Review of The Way Way Back (2013) by Brett C — 03 Sep 2014

Review In A Nutshell:

Directors and writers Nat Faxon and Jim Rash have proven to the world that they are a dynamite duo with their Oscar winning efforts in The Descendants. My expectations for this film were quite high as I enjoyed The Descendants quite a bit. The film thankfully met my expectations, and proved that they could handle both the writing and directing aspects of filmmaking.

The Way Way Back's plot is as typical as coming of age films get, the socially awkward teenager who goes to a new and uncomfortable place with his mother, her boyfriend, and her boyfriend's daughter. At first, I wasn't so much impressed with this film as it takes way too much time in establishing our protagonist, although his first conversation with his mother's boyfriend was one of the most memorable aspects of the film. It was understood from the get-go that this boy has social issues and it doesn't require 15 minutes to get it across to its audience, particularly in a coming of age film. Since The Way Way Back is the director's first film, that may be the core factor on why this film plays some of its scenes out too safe. The major scenes of the film are definitely predictable but the events that surround them are done in such an entertaining way. Simply watching the scenes between the protagonist and his mentor left me smiling all the way through, delivering humour in the atmosphere and subtle emotions in the character's facial and bodily actions. With such a large cast of characters, it would be highly tempting to spend some time outside our protagonist, but the film firmly holds its ground and explores only the feelings and reactions of our central character. The beauty of these scenes is the feeling of authenticity that clearly are based on real emotions from the writers themselves during the similar period in their lives.

To have big names like Steve Carell, Toni Collette, Sam Rockwell, Maya Rudolph, Amanda Peet, and Allison Janney is a director's dream; what is more impressive is that it is a debut film. All of these actors are on board with this debut film because of the critical success that these writer-directors had on The Descendants, and thankfully it payed off for all of them. Each actor in this film were fantastic to watch, but there were notable members like Sam Rockwell and Allison Janney; when they are on screen, they steal the scene making the other cast members feel irrelevant in the screen. Liam James as the film's protagonist is good in the role but though we are following him, he is rarely the one we watch on screen due to the colourful personalities of the characters around him.

The Way Way Back is a strong debut from partners Nat Faxon and Jim Rash. I am excited to find out what they would be delivering next, if it is at least as good as this one then they may end up as one of my favourite contemporary directors.