Let me get this out of the way, I'm a bit of an amusement park geek, and Action Park is one of the most interesting parks that ever existed (look up a web documentary, there are many). This movie perfectly captures the feeling of Action Park based on what I can tell from the web documentaries. Action Park really had the crazy Alpine Sled, the looping water slide, the Tarzan Swing that went out into the lake where lady park guests would flash and guys would moon the crowd; and above all else, Action Park was dangerous, with 6 known fatalities and hundreds of injuries. This movie captures all of that.
Now as an actual movie, it's really good (at least better than expected). The trailers were all "watch the jackass guys make a crazy amusement park based on Action Park," and it was SO much more than that. First off, it's all set as a grandfather telling his granddaughter a story of her mom when she was younger (something that my grandparents did a lot when I was younger, and it was really heartwarming in that regard). Next, the movie isn't just "dude, lets make a crazy amusement park," it's "I made a little amusement park for the locals, just living the American dream, and trying to maintain it when a rival park challenges it," a true "American dream" story. Last and most important, DC the main character isn't doing all this because he just wants to be a capitalist, he does it because he made a family with the employees and doesn't want to lose that, along with trying to include his daughter in all the craziness, and it's not all "jackass guys getting hurt and getting right up again" kinds of craziness.
It's not a movie for everyone, I'll admit that, but if you liked Adventureland you'll probably like Action Park.
Now as an actual movie, it's really good (at least better than expected). The trailers were all "watch the jackass guys make a crazy amusement park based on Action Park," and it was SO much more than that. First off, it's all set as a grandfather telling his granddaughter a story of her mom when she was younger (something that my grandparents did a lot when I was younger, and it was really heartwarming in that regard). Next, the movie isn't just "dude, lets make a crazy amusement park," it's "I made a little amusement park for the locals, just living the American dream, and trying to maintain it when a rival park challenges it," a true "American dream" story. Last and most important, DC the main character isn't doing all this because he just wants to be a capitalist, he does it because he made a family with the employees and doesn't want to lose that, along with trying to include his daughter in all the craziness, and it's not all "jackass guys getting hurt and getting right up again" kinds of craziness.
It's not a movie for everyone, I'll admit that, but if you liked Adventureland you'll probably like Action Park.