The Way, Way Back
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''The Way, Way Back'' is a 2013 American
coming-of-age Coming of age is a young person's transition from being a child to being an adult. The specific age at which this transition takes place varies between societies, as does the nature of the change. It can be a simple legal convention or can ...
comedy-drama Comedy drama, also known by the portmanteau ''dramedy'', is a genre of dramatic works that combines elements of comedy and drama. The modern, scripted-television examples tend to have more humorous bits than simple comic relief seen in a typical ...
film written and directed by
Nat Faxon Nathaniel Faxon (born October 11, 1975) is an American actor, comedian, director, and screenwriter. A frequent presence on comedic films and TV series, he won the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay for co-writing ''The Descendants'' (2011) ...
and
Jim Rash James Rash (born July 15, 1971) is an American actor, comedian, and filmmaker. He portrayed the role of Dean Craig Pelton on the NBC sitcom ''Community'' (2009–2015), for which he was nominated for the Critics' Choice Television Award for Bes ...
in their directorial debuts. It stars
Liam James Liam James (born August 7, 1996) is a Canadian actor, known for his role as Noah Curtis in the 2009 film ''2012 (film), 2012'', List of Psych characters#Young Shawn, young Shawn Spencer on the USA Network television series ''Psych'', and the lead ...
as Duncan, an introverted 14-year-old who goes on summer vacation to
Wareham, Massachusetts Wareham ( ) is a town in Plymouth County, Massachusetts, United States. As of the 2020 census, the town had a population of 23,303. History Wareham was first settled in 1678 by Europeans as part of the towns of Plymouth, Massachusetts, Plymouth ...
with his mother and her overbearing boyfriend. It also stars
Steve Carell Steven John Carell (; born August 16, 1962) is an American actor and comedian. He played Michael Scott (The Office), Michael Scott in ''The Office (American TV series), The Office'' (2005–2011; 2013), NBC’s adaptation of the The Office (B ...
,
Toni Collette Toni Collette Galafassi (born Toni Collett; 1 November 1972) is an Australian actress, producer, singer, and songwriter. Known for her work in television and independent films, she has received various accolades throughout her career, includ ...
,
Allison Janney Allison Brooks Janney (born November 19, 1959) is an American actress. In a career spanning three decades, she is known for her performances across multiple genres of screen and stage. Janney has received various accolades, including an Academ ...
,
AnnaSophia Robb AnnaSophia Robb (born December 8, 1993) is an American actress, model, and singer. She began as a child actress on television, making her leading debut as the titular role in '' Samantha: An American Girl Holiday'' (2004). She made her feature ...
,
Sam Rockwell Sam Rockwell (born November 5, 1968) is an American actor. He is known for appearing in independent films and also as a character actor portraying a wide variety of roles both comedic and dramatic in films such as '' Lawn Dogs'' (199 ...
, and
Maya Rudolph Maya Rudolph (born July 27, 1972) is an American actress, comedian, and singer. In 2000, she became a cast member on the NBC sketch comedy show ''Saturday Night Live'' (''SNL''), and later played supporting roles in the films '' 50 First Dates'' ...
, with
Rob Corddry Robert William Corddry (born February 4, 1971) is an American actor and comedian. He is known for his work as a correspondent on ''The Daily Show with Jon Stewart'' (2002–2006) and for his starring role in the film ''Hot Tub Time Machine''. He ...
,
Amanda Peet Amanda Peet (born January 11, 1972) is an American actress. She began her career with small parts on television, and made her feature film debut in ''Animal Room'' (1995). Her portrayal of Jill St. Claire in ''The Whole Nine Yards'' (2000) broug ...
, Faxon, and Rash in supporting roles. Faxon and Rash conceived the film in the early 2000s; however, it spent several years in
development hell Development hell, development purgatory, and development limbo are media and software industry jargon for a project, concept, or idea that remains in development for an especially long time, often moving between different crews, scripts, game engi ...
before funding could be secured. Eventually,
Fox Searchlight Pictures Searchlight Pictures, Inc. is an American film production company and a subsidiary of Walt Disney Studios, which is part of the Walt Disney Company. Founded in 1994 as Fox Searchlight Pictures, Inc. for 20th Century Fox (later 20th Century St ...
(the same studio which distributed other independent films such as ''
Little Miss Sunshine ''Little Miss Sunshine'' is a 2006 American tragicomedy road film and the feature film directorial debut of the husband–wife team of Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris. The screenplay was written by first-time writer Michael Arndt. The film sta ...
'' and ''
Juno Juno commonly refers to: *Juno (mythology), the Roman goddess of marriage and queen of the gods *Juno (film), ''Juno'' (film), 2007 Juno may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Fictional characters *Juno, in the film ''Jenny, Juno'' *Ju ...
'') agreed to distribute the film. Filming lasted several months during summer 2012. It premiered at the 2013 Sundance Film Festival, and had a wider release on July 5, 2013, where it received positive reviews and was a box office success, grossing $26.9 million against its $5 million budget.


