The Way Way Back

                                                                     

      Growing up is so hard to do. As adults we look at teenagers and wish we had their life again, one of which there is little to no responsibilities. Meanwhile those same teenagers envy adult’s lives of being able to have the freedom to do what they want. Now wouldn't the perfect life lie somewhere between those two existences? Now “The Way, Way Back” does not try to answer such a deep question as the one I posted above, but it does try and convey the difficulties of a kid growing up after a divorce.

      Now I know you are saying, “This doesn't sound like a fun movie at all.”  Although the subject matter does not sound appealing, there is plenty good to make this worth a view. Duncan (Liam James) is your typical awkward kid. Lucky for him his mother Pam (Toni Collette) is taking him to the beach for the summer with her boyfriend Trent (Steve Carell) and his daughter. Duncan does not want to go, even if it is the beach, he would rather spend the summer with his father. Once he arrives he wants to escape and finds himself at a water park. That water park’s manger Owen (Sam Rockwell) takes a liking to Duncan and even offers him a job for the summer. At the park Duncan assumes the name “Pop N Lock” and turns what he thought would be a summer to forget to one he will always remember.

     “The Way, Way Back” has a lot of things working in its favor. Things like being written and directed by Nat Faxon and Jim Rash who brought us “The Descendants”. The other things it has working for it is Steve Carell in a smaller role. Now don’t get me wrong, I like Carell, I just like him more in roles like this, which I think makes him more likable  although his character in this movie is not that at all. Rockwell though is the guy you want to hang out with and maybe even date, just not settle down with. He is fun and tells jokes that no one else gets or gets it way after the fact. The movie feels like it takes place back in the past, with only a few things to remind you that it is set in modern times. That is part of the appeal of the movie, because the story in timeless and could have taken place at any point in the last thirty years. “The Way, Way Back” is not one of those movies where you want to watch it multiple times. Instead it is one of those movies you want to watch once, because that is all you need to see of it. This is a story told many times over, but “The Way, Way, Back” still finds a way to put a fresh take on an age old story.

Brian Taylor