The Way Way Back (2013)

Shy 14-year-old Duncan goes on summer vacation with his mother, her overbearing boyfriend, and her boyfriend's daughter. Having a rough time fitting in, Duncan finds an unexpected friend in Owen, manager of the Water Wizz water park.

Directors:

Nat Faxon, Jim Rash

Writers:

Nat Faxon, Jim Rash

Stars:

Steve Carell, Toni Collette, Allison Janney

5 wins & 30 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Steve Carell	...	Trent
Toni Collette	...	Pam
Allison Janney	...	Betty
AnnaSophia Robb	...	Susanna
Sam Rockwell	...	Owen
Maya Rudolph	...	Caitlin
Liam James	...	Duncan
Rob Corddry	...	Kip
Amanda Peet	...	Joan
River Alexander	...	Peter
Zoe Levin	...	Steph
Nat Faxon	...	Roddy
Jim Rash	...	Lewis
Adam Riegler	...	Neil
Jeremy Weaver	...	Jason

Storyline

Duncan (Liam James) is not a popular kid and it doesn't look like the summer is going to offer anything better for him. His mother's boyfriend has invited them to his beach house where Duncan is expected to improve his personality and physical appearance, and meet girls. But his would-be step-sister doesn't want anything to do with him and his shy demeanor makes it difficult for him to meet anybody new. When Duncan wanders into the Water Wizz, the local water park, he meets adult employees who are just having fun. Owen (Sam Rockwell) lets Duncan work with him and their new-found bond will help each other mature and find their place in life. Which for Duncan means standing up to his would-be step-father, having a conversation with the girl next door and being more comfortable with who he is.

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Plot Keywords:

summer | water park | shy kid | friendship | unlikely friendship | 

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Taglines:

Everybody has a summer that changes their life.

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for thematic elements, language, some sexual content and brief drug material

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

26 July 2013 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Way, Way Back

Filming Locations:

Marshfield, Massachusetts, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$5,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$552,788, 7 July 2013

Gross USA:

$21,506,546

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$23,198,652

Company Credits

Production Co:

Sycamore Pictures, The Walsh Company, MWM Studios

Technical Specs

Runtime:

103 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

While location scouting, Jim Rash would take pictures of beach houses that he felt would be good to film in. During filming, he discovered that one of the houses he photographed belonged to Steve Carell's in laws.

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Goofs

When Duncan meets Owen, Owen is in the middle of a game of Pac-Man on Level 1. He says he's never made it to Level 2. When we see the screen a number of dots and one of the power-pellets are missing. When Duncan loses Owen's last life, still on Level 1, the screen shows an earlier point in the game.

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Quotes

Betty: Duncan, I thought you and Peter should hang out this summer. Lord knows he brought enough of those Star Wars dolls.
Peter: They're action figures! And they're classics!
Betty: [exasperatedly] Please.
Peter: They lose value if I take them out of the box. But we can still have awesome battles with them.
Betty: [to Duncan] He needs human contact. He's having far too many conversations with those dolls.

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Connections

Featured in The Tonight Show with Jay Leno: Episode #21.185 (2013)

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Soundtracks

If You Need Some (Come and Get Some)
Written by Christian McNeill
Performed by Christian McNeill & Sea Monsters
Courtesy of Q-Dee Records
Under license from Hitcher Music

User Reviews

Very enjoyable

Having seen a run of fairly forgettable blockbusters it was nice to go along and watch a low budget movie.

The way way back is a coming of age movie and follows shy Duncan on his summer vacation with mother and step dad. I'm sure the relationship between Duncan and parents will be familiar to many people. The good thing about this type of movie is that it focuses more on characters and you get a real sense, feel and empathy for several characters. 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. Well worth a watch if you like off beat indie dramas.