Adventureland

Cast: Jesse Eigenman, Kelsey Ford, Kristen Stewart
Director: Greg Mottola

This movie now makes me wonder why Kristen Stewart ever agreed to star in Twilight, and seals Jesse Eigenberg's previous and future films for me.

Adventureland tells a story about James who works at a local amusement park to raise funds in order to live in New York and study in Columbia. The entirety of the film spans the entire summer, where his life is muddled with new friends, new problems and a new lover. It's an entertaining film where Jesse Eisenberg showers the audience with his pre-Social Network acting and where Kristen Stewart is an enjoyable actress in films between the Twilight saga series (I still have to catch Welcome to the Rileys and The Yellow Handkerchief). She really needs to get back to non-blockbuster films. She has more role variety and she's good in these sorts of films. Not to mention, she and Jesse Eisenberg have on-screen chemistry, more than what she has with Robert Pattinson (no offense).

Even fellow cast members have their own bits to the story, their own personalities that stand away from James' story. Take Bill Hadey and Kristin Wigg for example. They add their own eccentric mix to the film. Ryan Reynolds also does a good job in portraying the charming maintenance guy, even having a background story of playing with Lou Reed, thus him being legendary. This film even has its own hot girl in the form of amusement park crush, Lisa P. Basically, the cast is an mix of people who have different personalities that somehow make them click. At the end of the day, they all hang out together, whether they're a rides man or a games man.

Adventureland also uses a killer soundtrack, this would be one of my soundtrack albums to buy (if it were released here. Sadly, we have limited soundtracks on sale, usually blockbuster soundtracks only). It fitted the film perfectly. A good set of songs for a good film. I would make the soundtrack a staple in my car.

What I like about this film is that it's not forcing the audience to like it. It in itself is pleasant to watch. It's simple and light to watch. Easy to follow and the characters are not annoying. Killer soundtrack. Some memorable scenes. To be honest, I like their chemistry. I really do. It's a cute (for a lack of a better word) story. It's in a different setting (80's, I think) but it felt so modern even if it was retro). Everything was just casual, the plot doesn't look like it's forced to happen. This is the Kirsten Stewart film to watch, and my favorite Jesse Eisenberg film so far. This is a must watch for a chill day at home.