The Way Way Back
Tags: dramatic, cute

Plot synopsis:
The Way Way Back begins with four people in a car Trent (Steve Carell) driving, his girlfriend Pam (Toni Collette), a divorced Mom, sitting beside him. Trent's teenage daughter Steph (Zoe Levin) lies across the backseat listening to music; Pam's son Duncan (Liam James) sits in the rear-facing seat in the trunk of the car, known as the way way back, hence the title of the movie.While Pam sleeps, Trent asks Duncan how he rates himself on a scale from 1-10. After some badgering by Trent, Duncan hesitantly replies a 6. Trent tells him he's a 3, and that he needs to put himself out there more.They arrive at Trent's beach house, and see their neighbor, Betty (Allison Janney), who seems to be a little boozy and needy. She is divorced and has three children: an older son, who is seen later in the movie selling marijuana to some of the parents, a teenage daughter, Susanna (AnnaSophia Robb), and a younger son (with a lazy eye) named Peter.They bring their things into the beach house with Betty following behind. Steph fetches her swimsuit to head to the beach. She comes downstairs, and Trent and Pam coerce Duncan to go down to the beach with her. Both kids don't want Duncan to go, but he goes to please his mother. He heads down to the beach, sitting a distance from Steph and her friends. Susanna is there with Steph, but she wants to read, while Steph and her whiney friends complain about things. Steph calls to her boyfriend Chad, complaining she wants to go in the water, and he doesn't seem to care. Steph takes off her clothes to get into her swimsuit. She sees Duncan just looking over to her, and she says, "Stop staring perv." Steph and her friends go into the water. They rudely tell Susanna to go in the water with them. Duncan then leaves.On the way back to the beach house, Duncan runs into Betty and Peter, and Betty begins telling Duncan that he and Peter need to have a playdate. Duncan says he needs to ask his mom and walks away. Duncan comes home and later, comes downstairs to find Trent's party-hearty friends Joan (Amanda Peet) and Kip (Rob Corddry) chatting with Trent and Pam. They all eat dinner together, and Duncan remains quiet and seems to be miserable. The next day, Duncan finds a small girls' bike in the garage, and takes a ride into the town.At the local pizzeria he sees Owen (Sam Rockwell) playing Pacman on an old machine. They talk for a bit until Owen has to leave because his lunch break is over.Duncan comes back to the beach house and finds that they are going on Joan and Kip's boat. Duncan is forced to wear a life jacket (the only one required to do so), and Betty and Susanna tag along. They come back and later, Duncan goes outside and talks to Susanna about how it sucks here. She turns to go back indoors, and Duncan says, "It looks like it's going to be a hot summer" and she says, "I thought we were done here."The next day, Duncan goes to the Water Wizz water park and sees Owen. Owen takes him around and takes him to get a rental bathing suit from Lewis (Jim Rash) and learns that Lewis doesn't like working there. They go up to the water slide and meet Roddy (Nat Faxon) who runs it. Owen calls him an artist because he makes girls hold and wait so he can look at their butts before they enter the water slides tube.Later, Duncan and Owen run into Caitlin (Maya Rudolph) and she asks Owen if he did his work. As Duncan leaves for the day on his bike, Owen drives up to him and offers him a ride home. They get going after Duncan's bike is put into the rear seat of the car, and he drops off Duncan at the beach house. Owen asks Duncan if he wants a job at the water park, and Duncan accepts. When she sees Owen depart, Duncan's mother, Pam, asks him who that was, and Duncan tells her he's his friend. She replies "A friend with a license?"The next day, Duncan reports for work at the water park. In his first scene at the water park, they see a group of people have taken cardboard and are break dancing on it. He is instructed by Owen to go over and to stop them. He turns off their music and attempts to pick up their cardboard. The guy dancing says that he can only take the cardboard if he shows them his moves. Duncan doesn't have any, but he tries some dance moves anyway. One girl from the crowd of onlookers shows up and teaches him some moves. They then flip him over and he spins on his head. He takes the cardboard, smiling brightly until he trips. Duncan is shown in a series of scenes, dancing with increasing levels of confidence. He then does what Roddy does at the top of the water slide, having the girls hold and wait so he can check them out.Duncan meets three boys who have been trying to pass each other on the water slide forever. No one has done this before. The three boys rush into the water slides tube at once and end up getting stuck and need someone to push them down.One rainy day he doesn't go to work. He stays at home and they all play the board game Candyland and end up getting into a huge fight over how strictly to apply the rules.The next day Duncan finds Owen setting up the chairs, and Duncan continues to work on his tasks. On the fourth of July, Betty hosts a clambake