In the film, recent college graduate James Brennan (Eisenberg) takes a job at a run-down local amusement park to save for a trip to Europe.

His parents inform him that, due to his father losing his job, their current finances will not permit them to support him and he will have to spend the summer working instead.

Another games worker, Emily "Em" Lewin, saves James from being stabbed by a cheating customer and offers him a ride home that night.

Saddened by her rejection, James seeks solace by going on a date with another employee at the amusement park, Lisa P., who is fawned over by most of the male staff.

Additionally, as matters worsen, one of his college roommates, Eric, decides to go to Harvard Business School instead of Columbia, leaving James with nowhere to live in New York City.

The scenes of the family home were filmed in a neighborhood named Fox Ridge located in the town of McCandless, a suburb still within Allegheny County, approximately 12 mi (19 km) north of the city of Pittsburgh.

The story takes place during the summer, but since it was shot in the winter months in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, crews had to often hide snowfall.

In some instances, during indoor takes, extras were paid to stand outside surrounding the windows and doors to block the snow from falling behind the actors.

The site's critical consensus reads, "Full of humor and nostalgia, Adventureland is a sweet, insightful coming-of-age comedy that will resonate with teens and adults alike.

[12] Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times gave the film 3 out of 4 stars and wrote: "What surprised me was how much I admired Kristen Stewart, who in Twilight, was playing below her grade level.

"[13] Variety's Todd McCarthy wrote: "A rather ordinary account of youthful summer misadventures that goes down easily thanks to a sparky cast, more than 40 pop tunes that anchor the action in the late '80s and characters who get high both on and off their jobs at a tacky amusement park.

Kristen Stewart also received the High Times' 2009 Stonette of the Year Award, due in part to her performance in the film.

The songs included are mostly from the 1980s, to fit with the setting of the film, with several tracks from the late 1960s and early 1970s, most notably by The Velvet Underground, Lou Reed, the New York Dolls and cult darlings Big Star.

The film maintains a notable reverence for Lou Reed, who is idolized by the main character, featured on T-shirts and posters of other cast members, and has likewise elevated the status of the playground mechanic stemming from a rumored jam session with the artist.