In addition to being well-respected comedy actors, Nat Faxon (Ben And Kate) and Jim Rash (Community) are writers of humour and pathos. Having won the Best Adapted Screenplay Oscar for Alexander Payne’s The Descendants, their ability to blend the hilarious with the heart-wrenching is again on display in their joint directorial debut.
Chronicling the summer vacation of Duncan (Liam James), a pale epitome of lonely, awkward teendom, the film covers well-worn ground. There’s a love interest (AnnaSophia Robb), an unlikely mentor in water-park attendant Sam Rockwell, a wildly inappropriate eccentric (Allison Janney) and even the ubiquitous dance-off.
But with sharp, emotionally astute writing and directorial grace, these tropes are elevated into brilliance. Never afraid to let James sit in painfully awkward silence, the directors capture the crushing isolation of a teen unable to express himself. The adults are portrayed as flawed, emotional messes – they’re just louder. Sam Rockwell has never been better as the gut-bustingly funny charmer Owen, whose rapid-fire one-liners and non-stop joking conceal a fear of intimacy. Playing Duncan’s meek mother, Toni Colette is gorgeous as a damaged woman who desperately wants her new relationship with Trent (Steve Carrell, brilliantly nasty) to work, but knows that her bad judgement may be hurting both her and her son.
The great performances compensate for the somewhat predictable emotional trajectory. However, it’s the comic writing that truly dazzles. Rockwell’s teasing, deadpan monologues are relentlessly hilarious, while Allison Janney kills with every shocking non-sequiter and chirpily offensive barb. A nice indie soundtrack rounds out a lovely portrayal of those summers when you finally grow up – no matter what age you are.