at the beach. At the clambake, Duncan observes Trent making out with Joan in the shadows next to the house.He returns to the table. We see Betty's oldest son passing out weed to the adults. Duncan walks on the beach with Susanna. They talk and watch the fireworks.Next day Susanna sees Duncan leave on the bike on his way to work, and she follows him to the water park. She is surprised that he works at the water park, Duncan having kept it a secret. When they meet up, he shows her around the water park. While talking to her, they are eyed by Owen and Roddy, who call Duncan over using the loudspeaker. They ask Duncan who the young woman is and why he doesn't "seal the deal" with her.He returns to Susanna, and Owen announces over the loud speaker "Duncan please return to your lady friend and let her know this conversation was entirely about her."That night, Duncan arrives back at the beach house and he notices that Trent's car isn't there. Pam, Steph and Duncan wait for a while and then eat dinner without him. Trent returns later that night and says he was stuck on the boat with Kip.The next day there is a party at a neighbor's house. Steph, Duncan and Susanna eat with the adults. Trent and Joan go out to dance. Pam overhears Kip telling Betty that the boat hasn't been working for a week, and needs help to fix it. Pam realizes that Trent's excuse was a lie, so she gets upset and walks away.Duncan gets up from the table and says, "He's sleeping with her! And you know it!" They get into an argument, and it gets a little physical.Later that night, Duncan sees Trent and Pam arguing. He goes down to the beach with Susanna. They talk about ghost crabs. He tries to kiss Susanna, but she leans back. Duncan is embarrassed and runs away from the beach.He sees Peter, who demands that Duncan take him wherever he's going. They go to a going away party for Lewis at the water park. As Lewis starts to make a speech, Roddy, Caitlin and Duncan surprise him by spraying him with water from water guns. A general water gun fight ensues.Duncan and Owen talk the next morning about Trent, and Duncan tells Owen about the time that he called him a 3. The next morning when Duncan arrives back at the beach house, he sees his mom packing, and he infers that he and his mother are leaving. But he is told they are all leaving together, which upsets him.As they are packing the car, Susanna comes over to say goodbye and kisses Duncan, and tells him that she was just taken by surprise the night before. Duncan sees Steph looking on, and says "Stop staring, perv."They get into the same seats in the car as at the beginning of the movie. They drive away and pass the water park. The song "Power Hungry Animals" plays. They stop at a gas station and Duncan hops out of the car and runs towards the water park. Pam and the others chase after him.Inside the water park Pam sees a noticeboard with a sign that says "Employee of the Month" and the photo is of Duncan. Duncan tells Owen he is going to pass him on the water slide. The two rush up the stairs to water slide, dive inside the tube, and Duncan comes out before Owen does. Duncan becomes the first person to ever pass someone on the water slide.We see that, despite his big plans for the future, Lewis is still working there.Owen talks to Pam and Trent. He tells Pam that she's got a hell of a kid in Duncan. Owen says Hi to Trent, saying, "I'm a good friend of 'the 3'". Duncan tells Pam he needs a minute with Owen before they leave, and Duncan and Owen say an emotional goodbye. They then all get into Trent's station wagon again.On the road all four passengers sit in silence, absorbed in their thoughts. After a few minutes Pam climbs over the seats and gets into the back with Duncan. They smile at each other. The movie closes.

Review: There are no big action scenes or special effects here, just really good writing with actors who can bring such a realistic story to life.The movie begins with the boy, Duncan, riding in a car with his family to his mother's boyfriend's beach house.
Of course, there are the usual complaints from critics about how it "doesn't break any new ground" as if it was a construction site, but to me it felt fresh and alive with real and relatable characters far removed from the stereotypes of most films in this genre.In the film, 14-year-old Duncan (Liam James) is a sullen, withdrawn adolescent whose shaky self-image is not helped by his divorced mother Pam's (Toni Collette) and her obnoxious boyfriend Trent (Steve Carell), or his snippy daughter Steph (Zoe Levin).
Lian James, a Vancouver actor, not only disappears into the role of Duncan, he is Duncan and his struggle to reconnect with the world he has been estranged from is so honest and painful that we identify with him and want to help him, in Langston Hughes words, "to break his shadow into a thousand lights of sun." As in many great films, The Way Way Back has laughter and tears in equal measure..
The cast is strong and in addition to the lead played by Liam James you have the likes of Steve Carell, Toni Collette and Sam Rockwell.The movie does occasionally get a little too "feel good", but that's a small drawback in what is otherwise a very enjoyable watch.