Plot

Introverted 14-year-old Duncan from
Albany, New York Albany ( ) is the capital of the U.S. state of New York, also the seat and largest city of Albany County. Albany is on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River, and about north of New York City ...
, reluctantly goes on summer vacation to a beach house in a small seaside town near
Cape Cod, Massachusetts Cape Cod is a peninsula extending into the Atlantic Ocean from the southeastern corner of mainland Massachusetts, in the northeastern United States. Its historic, maritime character and ample beaches attract heavy tourism during the summer mont ...
, with his mother, Pam; her wealthy boyfriend, Trent; and Trent's arrogant daughter, Steph. Trent emotionally belittles Duncan, frequently making comments and gestures that are condescending and rude to him. Steph follows suit in attitude towards him and is spoiled by Trent. On the way to the beach house, Trent asks Duncan to rate himself on a scale of one to ten; Duncan rates himself a six while Trent tells him he thinks Duncan is a three. They arrive at the beach house and are greeted by the neighbors: the gregarious, hard-drinking Betty, her children Susanna and Peter, and married couple Kip and Joan. Later that evening, Duncan and Susanna have an awkward conversation from their adjacent porches. Duncan discovers a small girl's bicycle in the garage of the beach house and uses it to begin exploring the town. At a pizza restaurant, he runs into the staff of
Water Wizz Water Wizz, touted as "Cape Cod's only water park", is a family-owned water park located in East Wareham, Massachusetts and attracting about 100,000 visitors yearly. This park is not to be confused with Water Wizz in Westerly, Rhode Island, as t ...
, the local
water park A water park (or waterpark, water world) is an amusement park that features water play areas such as swimming pools, water slides, splash pads, water playgrounds, and lazy rivers, as well as areas for floating, bathing, swimming, and other baref ...
. He meets Owen, who is playing ''
Pac-Man originally called ''Puck Man'' in Japan, is a 1980 maze action video game developed and released by Namco for arcades. In North America, the game was released by Midway Manufacturing as part of its licensing agreement with Namco America. Th ...
'', and eventually Owen takes Duncan under his wing and shows him around the park. Duncan meets the park's colorful, rag-tag group of employees: Caitlin, Lewis, and Roddy. Several youths at the water park speak reverently of a legendary pass in the tube slide, wondering how it could have been done. Owen hires Duncan for odd jobs at Water Wizz. Outside the park, Duncan is continually neglected by his mother, Pam, who indulges in drinking, staying out at night, and smoking
marijuana Cannabis, also known as marijuana among other names, is a psychoactive drug from the cannabis plant. Native to Central or South Asia, the cannabis plant has been used as a drug for both recreational and entheogenic purposes and in various tra ...
with other adult vacationers. At a
