Afternoon at The Movies - Episode 1, the way way back

Welcome to the inaugural podcast of Afternoon at the Movies, the first in a series of podcasts about movies available at your local library. My name is Joe and with me is DauVeen and we both work for the Charles County Public Library. The Oscars race is in full swing but we want to talk about a movie that passed under the radar in 2013 called The Way Way Back, which refers to station wagons with those pop-up seats in the back.... In the way way back. ...in the way way back. I have to say, Joe, when the movie first started I was confused as to when the movie... ...the time period of the movie, because you see an old station wagon from the seventies, but then this young man is sitting in that back seat, looking awkward, facing the cars behind him, with an iPod. Listening to an iPod, yes. That threw me too. And then when he finally gets to Cape Cod with his mom and his mom's boyfriend, whom he doesn't get along with, he goes into the garage and he finds a banana seat bike. Pink bike. When was the last time you saw a banana seat bike? In the eighties. Right. So it it seems kind of...some of the things seem anachronistic but it is supposed to be set in the present. And Duncan is a teenage boy, coming of age. He's struggling to find himself and how to deal with this boyfriend of his mom's that he really can't stand. He is played by Steve Carell. Which is a shock because Steve Carell is generally likable in his movies. And you really do not like him in this movie. He's such a jerk to Duncan. Yeah he is, and you wonder why the mom, played by Toni Colette, is with him. Because...it's like...do you not see how he's treating your son? I think she's so.... She's kind of a vulnerable character and I think she would be receptive to any man who's just showing her the least bit of attention. That's true. But thankfully Duncan winds up at this kind of old water park. It seems like the town is stuck in a time warp. And it's run by Sam Rockwell who plays the character of Owen. He's also stuck in a time warp. He is. He's like, still.... He's like an old hippie or something. Yeah. And he pays a SLIGHT bit of attention to how the whole park is running. He kinda relies on all his subordinates to really keep things going. But when Duncan shows up he...he ends up taking him under his wing and really helped him grow. He becomes independent, self sufficient. Yes. He also finds his first love. He does. Which is very touching. It's very funny and we both highly recommend it. It is rated PG for some adult situations and language. We encourage you to check it out. That's all for today. Thank you for joining us and we hope to see you next time.