Adventureland

Working when you're young's shit int it? Slaving away at some nothing job for amounts you could make rummaging under the sofa cushions isn't the way to spend your free time. Yet to buy that illicit booze or whatever substance you need to forget that you do a shit job that self same shit job is essential. But working in a funfair, that would be a cool way to spend your summer, right? Turns out no. It's just like any other shit job.

That's the central conceit of Adventureland. Instead of the setting being mined for endless jokes it's really just the place that brings the characters together. It could just as easily have been set in any workplace like a supermarket or a fast food place with some jokes needing changing, but that's all. But that's not the only dummy that Adventureland's pre-release hype sells you. If the trailer is to be believed it's an uproarious comedy from the people who brought you Superbad. Actually it's just that film's director Greg Mottola, who's also on writing duty here, and it's really more of a character based comic drama than out-and-out guffaw fest.

In fact for a comedy there aren't that many laugh out loud moments. Instead Mottola has created quite a gentle, leisurely little film. It has its moments, mainly thanks to Bill Hader and Kristen Wiig's funfair owners, but for the most part the laughs are pretty subtle. Adventureland instead chooses to focus on its story of of young love, hopes and dreams and how real life tends to get in the way. In that respect it's a film that'll ring true to anyone who ever made grand plans only to see them dashed.

It's hardly an original story then and sadly it's told with characters who are in the main kind of unlikeable. Of course the main reason for this is probably that they're all teenagers, with all the arrogance, idiocy and whining that tends to entail. So basically Mottola has written a pretty believable bunch. As for the actors portraying them there are some fine, even surprising turns. Jesse Eisenberg convinces as ambitious James. Ryan Reynolds as randy handy man who once jammed with Lou Reed (but doesn't seem to know Satellite of Love) Connell is equally so. Looks like when he's not playing opposite Sandra Bullock in will they-won't they (of course they will) Rom Coms there's a pretty decent comic actor in there. Kristen Stewart does something similar to what she did in Twilight, a broody, confused teen lass. The difference here is that instead of playing a badly written, horrendously calculated teen aspirational character who at once is world wise and confident, yet also shy, awkward and confused, here she's just the latter set. She's playing a realistically fucked up young woman and as a result her performance clicks. Whether Stewart is able to play anything else may be debatable but here she works. Best of all though is Martin Starr. Mottola's best move was recruiting his Freaks And Geeks alumni, and themore major roles he gets the better. Sadly he's destined to be typecast as "geeky friend".

Much of Adventureland works. The pacing may put many off, but given the subject matter, long, boring summer full of work and weed, it's a nice choice. Instead of trying to be gross-out it's actually quite a sweet little film. And its soundtrack is fantastic. A few more laughs, and a better use of the setting wouldn't have gone amiss but as it stands Adventureland isn't too bad a way to kill some time. It beats work anyway.