History Film / TheWayWayBack

need a hero
-->'''Owen:''' "I'm holding out for a hero. He's gotta be strong, and he's gotta be fast. And he's gotta be fresh from the fight."

* {{Tsundere}}: Caitlin, somewhat justified by the fact that Owen is unbelievably irresponsible.
* TwoDecadesBehind: Done deliberately, justified, played with, lampshaded and invoked as the point. The movie shows quite a lot of older people pining for the older days, but as we are seeing the events unfold through Duncan, he is understandably creeped out by what he sees and doesn't understand the nostalgia the others see.
* VagueAge: Susana. It's stated that she's older than Duncan (who's 14), but young enough where she feels comfortable to admit her feelings for him.
* VitrolicBestBuds: The three friends from the waterpark.

* WithFriendsLikeThese: The adult friend group.

* SourOutsideSadInside: We see a brief moment where recently broken up with Steph said she was going through a lot, and it would've been nice to have a friend. Though, it doesn't stop her from calling Sussana a "bitch" before.

* MsFanservice: Susanna and the girls Roddy, Owen, and Duncan check out when they are waiting to go on the water slides.
* NiceGuy: Owen.
** Kip as well. He tries to get Duncan out of wearing the life vest on the boat, and he doesn't dismiss [TheFriendNobodyLikes Betty's] wishes to go back out on the boat.

** With having [[JerkWithAHeartOfJerk Trent]] as a father (whom she only see twice a year, probably for a good reason), it's no wonder why [[BrattyTeenageDaugher Steph]] is the way she is.

** With having [[JerkWithAHeartOfJerk Trent]] as a father (who she only see twice a year, probably for a good reason), it's no wonder why Steph[[BrattyTeenageDaugher]] is the way she is.
* {{Gaslighting}}: Trent does this to Pam, and she alludes to her ex-husband had done this as well.

* HairOfGoldHeartOfGold: Susanna.

* {{Jerkass}}: Trent is very much this, as he constantly berates Duncan, and emotionally abuses his mom. It doesn't help that it's implied that he's cheating on Duncan's mom with a friend.

A 2013 ComingOfAge {{Dramedy}} film written and directed by Nat Faxon and Creator/JimRash, in which the protagonist, 14-year-old Duncan (Liam James), is dragged along on a family vacation with his mom (Creator/ToniCollette), her boyfriend Trent (Creator/SteveCarell), and Trent's daughter. Duncan never quite finds his feet until he gets a job at a water park run by {{Manchild}} Owen (Creator/SamRockwell).

** Owen, who Duncan has just met playing ''VideoGame/PacMan'' in a diner, Owen shrugs off Duncan's advice that each ''Pac-Man'' game has a pattern, saying that anyone can learn a pattern and that knowing it would take all the fun out of each game, showing Owen's disdain for organization and patterns.
* ExtremeDoormat: Duncan calls his mom out for being this. As she knows about Trent's affair but does nothing about it.
* FauxAffablyEvil: Trent loves to give off the vibe of being a likeable parental figure and boyfriend but is an adulterous, emotionally abusive control freak just beneath the surface.
* FlatCharacter: Steph, who falls into the BrattyTeenageDaughter trope to a t.
* TheFriendNobodyLikes: Trent, Joan, and Kip don't seem to really like Betty, but her and Pam seem to be great friends by the end of the film.

* ComingOfAge story and is fairly predictable. However, some GenreBusting occurs as the story takes some dark turns.

* CerebusSyndrome: Though from the start this movie has some degree of intensity, it begins as a standard

* ChivalrousPervert: Owen, Roddy, and eventually Duncan after he learns the tricks from the first two.

* MotorMouth: Betty. Especially in her opening scene.

** Kip as well. He tries to get Duncan out of wearing the life vest on the boat, and he doesn't dismiss [TheFriendNobodyLikes Betty's]] wishes to go back out on the boat.

* BigBrotherMentor: Owen is this towards Duncan and the group of three friends. Also doubles as BigBrotherInstinct.

* CerebusSyndrome: Though from the start this movie has some degree of intensity, it begins as a standard ComingOfAge story and is fairly predictable. However, some GenreBusting occurs as the story takes some dark turns.

* BigBrotherMentor: Owen is this towards Duncan. Also doubles as BigBrotherInstinct.

