Cinema: Plenty to like in this coming-of-age drama

Cinema: Plenty to like in this coming-of-age drama

The coming-of-age tale is sometimes too easily dismissed by critics as a safe and unimaginative way out for filmmakers and audiences who are perhaps a little too comfortable with the cosy familiarity the genre offers. Predictability has its pitfalls, but a film that rises to the occasion without challenging convention can be just as rewarding as one that takes greater risks.

Take The Way, Way Back, for example.

Like others in the genre, it is laden with bittersweet moments for its young protagonist, but it also has an indie sensibility that lives up to its early promise. Written and directed by Nat Faxon and Jim Rash, it features a good script, a fine cast and a likable, easy-going charm that gives it a head-start over the competition. The first-time directors shared a screenwriting Oscar with Alexander Payne for The Descendants (2011) and in the hands of dialogue- driven filmmakers, capable actors usually have the opportunity to shine.

That proves to be the case with The Way, Way Back, which starts with a road trip and a memorable opening scene where 14-year-old Duncan (Liam James), sitting sulkily in the rear-facing seat of a station wagon, is being verbally crushed by his mother Pam's (Toni Collette) boyfriend Trent (Steve Carell).

Duncan is shy and socially awkward while Trent is a cruel and overbearing jerk - it's an uneven contest and also equally clear they will never be the best of friends.

They are destined for a vacation at Trent's holiday home in a summer community on the Massachusetts coast, where new friendships will be made and more than one relationship will be strained.

At first, Duncan is alienated and utterly miserable but he finds solace - and a part-time position - at a nearby water park, where the laid-back manager Owen (Sam Rockwell) takes the kid on as a restoration project.

Owen's carefree and frankly juvenile approach to life opens up a world of possibility for Duncan, whose job at the park and budding friendship with his teenage neighbour Suzanna (AnnaSophia Robb) adds to his growing self-esteem. Suzanna's booze-addled mom Betty (Allison Janney in a very funny supporting role) is an irresponsible sort who makes fun of her own son's lazy-eye condition and encourages unruly behaviour among grown-ups.

Chief among the culprits, of course, is Trent, but the needy Pam is desperate to overlook his various shortcomings, including his deplorable treatment of Duncan. The kid finds his own "family" in the water park's motley crew, and many of the movie's signature moments take place there.

The film moves along at an agreeable pace and the plot is punctuated by moments of both drama and humour. The Way, Way Back is unremarkable, except for the way it deftly bridges the divide between the adults' and kids' worlds. Just like our own memories of childhood, not everything may have been pleasant - but there is beauty in watching someone grow up before your very eyes.

Rating: B


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