Like the blank-faced children queuing for the water chute during the superb Holding out For a Hero scene, it makes little sense for those who never sang along to Bonnie Tyler but tickles the funny bones of almost everyone over the age of 35.The Way Way Back is a gentle coming of age comedy about the world Duncan (Liam James) has been thrust into.
For anyone who couldn't wait to leave home and adolescence far behind and found exciting possibilities in their summer jobs, this is a film with enough references to make you smile and belly laugh in solidarity and complete understanding.At the centre of The Way Way Back is James' Duncan.
The film stars teen actor Liam James as 14 year-old Duncan who is an isolated teen who despises the idea of taking a summer vacation with his timid mother Pam, her arrogant boyfriend Trent, and Trent's narcissistic daughter Steph.
Other supporting turns that were no lazy river works were of Anna Sophia Robb as Susanna, Rob Corddry & Amanda Peet who we had fun with as Kip & Joan, and Maya Rudolph as water park manager Caitlin; and I would be remiss if I did not mention the standout, scene-stealing performance from Allison Janney as the wickedly-hilarious Betty.
the waterpark in the film is known as Water Wizz and Sam Rockwell plays Owen, the man-child mentor to Liam James' Duncan.
The writing and acting are such high quality that even though we are living in movie cliché-land, we still find ourselves caring about Duncan and Pam, laughing at Owen, and tossing tomatoes at Trent (Carell).Special recognition to Sam Rockwell.
This movie is well worth watching for its story alone, but Rockwell is what gives it that extra little push over the cliff.Playing lesser roles but just as fun to watch are Owen's band of misfit coworkers at "Water Wizz" (ya gotta love that hilarious name which, oddly enough, is the REAL name of the water park where this was filmed).
The story, as you've probably figured out by the IMDb summary, is about "Duncan", a 14-year-old boy who is subjected to an excruciating summer at the home of his mother's new boyfriend (played by The Office's Steve Carell, but in a role that makes you want to call child services on him).
My point is, in this movie when you don't really like the mother, the potential step father, the step sister, the neighbor--all the characters are playing in most respects negative roles to drive the plot, all of the burden falls on the protagonist, but, Duncan is a kid.
Thanks to some fun spirited supporting turns and an easy going charm The Descendants writing duo of Nat Faxon and Jim Rash's coming of age dramedy The Way Way Back is one of this year's most enjoyable and lovable films and one that will make you want to find the nearest water park.Despite The Way Way Back not being particularly original by any stretch of the imagination, there is a freshness and sincerity to Faxon and Rash's script that allows actors such as the ever great Sam Rockwell as charming man-child Owen and Alison Janney as the not so charming divorce' Betty to truly shine in roles that are some of the year's best written and best performed.
In concerns to the other performers in the film, Carell as an against type arrogant pig does well to subvert his usual characteristics and Collette is as solid as ever.The Way Way Back's major stumbling block is strangely Liam James as our 14 year old protagonist Duncan.
Jame's role was perhaps played to perfection but his sulky introverted teenager isn't exactly a barrel of laughs to be around and in some scenes it feels like his in need of a good old fashioned shake up and a reminder that your life is not that bad.
The film focuses on the extremely awkward and strangely enigmatic 14-year old Duncan (Liam James), who is caught right in the middle of a messy divorce, and is being forced to spend the summer with his mother, her new 'jerkish' boyfriend, Trent (Steve Carell) and her boyfriend's (older )teenage daughter.
James gives an awesome performance embodying an awkward teen that most viewers can relate to in one way or another, not to mention the supporting roles of Duncan's mother, Pam (played by Toni Colette), her boyfriend Trent, and Owen (Sam Rockwell) which emphasize the roles that adults play in a teen's life.
Written and directed the team of Nat Faxon and Jim Rash, who together won a best screenplay Oscar for "The Descendants," "The Way Way Back" is peopled with living characters, believably nuanced situations (with the exception of one somewhat awkward scene during a nighttime beach party) and smooth, seamless direction.
Rest assured, we'll being seeing more of these two Relative newcomer Liam James plays Duncan, a shy and awkward teen dragged by his mother, her new boyfriend and his teenage daughter to one of those boringly generic east coast beach communities to spend what is supposed to be an idyllic summer.
I can relate to the kid in this story.I think I must've set a record for low self esteem in my youth.The Duncan character from this film probably would have looked pretty good next to me.I wish I could have had a summer like Duncan did.I liked this film because it spoke to the kid I used to be.I only wish it had been made 30 years ago.Steve Carell plays a not so nice guy in very impressive fashion,but I was even more impressed with Sam Rockwell,who was perfect as the water park manager.The real star though is Liam James as Duncan.Thank you,Liam for channeling that shy,reclusive,kid I used to be and making him smile.I had a blast..
