It's more than just the nudist tendencies of Wayne (Joe Lo Truglio) that George (Paul Rudd) is avoiding in "Wanderlust"
Sometimes it’s good to just get away from it all. Especially after you suddenly find yourself out of a job and unable to afford the tiny New York City apartment you just purchased with your wife, whose documentary about testicular cancer in penguins simply isn’t drawing any studio interest. But in Wanderlust it seems like things are going to work out just fine for George (Paul Rudd) and Linda (Jennifer Aniston) when George’s brother Rick (Ken Marino, who also co-wrote the script) gets him a job in Atlanta.
George and Linda pack their car and hit the road for a comically unnerving road trip that gives the couple enough alone time to open up about some of their frustrations with each other. Just when this road trip from hell reaches it’s breaking point, the couple happens upon Elysium, a free-spirited retreat where the first person they encounter is a nudist (Reno 911!‘s Joe Lo Truglio) who inadvertently causes George to flip his car over while trying to find his own retreat. Once they get past his free-flapping schlong, the couple ends up having a great time with the quirky characters that populate this Eden-like commune.
The couple somewhat reluctantly leaves for Atlanta the next day because they couldn’t possibly abandon their comfy city lifestyle for a place like this, right? After spending one night in the spaciously uncomfortable home of Rick and Marisa (a dolled-up Michaela Watkins, who masks her misery with margaritas and medication), George and Linda return to Elysium in hopes that they can find true happiness by living off the fat of the land with that free-loving bunch.
George (Paul Rudd) isn't quite as willing to drink Seth's (Justin Theroux) Kool-Aid as is Linda (Jennifer Aniston) in "Wanderlust"
Though it takes some getting used to, they soon feel like part of the Elysium family. But that comes with strains of its own as Elysium doesn’t believe in things like doors and privacy but does believe in things like swapping sexual partners. And when a woman like Malin Åkerman is nonchalantly saying things like, “Think about being inside of me,” the temptation is strong. And Seth (Justin Theroux), the unofficial (and somewhat Manson-esque) leader of this comical cult-like unit, proves that douchebags are douchebags, whether in a suburban Atlanta McMansion or in a hippie commune in North Goergia, as he aggressively pursues Linda while passive-aggressively belittling George.
These pressures eventually tear George and Linda apart, with Linda choosing to stay at Elysium while George returns to his depressing job at his brother’s portable toilet company. It doesn’t take him long to smell the proverbial shit, however, and he goes back to Elysium to win Linda back (despite her many shortcomings and relationship-destroying mistakes). And eventually everyone finds true happiness by attaining a balance between the comforts of city life and the freedom of their primal spirits.
Wanderlust. Written and directed by David Wain. Starring Paul Rudd, Jennifer Aniston, Justin Theroux, Malin Åkerman, Kathryn Hahn, Lauren Ambrose, Ken Marino and Alan Alda. Rated R. www.wanderlustmovie.net.
Review by Jonathan Williams