The Way Way Back (2013)

“It’s like Spring Break for adults.” – Susanna

Number of Times Seen – 1 (10 Oct 2013)

Brief Synopsis – A 14 year old boy struggles with finding his way through life when his mother takes him  to a resort town for the summer along with her new boyfriend and his daughter.

My Take on it –  I don’t know how to explain this in any other way, but right from the start this movie had a nostalgic feel to it.  Maybe it’s because the main character is sitting in “the gunners seat” of a station wagon from the 80’s (which I had the honor of doing many many times in my youth) or maybe it’s the feel of the 1980’s themed water park or perhaps it’s the 80’s music throughout.

The truth is, I actually believed that this movie took place in the 80’s until a character mentioned Google.  What’s funny about that is that the writers originally intended for the story to take place in the 80’s but due to their limited budget, they couldn’t do that.

The acting here is great.

Toni Collette, Sam Rockwell, Maya Rudolph, Allison Janney, Robb Corddy, Steve Carrell and especially newcomer Liam James are all amazing.  James seems to possibly have a bright future if he continues to act like this.

The story and dialogue were done is such a great way that I felt the urge to want to spend the summer with these characters.

I have always found it amazing how some comedic actors can completely transform themselves when doing serious work.  Steve Carrell does that here.  He is difficult to even recognize since he is so serious. A few examples of other actors who have successfully achieved this are Don Rickles in Casino (1995) and Robin Williams in Good Will Hunting (1997) although there are many who have succeeded by doing this.

This movie kinda reminded me of Adventureland (2009), which I think means that I should re-watch that one soon also.

Bottom Line -Excellent movie. Easy to identify with the main character and the movie also has a nostalgic aura to it. Highly recommended!

Rating – Oscar Worthy