Went out to the movies last night with Andi and saw Adventureland. I was a bit reluctant to go since I still haven’t seen I Love You, Man and Monsters Vs. Aliens was playing at the same time in 3D. The only things in the trailer that excited me were the fact that it was written and directed by the same guy who did Superbad and it had Bill Hader and Ryan Reynolds in it.

To say the least, I was pleasantly surprised by this movie. The commercials focus on the quick funny bits and the success of Superbad to sell tickets, when in reality the movie is a down to earth love story about two kids who meet each other while working at a crappy amusement park.

Adventureland follows James Brennan (played by Jesse Eisenberg from The Squid And The Whale) at the lowest point in his life so far. His plans of a vacation backpacking across Europe and school the next year in New York are shattered when his father is demoted at his job resulting in a decreased salary. Because of this, his family moves back to their home town of Pittsburgh and James is forced to get a summer job. After not finding work anywhere, he is forced to check out Adventureland as a last resort. There James ends up meeting a few new friends (Martin Starr) and a girl who may just be the love of his life (Kristen Stewart: The little girl in Panic Room. We don’t believe in Twilight around here).

I loved the characters in this movie, they were very well acted and believable. The setting was great too: a run down amusement park in 1987. The crappy carnival games, the horrible park music and the lovely 80’s clothes really made you believe these guys were stuck in Pittsburgh so many years ago. The story was a tad predictable, but when you go to see a teenage drama flick, that’s what you should expect. luckily, Greg Mottola stuck a few good twists, turns and jokes in there to keep in interesting.

I didn’t mean to make this into a review, but there you have it. I totally recommend giving this movie a viewing. Its a fun, laid back film. Also: Bill Hader is awesome.

Director: John Lasseter
Writer: Dan Fogelman, Philip Loren, Kiel Murray
Producers: Darla K. Anderson

I won’t even beat around the bush, this will probably be a pretty biased review. I love everything Pixar. I pay to watch their movies without a second or third thought. What I’m trying to say is Pixar just doesn’t know how to fail me.

Cars follows rookie race car, not rookie race car driver, Lightning McQueen (voiced by Owen Wilson) and his personal journey from being a cocky jackass to a slightly more tolerable jackass. Cars doesn’t have the most intricate story but it’s one of Disney’s default moral tales – Inconsiderate asshole becomes lovable nice guy who has feelings for things.

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