I went to the Vic with Rob and Carrie (and later my brother and Sarah showed) for the Brew and View. “What is the Brew and View?” you may be asking, because I know I was when Rob and Carrie invited me (through Josh Elder, who is their roommate). Brew and View is a double feature presentation, this time around it was “Adventureland” and “I Love You, Man,” where you get to sit in a lounge-like atmosphere and drink booze while watching the flicks. They are sticklers to keep outside food and beverages out (even searching purses), but it’s a great atmosphere and a fun time.

Adventureland I had heard great things about, but found disappointing. It was American Pie set in 1987 and at a theme park, but with weed and drinking on top of a guy trying to get laid. Oh, and his best friend always hits him in the nuts. No, seriously. Other than that, it was 40+ minutes of this kid making out with girls or dirnking or smoking weed. There wasn’t really any kind of plot going on here, and the “conflict” was so lame that I always walked out – but I had to wait for “I Love You, Man”.

Maybe it’s because my 80s experience involved GI Joe and He-Man, but I couldn’t relate to this movie at all. Of course, I was like 6 years old in 1987….

There was a saving grace for this flick, and that was Bill Hader and Kristen Wiig, who were the hilarious couple that owned the place. Hader is quickly becoming one of my favorite supporting comedic actors, and he steals the show in this flick for me.

Seriously, you can avoid Adventureland – even if it’s on in the room. If there’s a beautiful person in the room with you, I recommend making out with them for 40+ minutes and let other people watch. It’ll be a better show, with less crappy and predictable drama, and if you charge them a ticket then you might make a quick buck.

###

“I Love You, Man” was a much better comedy, but also a more straight-forward one. I remember Paul Rudd back in Wet Hot American Summer (one of my favorite comedies of all time), and now he’s really started to stretch out his acting chops a bit. The plot is a little exaggerated – guy is in love and proposes to a girl, but realizes that he has no guy friends to be his best man. Why his gay brother couldn’t be his best man is beyond me, but I guess then there wouldn’t be a movie. So he starts “dating” men to see if they would be good best friends, and be his best man at his wedding.

Enter Jason Segel, bachelor and all around every man that’s so laid back and loves to party that he actually starts to shake the foundation of what Rudd’s character believes to be important – in some ways positively affecting his life, but also hurting his relationship with his fiancee. Here in lies the solution that Rudd has been looking for, as well as a new set of problems that didn’t exist previously. I won’t ruin the flick for you, but it’s a fun ride with a predictable ending – which doesn’t ruin the experience at all.

I guess the next flicks at the Brew and View are Wolverine and Monsters vs Aliens (which I have yet to see), so I’m excited to do this again in a few weeks!