommend Aventureland, whose charm is inherently tied to its realism. Few other comedies, particularly those that rely this much on their characters, succeed in drawing the viewer in so much. I’ve never worked at a theme park, but Adventureland made me feel like I had. Perhaps that’s because it’s not specifically the place that is the adventure, but the time itself.

[Jon Liu]

Thanks for the review, Brando! I was interested in this film, but I guess it flew passed my radar in the theaters. I will have to put it in my netflix queue.

[Brando]

No problem. I didn't know what to expect from this one, but was pleasantly surprised. Not a lot of rolling on the ground laughing my butt off here, but it's simply a charming little flick. One of those few teen angst (or in this case, college angst) films that don't make you want to tear your eyes out -- which is a good thing in a movie, isn't it?

[thewire]

Nice review. The previews did not look good. I will try and rent this one and see how it goes.