In "The Way Way Back," Nat Faxon and Jim Rash ("The Descendants") portray the "life-changing summer" in a sincere way, but they also capture the nostalgia and fairy tale-like qualities with which we often remember these times in our lives.It starts and ends with Duncan (Liam James).
Too many characters in independent films are written like Duncan, the socially challenged kid who discovers himself with the help of some quirky role models and a beautiful girl, but James actually looks and acts the part, compared to the many protagonists we usually see in these films.
He's quiet, closed off and doesn't stick up for himself, but he's more than the product of a the unlikable supporting characters jerking him around and most importantly, James is actually close to the same age as Duncan (a 16-year-old playing a 14-year-old), which so many coming-of-age characters aren't.Duncan is going for a long summer vacation to the Massachusetts shore with his mom (Toni Collette) and her serious boyfriend (Steve Carell), Trent, who tries to impose rules on him while taking shots at his self-confidence.
Rockwell's Owen is by no means a paragon of self-made success, but there's something about his attitude toward life and that of the other park employees played by Maya Rudolph, Rash and Faxon that's infectious.The family drama away from Duncan's chlorinated safe haven, on the other hand, can get heavy and real.
You see Steve Carell in the trailer making a few mildly funny comments and you think it will be a comedy (and the guy is in general truly a funny dude) but when you watch the movie, he's a total jerk.The plot is totally predictable, unrealistic, and the characters have little depth, and are overacted!
But the star of the movie is Sam Rockwell, as the carefree Water Park Manager, who brings life to the proceedings and makes you fall in love with his careless attitude.I am going with 4 out of 5 for THE WAY WAY BACK.
Be sure to check out my reviews and other entertainment news on themovieboy77.comThe Way, Way Back is a coming-of-age Comedy-Drama about Duncan, played by Liam James, who has to deal with his mothers over-bearing boyfriend Trent (played by Steve Carell, who's never been better), while on summer vacation at Trent's summer home with his mom and Trent's daughter.
The boy deals with his mistreatment by going to a water park, without anyones knowing, where he befriends the water parks slacking manager Owen (played by a scene stealing Sam Rockwell), who ends up giving him a job.This was my most anticipated movie of the summer.
14-year-old Duncan (Liam James) is forced to join by his mother (Toni Collette), who wants to spend time with her new love (Steve Carell).
With songs like "Can't Fight This Feeling as background," it's low-key lyrical, unassuming and watchable.It's a long journey in a short summer that takes off when brooding Duncan joins the circus, so to speak, rather the Water Wiz Park, where impresario Owen (a superb Sam Rockwell doing his brash "I'll do it my way" persona to perfection) clowns and generally keeps all ages happy with his comical but hip patter and big heart.
Simply put, it's about the summer Duncan, (a terrific, star-making performance from Liam James), spends with his mother, (Toni Collette, brilliant), and sister at the summer house of his mom's new boyfriend, (a superbly slimy Steve Carell), and naturally this is the summer he grows up, falls for the girl next door (a lovely AnnaSophia Robb), and makes a new friend and something of a surrogate father in Sam Rockwell's Water World manager.
First there is the courage of the casting with the pretty much unknown Liam James starring in a movie where Steve Carell is not a comedian, but a macho douchebag and Sam Rockwell in an important, yet secondary role, while Amanda Peet and AnnaSophia Robb are playing really small roles.
It's that kind of stuff that makes the movie so relatable.The film does a nice job of seeming like it could be set in any beach town, in almost any time in the last 40 years.
Duncan is shy and doesn't really fit in with anyone else, until he meets a friend called Owen, who works at a water park.There is a lot of character development in this film, we see relationships building up, crossing over with each other and also some failing.
Written and directed by Nat Faxon and Jim Rash, they previously worked on The Descendant, but this time they got chance also to direct a film together.The story is about a 14-year old boy going to a summer house with his mother and her jerk boyfriend and bitch daughter of the boyfriend.
Steve Carrel, this is definitely something new in his career, a total mean and selfish person and he does this role very well; Toni Collette, what a sexy woman and talented actress, I don't understand why she doesn't get bigger roles in feature films; Allison Janney, WONDERFUL, she's absolutely great in this film, very sexy and funny – I loved her so much; Sam Rockwell, I don't know what is about him, he's always funny and charming in this kind of roles, and at the same time not being repetitive, he's such a underrated and unique actor; AnnaSophia Robb, my god, with the beauty she has, she must get a lot of offers in the future , but I seriously hope she makes the right decisions because in my opinion she's got a talent to be a real star; and finally Liam James, I think he's done a great job, I'm very jealous honestly, because working with such a talented cast like this is the biggest learning experience for a new starter.
