Coming-of-age drama set in the summer of 1987 about a hapless college graduate who must take a depressing job at a local amusement park. Joyless period film from the director of Superbad was marketed as a comedy, but it’s actually quite serious in tone. Actor Jesse Eisenberg’s sad sack of a hero is clearly modeled after Michael Cera, only more irritating. You’ll want to smack him several times throughout the film. At least director Greg Mottola’s flawed film is filled with many honest moments, and he does makes good use of the period soundtrack.
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This movie is so underrated in my opinion. My shot thoughts on my “Buy, Rent, or Skip” page
When I first heard the title I thought this was a prequel to Zombieland. After seeing it I do know it was not intended to be. But in the end it could pass for it. Anyway… back to the present movie. Set in 1987, James (Jessie Eisenberg) is a recent college grad, whose post college plans are taking an awful turn. He can’t afford grad school, so instead James takes a job at a run down amusement park known as Adventureland. All in all it’s a simple plot. What I like about this the most that it’s not your typical rated R comedy. It has heart. The comedy department of the movie doesn’t try to hard either. It throws some jokes at you once in while. But it let’s the comedic elements flow through the relationships of the characters. The script and actors do such an excellent job. The script doesn’t give us any one dimensional characters, always at least two. The screenplay explores everything without shoving it down your throat. Even when the movie falls flat a bit the characters keep you in it. Good direction, excellent acting, great script, amazing soundtrack, some depth, touching and entertaining = … fantastic movie.
Sorry for the long comment… just wanted you to read a different view point.
Appreciate the thoughtful comment. I must admit I can barely remember the film other than the fact that I didn’t enjoy it. I might be willing to re-watch it sometime if it was on TV and I didn’t have any Blu-rays to watch.