But the real heart of the movie lies in the chemistry between Jesse Eisenberg and Kristen Stewart. Eisenberg is like a less earnest, even more low-key Michael Cera, and he's impossible to dislike. Eisenberg is so winning that every time you see success within his grasp, right before it slips away, you feel every ounce of his pain. Specifically when it comes to his romance with Stewart. Unless you've been living in a cave, you know that Kristen Stewart was the star of the soul-deadening phenomenon that is Twilight, and both the character and her performance were as hollow as the entire film. Here, though, Stewart redeems herself with a coy sexiness and an irrepressible charm, particularly when acting opposite Ryan Reynolds. Both she and Reynolds are talented actors when given the right material, and if Adventureland proves anything, it's that they need to be given the right material more often.
But thankfully, Adventureland does prove more than that. It proves that, despite all of the samey comedies of late, it's still possible for there to be a breath of fresh air. More than any other Apatow or Apatow-esque movie, this one comes closest to replicating the feel of the short-lived TV series Freaks and Geeks, this movement's genesis and still its brightest hour. It's nearly as funny, insightful, and painfully honest as any episode of that show, which is about as strong a recommendation as I can give. When this starts playing on HBO, you're going to kick yourself for not having seen it sooner.
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