Movie Review: Adventureland

I never had a chance to see Adventureland in the theaters when it first came out, and I really didn't have much of a desire to. The movie looked like your standard dumb comedy featuring Ryan Reynolds and Bill Hader. Well, I've recently gotten a chance to see it on dvd, and it turns out the movie is nothing of the sort and those two actors actually play secondary characters.

Adventureland stars Kristen Stewart, best known for her role in Twilight and Jesse Eisenberg, whom I haven't seen in much of anything, honestly. Seeing as how I've never seen Twilight, both of these actors seemed pretty much unknown to me, and it helped me connect much more to their characters, instead of seeing them as actors. Not only that, but both of them do such a great job in their roles that it was hard not to be captivated.

The movie is mostly a love story, but it's told in such a way that it doesn't seem forced, it doesn't seem like that's all it's focusing on, and it makes the movie feel a whole lot more realistic. The movie takes place in 1987, and while I wasn't alive back then, I definitely get the sense that that's what the time was really like. Nothing seems overly idealistic, and it really makes the movie feel a lot more genuine.

All of the characters in the movie have such diverse personalities that it's hard not to identify with at least one of them. Not to mention all of the actors do a superb job of playing their roles. Although, admittedly, Ryan Reynolds felt a lot just like Ryan Reynolds, and he seemed a bit out of place surrounded by such a great unknown cast.

I'm not sure if it's all of the 80's music and fashion, but the movie itself feels like something that should have come out in the 80's. I can compare it to movies such as The Breakfast Club or Ferris Buller's Day Off in that it deals with teenage problems, but doesn't do it in an overbearing manner, and still ends up having a good sense of humor.

Overall, I really enjoyed Adventureland, I went in with low expectations and came out absolutely stunned by how great the movie was. I'm impressed by how much realism was put into the movie, and it feels like something that could happen in real life, with real people, instead of your standard sappy love story. I recommend this movie to anybody who feels like they've lost somebody, or anybody who has a good sense of humor. Or you know what... I just recommend this movie to anybody at all. If you haven't seen it, go see it.

I give Adventureland a 5 out of 5.