A 2013 ComingOfAge {{Dramedy}} film written and directed by Nat Faxon and Creator/JimRash, in which the protagonist, 14-year-old Duncan (Liam James), is dragged along on a family vacation with his mom (Creator/ToniCollette), her boyfriend Trent (Creator/SteveCarell), and Trent's daughter. Duncan never quite finds his feet until he gets a job at a water park run by AdultChild Owen (Creator/SamRockwell).

* AmbiguousTimePeriod: Apparently the script was originally set in TheEighties. The decision was made to change it to modern times, but we rarely see any technology invented in the last thirty years. Most notably, a major part of the plot is that Duncan disappears for entire days and his mother chides him for ''not leaving a note''. The lack of cell phones is a glaring thing in a 21st century setting.

* ButtMonkey: Lewis at the waterpark, Neil/Ming Lee of the ThreeAmigos, and Trent certainly treats Duncan as one.

* CoolCar: Trent's 1970 Buick Estate Wagon whose backward-facing third row seat lends the movie its' title. Justified in that he made an effort to source the same model his family owned when he was a kid.

* ExtremeDoormat: Duncan calls his mom out for being this. As she knows about Trent's affair, but does nothing about it.
* FauxAffablyEvil: Trent loves to give off the vibe of being a likable parental figure and boyfriend but is an adulterous, emotionally abusive control freak just beneath the surface.

* FreudianExcuse: It's implied that Owen's dad was a lot like Trent, which explains for his ManChild behavior.
** With having [[JerkWithAHeartOfJerk Trent]] as father (who she only see twice a year, probably for a good reasn), it's no wonder why [[BrattyTeenageDaugher Step]] is the way she is.
* {{Gaslighting}}: Trent does this to Pam, and she alludes to her ex-husband having done this as well.

* MsFanservice: Susanna, and the girls Roddy, Owen, and Duncan check out when they are waiting to go on the water slides.

** Also, it's revealed that Duncan's dad doesn't want him, which he doesn't find out until half way through the film, despite how much Duncan wants to live with him.

* RiddleForTheAges: [[spoiler: How did Duncan pass owen on the slide?]]

* TwoDecadesBehind: Done deliberately, justified, played with, lampshaded and invoked as the point. The movie shows quite a lot of older people pining for the older days, but as we are seeing the events unfold through Duncan, he is understandably creeped out by what he sees, and doesn't understand the nostalgia the others see.

* WouldHurtAChild: When Duncan reaches his boiling point, and pushes Trent, there is no hesitation before he tries to push Duncan back.

* {{Mondegreen}}: DiscussedTrope. Let's just say Joan probably wasn't RaisedCatholic.

A 2013 ComingOfAge {{Dramedy}} film written and directed by Nat Faxon and Jim Rash, in which the protagonist, 14-year-old Duncan (Liam James), is dragged along on a family vacation with his mom (Creator/ToniCollette), her boyfriend Trent (Creator/SteveCarell), and Trent's daughter. Duncan never quite finds his feet until he gets a job at a water park run by AdultChild Owen (Creator/SamRockwell).

** With having [[JerkWithAHeartOfJerk Trent]] as father (who she only see twice a year, probably for a good reasn), it's no wonder why [[BrattyTeenageDaugher Step]] is the way she is.

** With having {{JerkWithAHeartOfJerk Trent}} as father (who she only see twice a year, probably for a good reasn), it's no wonder why {{BrattyTeenageDaugher Steph}} is the way she is.

* VageAge: Susana. It's stated that she's older than Duncan (who's 14), but young enough where she feels comfortable to admit her feelings for him.

* AmbiguousAge: Susana and Steph. It's only stated that they're older than Duncan, who's 14.

* HardDrinkingPartyGirl: Betty.

* WouldHurtAChild: When Duncan reaches his boiling point, and pushes Trent, there is no hesitation before he tries to push Duncan back.
* YourCheatingHeart: Trent cheats on Duncan's mom. It says a lot about Trent that it's actually the least jerkish thing he does in the story.
** It's also implied that Pam's ex-husband cheated on her as well.

* {{Adorkable}}: Duncan.

* {{Adorkable}}: Duncan. Liam James [[http://www.justjaredjr.com/photo-gallery/572309/zach-gordon-liam-payne-white-house-down-screening-08/fullsize/ in real life]], for that matter.
** If you look at the link's URL, he's [[NoRespectGuy misidentified in it]] as Liam ''[[Music/OneDirection Payne]]''.