Fourth of July Independence Day (colloquially the Fourth of July) is a federal holiday in the United States commemorating the Declaration of Independence, which was ratified by the Second Continental Congress on July 4, 1776, establishing the United States ...
cookout, Susanna sees that he is upset about this and invites him to go hunting for
ghost crab Ghost crabs are semiterrestrial crabs of the subfamily Ocypodinae. They are common shore crabs in tropical and subtropical regions throughout the world, inhabiting deep burrows in the intertidal zone. They are generalist scavengers and predators ...
s with her and Peter, where she talks about her absent father and helps Duncan open up. Later that night, Duncan witnesses Trent and Joan kissing by the side of the house, but does not reveal what he saw. Pam begins to suspect Trent and Joan are having an affair, but Trent convinces her nothing is going on. Later, Duncan confronts Pam in front of friends and neighbors and tells her to face up to Trent's affair and get rid of him. Trent interjects, and Duncan insults and shoves him; Trent indignantly tells Duncan his divorced father does not want him. Duncan stalks away. Susanna follows him and comforts Duncan out on the beach. Duncan attempts to kiss Susanna, but she moves away, which makes him become even more upset. Accompanied by Peter, Duncan sneaks away to Water Wizz where Owen is throwing a going-away party for Lewis. After spending all night with his friends at Water Wizz, Duncan is still at the park the next morning, refusing to leave. When Owen confronts him, Duncan opens up about his relationship with Trent and how the water park is the only place where he feels happy and accepted. Owen sympathizes with Duncan, recalling his upbringing where he was forced to abide to strict rules and patterns. He advises Duncan to disregard Trent's criticisms and go his own way. When Duncan returns to the beach house, Pam tells him they are leaving with Trent and Steph. Betty and her kids arrive to say their goodbyes. Susanna finally kisses Duncan. When Trent stops for gas on their way out of town, Duncan jumps out of the station wagon and runs to Water Wizz, followed by his mother, then Trent and Steph. Duncan tells Owen and the other employees that he has to leave and tells Owen to follow him. He takes Owen to the Devil's Peak slide, and Duncan becomes the first person to ever pass someone in the water slide while the rest of the park watches. After finally introducing Owen to his mother, Duncan says goodbye to everyone at the park. Owen tells Pam of Duncan’s good nature, and introduces himself to Trent as "a good friend of the three". Trent then attempts to bypass Owen in order to bring Duncan back to the car, but Owen blocks him and Trent retreats. Duncan hugs and thanks Owen "for everything." Trent, Steph, Pam and Duncan regroup in the car, where Pam finally stands up for herself as they head out of town. Pam climbs to the “way way back” of the car where Duncan is sitting, and they share a smile as Trent's protests are heard in the background.


