If you’re looking for new movies on Amazon Prime Video, then you’re going to be very happy in August. For action fans, there’s Looper and Face/Off, or even The Lord of the Rings trilogy. All-time great Western Once Upon A Time In The West and a cult horror flick, From Beyond, are very enticing as well. Pulp Fiction, Fargo, and the original Superman films are also strong additions. But for us, the one Amazon Prime Video movie that you have to watch in August is Adventureland.
Greg Mottola wrote and directed Adventureland, and gave the film a lot of heart. It didn’t catch on at the box office, but it deserves a second look now that it’s on Prime Video. That’s why we’re sharing the five reasons you should watch Adventureland this month.
It’s an unconventional coming-of-age tale
Most coming-of-age stories tend to be about teenagers or children. James (Jesse Eisenberg) is neither a teen nor a child, but this is his coming of age as a post-college graduate. Because of his parents’ sudden shift in fortune, James’ plans to take a European vacation are ruined and he has to take a job at the local amusement park, Adventureland, in order to earn some money.
The summer that James spends at Adventureland appears to be a more formative experience for him than his four years at college. James also has to confront some hard truths about his parents and himself as he makes the same mistake that his father did … and he pays the price for it.
It has a very charming yet realistic love story
There isn’t love at first sight for James and Em Lewin (Kristen Stewart) in Adventureland, but their relationship is the heart of this movie. James and Em come together because they find that they have a lot in common with each other. But they also share some deep character flaws.
Em and James both make very big mistakes during the course of their romance that ultimately emotionally hurt each other. That adds more realism to their messy relationship and threatens to drive them apart. It’s easy to root for them as a couple, but it’s also apparent that they may not be able to salvage their love after choices they’ve made.
Kristen Stewart gives one of her best performances
It should be said that Eisenberg is very good in Adventureland, but Kristen Stewart is the MVP of the movie. Although Stewart is now a respected and Oscar-nominated performer, her role in Adventureland was coming out of her widely derided turn in Twilight. But Stewart put any doubts about her talent aside with her performance as Em Lewin.
Stewart gives Em an emotional vulnerability while projecting a cool-girl image to her co-workers. She also manages to keep the audience’s sympathy even after the reveal that she’s sleeping with Ryan Reynolds’ character, Mike Connell, while still seeing James. The movie reveals why Em is so conflicted, and more impressively, shows off the guilt she feels for her actions. Em’s a multi-faceted character, and Adventureland wouldn’t work without her.
The supporting cast is very funny
Reynolds has a smaller supporting role in the film, and he makes a good impression as Mike. He’s funny, but there’s also an undercurrent of desperation about Mike’s extramarital affairs that makes him seem pathetic. Saturday Night Live veterans Bill Hader and Kristen Wiig don’t get as much depth as Adventureland’s managers Bobby and Paulette, but they get a lot of laughs in their supporting turns. Bobby and Paulette are ridiculous at times, but they’re unaware of how they come off to others.
Martin Starr also has a co-starring role as Joel, one of James’ work friends at Adventureland. Starr doesn’t get quite as many jokes as Hader or Wiig, but he’s very amusing in his role. The film’s expanded cast also has more dramatic turns by Jack Gilpin and Wendie Malick as James’ parents, which deserve to be acknowledged as well. They’re just not giving broadly comedic performances like the others.
The ’80s theme park vibe is irresistible
Part of the charm of Adventureland is that it’s set in 1987, and that ’80s aesthetic and contemporary music go a long way toward enhancing the film. It’s also fun to see life from the perspective of the workers at Adventureland, which is a theme park that’s closer in spirit to a carnival than a Disney resort.
In fact, the workers have to do some very carny things to prevent the park’s guests from winning their obviously rigged games. That setup only makes it even funnier when those plans inevitably fall apart.
Watch Adventureland on Prime Video.
