The Music of Adventureland (stream)

Greg Mottola’s upcoming Adventureland extends his Superbad interest in awkward young coupling, but this time around he’s chosen a more romantic approach. The wall-to-wall music in the film is an impressive collection of songs faithful to its period (1987) and setting (Pittsburgh amusement park staffed by frustrated folks in their teens and early twenties). While the script is sometimes too eager to point out the coolness of some of the songs—through characters’ mixtapes and onscreen LP jackets—the overall effect is an earnest love letter to the soundtrack of Mottola’s youth.

Music supervisor Tracy McKnight worked with Mottola to clear the almost 40 songs used in the film, which meaningfully connects Lou Reed and Big Star to Falco and Poison. Yo La Tengo provided the score.

Read more about the film’s use of music here.

—Thomas Britt