Cast


Reception


Box office

The film had its premiere screening at the 2013
Sundance Film Festival The Sundance Film Festival (formerly Utah/US Film Festival, then US Film and Video Festival) is an annual film festival organized by the Sundance Institute. It is the largest independent film festival in the United States, with more than 46,66 ...
. It was one of the most financially successful films to come out of the festival that year, outperforming well-known entries and Oscar-nominated films from the previous year. It was released on July 5, 2013 in 19 theaters and surpassed box office expectations, averaging an impressive $30,263 per screen and grossing $525,000 for the weekend. On July 15, 2013, it was added to an additional 60 theaters and grossed $1,110,000. It ended up earning $21,506,546 in North America and $4,968,374 elsewhere, for a total of $26,474,920.


Critical response

''The Way, Way Back'' received positive reviews. On
Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...
it has a rating of 83% based on 185 reviews, with an average score of 7.30/10. The website's critical consensus states, "Despite its familiar themes, ''The Way Way Back'' makes use of its talented cast, finely tuned script, and an abundance of charm to deliver a funny and satisfying coming-of-age story". On
Metacritic Metacritic is a website that review aggregator, aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted arithmetic mean, weighted average). M ...
the film has a weighted average score of 68 out of 100 based on 41 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews". Inkoo Kang of ''
The Village Voice ''The Village Voice'' is an American news and culture paper, known for being the country's first alternative newsweekly. Founded in 1955 by Dan Wolf, Ed Fancher, John Wilcock, and Norman Mailer, the ''Voice'' began as a platform for the crea ...
'' called the film "a crowd-pleasing summer treat, predictable in its sweetness but satisfying all the same".
BBC Radio 5 Live BBC Radio 5 Live is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC that broadcasts mainly news, sport, discussion, interviews and phone-ins. It is the principal BBC radio station covering sport in the United Kingdom, broadcast ...
film critic
Mark Kermode Mark James Patrick Kermode (, ; ; born 2 July 1963) is an English film critic, musician, radio presenter, television presenter and podcaster. He is the chief film critic for ''The Observer'', contributes to the magazine ''Sight & Sound'', prese ...
praised the performances of
Sam Rockwell Sam Rockwell (born November 5, 1968) is an American actor. He is known for appearing in independent films and also as a character actor portraying a wide variety of roles both comedic and dramatic in films such as '' Lawn Dogs'' (199 ...
,
Toni Collette Toni Collette Galafassi (born Toni Collett; 1 November 1972) is an Australian actress, producer, singer, and songwriter. Known for her work in television and independent films, she has received various accolades throughout her career, includ ...
,
Allison Janney Allison Brooks Janney (born November 19, 1959) is an American actress. In a career spanning three decades, she is known for her performances across multiple genres of screen and stage. Janney has received various accolades, including an Academ ...
and
Maya Rudolph Maya Rudolph (born July 27, 1972) is an American actress, comedian, and singer. In 2000, she became a cast member on the NBC sketch comedy show ''Saturday Night Live'' (''SNL''), and later played supporting roles in the films '' 50 First Dates'' ...
and similarly reasoned that whilst "it's not world-changing, or earth-shattering" the film is "really sweet and funny". David Gritten of ''
The Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a national British daily broadsheet newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed across the United Kingdom and internationally. It was fo ...
'' also praised the scene-stealing performances of Janney and Rockwell, concluding that despite a flood of similar coming-of-age films released in 2013 the film "feels warm, funny—and even fresh". Catherine Shoard of ''
The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'' gave the film a positive review, concluding that "for all the longueurs, there are still enough moments of near brilliance to sustain you through the trip". Betsy Sharkey of the ''
Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...
'' commended the film's quirky dialogue and cast performances, calling the film "witty, heartwarming, hopeful, sentimental, searing and relatable". Sam Rockwell's performance was met with critical praise, with many critics agreeing that his performance was deserving of an
Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...
nomination. MaryAnn Johanson of ''Flick Filosopher'' said that Rockwell "makes the biggest splash with a sizzling supporting performance. Not only is he naturally funny, but he has the great ability to make every sharp line of dialogue sound freshly improvised." A.A. Dowd of ''
The A.V. Club ''The A.V. Club'' is an American online newspaper and entertainment website featuring reviews, interviews, and other articles that examine films, music, television, books, games, and other elements of pop-culture media. ''The A.V. Club'' was cre ...
'' gave the film a C+, describing it as "generically constructed" and "never as refreshing as it's constantly straining to be".


