A few words about...™ Adventureland -- in Blu-ray

Greg Mottola's (Superbad) Adventureland from Miramax (Disney) is a relatively sweet tale of growing up in the mid-'80s, which is quite unlike the way that it was represented in TV advertising.  This isn't necessarily a bad thing, as the story, while not terribly deep, does allow for some good performances, most notably from a very low key Jesse Eisenberg (The Squid and the Whale), and an equally low key Kristen Stewart (Panic Room).

Adventureland looks just fine on Blu-ray.  It should, as it's derived from a 2k DI, and is presented with audio in DTS HD format, which probably isn't necessary for the film.

What I found odd, and strangely disturbing, is what some may perceive as a bit of potentially false advertising.

Many R rated films are released to home video in "unrated" versions.  In most cases they contain virtually nothing that would up their rating.  They simply have not been reviewed by the MPAA, making them "unrated."  Understand, that if Disney decided to make a small change in Bambi, and decided to bypass the MPAA, that it too would be "unrated."

Emblazoned on front cover in large type, is the word UNRATED.

Whatever, one might ponder, has been added?

The answer is nothing, as the UNRATED nomenclature refers, as it does on virtually every other home video release, to Bonus Features.  Just below the UNRATED verbiage are two additional words -- Bonus features.  As an aside, there is little within the "bonus feature" category that needs one's attention.  Bonus features, which started their existence as still frame galleries and commentary tracks, along with other items of interest on early Criterion laser discs, have reached a point at which during production, time and dollars are spent on what can be added to the DVD as bonus material.

It's time that an important point was understood.  

Not every film needs, or merits, bonus material.  Adventureland is one of them.

As noted above, Adventureland is a sweet little film that looks just fine on Blu-ray, and is worth a rental.

RAH

Edited by Robert Harris - 9/7/09 at 5:11pm

As children of the 80's, my wife and I really enjoyed this one. They really nailed the period much like "The Wedding Singer" did as far as clothing, the look and detail, and of course the tunes. The Master Audio track didn't do much for us although the songs came alive when needed. And Bill Hader is a riot.

I watched it but didn't "get it".

This one was such a pleasant surprise that I watched it from Netflix, returned it and promptly bought the BD.

It's one of my favorite films of the year. 

 I thought the kid was too clueless for a college grad, maybe a junior college. and the girl's musical taste was too perfect - Replacements, Bowie, Big Star, Bauhaus... nothing too obscure for that era, she was too cool to be believed

That's true for most period pieces though. If someone makes a movie set in the 1960's, the characters usually listen to something that has stood the test of time rather than some song that is lame, forgotten or obscure.

Exactly.  The "too cool to be believed" criticisms (I've seen them in similar movies) seems to forget the fact that they are watching fictional movies meant to reflect the period, not documentaries.

Me, too!  I just rented it from Netflix and enjoyed it quite a bit.  I was in college in the mid 80s and remember a lot of the music, etc.  I'll be buying this one as soon as I can find it fairly cheap.

documentaries are even worse when it comes to music. go for the easy tune.