However I have a few problems, one would be the relationship between Sam Rockwell and Maya Rudalph, it doesn't have a chemistry to make any impacts to the story, and another one is Rob Corddry's character, he's a very funny actor but nothing would have been changed without him, which I feel like his role could do more in the third act, but I can be wrong.
The Way Way Back (2013)*** 1/2 (out of 4) Charming coming-of-age drama about the 12-year-old Duncan (Liam James) who can't seem to fit in with anyone and especially his mother's new boyfriend (Steve Carell).
While Janey makes her marks with an over-the-top flamboyance, Robb is quiet, using her face and her body to communicate volumes.Steve Carell shows he's capable of playing an ordinary person, after so many off-beat (to be kind) performances ("The Office", "40 Year Old Virgin", "Dinner for Schmucks"), and the rest of the cast (Amanda Peet, Toni Collette, Sam Rockwell, Maya Rudolph) all do well.The "coming of age" theme might have been better developed had it focused a little more on the other changes (Rockwell's decision to be more grown up, Collette's decision to put her son's needs ahead of her boyfriend), instead of the blossoming of Liam James, the 14 year old star of the film.
A little nip and tuck here and there and this could have been a much better film, and this is often a problem when the actors, writers and the directors share the same pair of pants - Nat Faxon and Jim Rash.Bottom line – an enjoyable "coming of age" story that you can take your kids to..
Each character in this movie was ingenious - from the socially-awkward protagonist, Duncan, or to the water park employee, Louis, who brings laughs every time he appears on screen despite his extremely minor role.
Steve Carell was very convincing playing a total jerk and Sam Rockwell was great fun as the slacker owner of the water park.But if you're looking for anything approximating real life, you've definitely come to the wrong film..
Director debut from Oscar-winning writer-duo Nat Faxon and Jim Rash (THE DESCENDANTS 2011, 8/10), a diffident but sensitive 14-year-old boy Duncan (James) unwillingly spends the summer vacation with his mother Pam (Collette) and her new boyfriend Trent (Carell) in a beach house where he cannot fit in and is constantly under strains with the domineering Trent, coincidentally he forms a bond with Owen (Rockwell), a happy-go-lucky clerk in the local water land "Water Whizz", after clandestinely takes a part-time job there, Duncan experiences the time of his life and the dreary summer does't seem to be so unbearable.
Within one of these lives Duncan (Liam James), a reclusive youth struggling to find a connection with his peers, while accompanying his mother Pam (Toni Collette) and her rigid, at times bullish, boyfriend Trent (Steve Carell) to a small beach-front summer house.
Very little change happens for the main character which disappointed me, Duncan may make new friends and experiences, but when he leaves the summer home at the end he does not seem too different from the man he was at the beginning, there was not enough of a transformation, which people like to see in movies.
The filmmakers, Nat Faxon and Jim Rash (along with Alexander Payne) wrote the beautiful and pensive screenplay for "The Descendants" and perhaps it's too much to ask for a comparable effort in their directorial debut, when the slight story--about the coming of age of a fourteen year-old product of a broken home (Liam James) on a summer trip with his mother (Toni Collette) and her bullying boyfriend (Steve Carell)--will seem familiar to many viewers.
With a title that will confuse many, this film has it's work cut out from the get go.Shy fourteen year old "Duncan" (Liam James) accompanies his divorced mum "Pam" (Toni Collette), her new boyfriend "Trent" and his teenage daughter "Steph" (Zoe Levin) on a summer holiday to Trent's beach house in Massachusetts.Sitting at the very back of the old station-wagon, hence the title, Duncan knows this is not going to go well and he will not be disappointed.
Stumbling across a local water-park employee "Owen" (Sam Rockwell) playing "Pacman", the two form a bond which enables Duncan to work casually at the water-park and fill his days.This is a classic coming of age story and James fits the bill very well, acting just like a shy fourteen year old, all elbows, bad dancing and hopeless "chit chat" with Betty's pretty daughter.With a cast this good, you would expect the acting to be of a high standard, Carrell playing against type makes an unlike-able character, thoroughly unlike-able.
The Way Way Back gets my respects and I definitely recommend this movie.Fourteen year old Duncan (Liam James) is a shy and lonely kid who is being forced by his mom, Pam (Toni Collette) to travel with her to her boyfriend's beach house for the summer.