The movie follows a young man who has just graduated from college and moved home to discover that finding a job after school isn't as easy as it may seem and before long he settles into a summer job at the local amusement park; the aptly named 'Adventureland'. Right from the get go, there's no crazy premise or zany antics that lure you into the story. I think most people, even those still in school or who never went, can relate to the mediocrity life takes on when you have nothing new to look forward to and you hate your job. For me, that's a strike against the film because the last thing I need is to watch a slightly less real version of my own life play out in front of me.
Ok, so maybe the film will pick up once main character James begins his job working at the park. Hmm... Nope. Looks like this job sucks about as much as you'd guess. Oh hey! There's Kristen Stewart. Finally we'll be able to see her play a character who doesn't seem like they're one Lifetime original movie away from jumping into traffic. Wait, aw man, she's doing the same thing she does in every movie. That sucks. Well, she's sorta cute but boy is James smitten. Here comes Ryan Reynolds. He's funny. Bring on the laughs! What the fuck!? He's pretty much playing an average older dude who works with kids. I suppose that's better than his annoying character from Waiting but... I really want to laugh. Wow, this movie is a little too much like anyone's life without any of the fun stuff that would make it enticing as a movie. Oh well, maybe we'll get some chuckles as James tries to get with Kristen Stewart's Em. Wait, she only likes him as a friend. Shit that's too close to home. Wait... She's sleeping with the much older Ryan Reynolds? God that blows.
I'm hoping my point is coming across here. The movie has almost NO comedy in it whatsoever. I don't really know if this is a failing on the part of the script and director, or if it stems from the film being marketed as something it's not. And herein lies the main problem. If Adventureland had been marketed as a drama from word one, I think the fact it's so depressing would not come across as so egregiously offensive. But no. The trailer for this movie would have you believe that you're going to get a laugh a minute comedy about working at a slightly off-center amusement park. Then you go to the theatre and watch a crude reproduction of your aimless early-to-mid twenties as it assaults you with the crappiness that life often slips into. Who exactly needed a reminder of any of this? When all is said and done, Adventureland could be forgiven its sins and accepted as a drama were it not for the fact that it seems to fall prey to the same bait-and-switch it served up in the preview. I am referring here to the casting of Bill Hader and Kristen Wiig. These two have really been two of the funniest people to come out of Saturday Night Live in decades, and they're placed into this film to provide the surreal humor. The mistake of course is that juxtaposed with the sheer reality of the rest of the movie, both Wiig and Hader come off as overdone when they let loose some of the otherwise hilarious material they're presented with. It's a shame because in a movie that adhered closer to the outrageous comedy of its teen-angst predecessors, these characters would be infinitely more entertaining. As it stands, they serve simply as a reminder that you came to see a comedy and got served a steamy helping of melodrama.
All of this and more is why Adventureland is the perfect film to teach your selectively retarded friend the meaning of 'cocktease'. The film gets your hopes up with promises of wonderful laughs and then slaps you in the face for your belief in it. If it had just come clean from the beginning about what it truly was, maybe I wouldn't be so sour about my experience. As it stands I wonder if Adventureland ever knew that it was its own worst enemy. Either way, if you're going to see it know what you're getting into.
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