Accolades


Soundtrack

Heather Phares of
AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...
gave the film's soundtrack 7 out of 10 stars, saying: # "For the Time Being" –
Edie Brickell Edie Arlisa Brickell (born March 10, 1966) is an American singer-songwriter widely known for 1988's ''Shooting Rubberbands at the Stars'', the debut album by Edie Brickell & New Bohemians, which went to No. 4 on the ''Billboard'' albums chart. ...
/The Gaddabouts # "
Kyrie Kyrie, a transliteration of Greek , vocative case of (''Kyrios''), is a common name of an important prayer of Christian liturgy, also called the Kyrie eleison ( ; ). In the Bible The prayer, "Kyrie, eleison," "Lord, have mercy" derives fr ...
" – Mr. Mister # "Out the Door" – Ben Kweller # "Come and See" –
Young Galaxy Young Galaxy is a Canadian indie pop/dream pop band formed in 2005 in Vancouver, whose members are husband and wife, Stephen Ramsay and Catherine McCandless. History Young Galaxy formed in Vancouver as a duo including Stephen Ramsay and Catherine ...
# "Running Wild" – Army Navy # "Young Blood" –
UFO An unidentified flying object (UFO), more recently renamed by US officials as a UAP (unidentified aerial phenomenon), is any perceived aerial phenomenon that cannot be immediately identified or explained. On investigation, most UFOs are id ...
# "Shine" – Wild Belle # "
New Sensation "New Sensation" is a song by Australian rock group INXS. It was the third single released from their 1987 album, ''Kick''. The music was composed by Andrew Farriss and the lyrics were written by Michael Hutchence. The song reached 3 on the US ...
" –
INXS INXS (a word play, phonetic play on "in excess") were an Australian Rock music, rock band, formed as The Farriss Brothers in 1977 in Sydney, New South Wales. The band's founding members were bassist Garry Gary Beers, main composer and keyboar ...
# " Sneaking Sally Through the Alley" – Robert Palmer # "Young at Heart" – The Rondo Brothers/
Tim Myers Tim Myers (born November 30, 1984) is an American musician, singer-songwriter, and record producer born in Orange, California. He's had over 600 synchs in TV/Film and commercials and has written and produced songs for Aloe Blacc, Capital Cit ...
# "Recess" –
Eli "Paperboy" Reed Eli "Paperboy" Reed (born 1983 as Eli Husock) is an American singer and songwriter. After graduating from Brookline High School in 2002, he moved to Clarksdale, Mississippi. After spending a year in Clarksdale, he enrolled at The University ...
# "Power Hungry Animals" –
The Apache Relay The Apache Relay was an American folk-rock band based out of Nashville, Tennessee. The band consisted of Michael Ford Jr (singer/guitarist), Mike Harris (guitar), Brett Moore (mandolin, organ), Steve Smith (drums), Kellen Wenrich (fiddle) and Be ...
# "Alone" –
Trampled by Turtles Trampled by Turtles is an American bluegrass-influenced folk band from Duluth, Minnesota. They have released ten full albums, three of which reached No. 1 on the U.S. Billboard bluegrass chart. Their fifth release, ''Palomino'', stayed in the c ...
# "Go Where the Love Is" – Edie Brickell/The Gaddabouts # "The Way Way Back" –
Rob Simonsen Rob Simonsen is an American composer based in Los Angeles. Early life Simonsen began playing the piano by ear at an early age. His grandmother was a voice teacher and music was around him in his family home. He later studied music at Southern Or ...
Other songs * "
Can't Fight This Feeling "Can't Fight This Feeling" is a power ballad performed by the American rock band REO Speedwagon. The song first appeared on the 1984 album '' Wheels Are Turnin. The single reached number one on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart and held the to ...
" –
REO Speedwagon REO Speedwagon (originally stylized as R.E.O. Speedwagon) is an American rock band from Champaign, Illinois. Formed in 1967, the band cultivated a following during the 1970s and achieved significant commercial success throughout the 1980s. The ...


References


External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Way Way Back, The 2013 films 2013 comedy-drama films 2013 directorial debut films 2013 independent films 2010s coming-of-age comedy-drama films 2010s teen comedy-drama films American coming-of-age comedy-drama films American independent films American teen comedy-drama films Films about dysfunctional families Films about vacationing Films directed by Nat Faxon Films scored by Rob Simonsen Films set in Albany, New York Films set in Massachusetts Films set in water parks Films set on beaches Films shot in Massachusetts Odd Lot Entertainment films Films about mother–son relationships 2010s English-language films 2010s American films TSG Entertainment films