Snack Shack - A Movie Review

original-written date: 2/4/25

Coming-of-age stories have been the subject of movies for many years. Whether you look at the classics like Stand by Me, Dazed and Confused, The Breakfast Club - or the wave in the 2000s like Juno, Almost Famous, Mean Girls - or renditions in the last decade like Lady Bird, The Edge of Seventeen, Everybody Wants Some - these types of movies have been popular for decades. And 2024 was no exception, with one of the more enjoyable movies of the year falling in this category: Snack Shack.  A simple story about 14 year-olds running a pool concession stand for the summer, this one is packed full of heart and fun for the viewer.

The Plot (spoiler-free)

Best friends AJ and Moose are always searching to make a buck and have a good time, but when that ambition lands AJ on the brink of being sent to military school, the 14-year old entrepreneurs hatch a plan to bid out the snack shack at the local pool for the summer. When AJ’s new neighbor Brooke - a cool and mysterious girl from out of town with an affinity for calling AJ a shit pig - becomes a lifeguard at the pool, the boys’ friendship and partnership is tested as they go on a journey of self discovery over the summer. 

The Cast

Conor Sherry - AJ

Gabriel LaBelle - Moose

Mika Abdalla - Brooke

Nick Robinson - Shane

David Costabile - Judge

Gillian Vigman - Jean

This is a small cast and the 6 actors above carry it through the 112 minute runtime. Gabriel LaBelle is the standout for me among them - coming off watching him as Lorne Michaels in Saturday Night. I thought he did a good job in that one, but you could feel it watching that he was probably a little too young for the role. In this, he’s playing a 14 year-old as a 22 year-old himself, and weirdly it works a lot better than him playing a 30 year-old Lorne Michaels.  His spontaneous and chaotic energy supercharges this film - specifically his fast-talking deliveries and incredible chemistry with co-star Conor Sherry.

I had never seen Sherry before this film, and he’s the true main character as the essential looking glass for the viewer.  I thought he was very good and balanced the character’s more reserved and innocent nature opposite of LaBelle. I also think his character is relatable to a lot of people who grew up with more out-going or popular friends - I think the feeling of having a crush be more interested in a friend at that age is something many people can relate to as kids, and he does a really good job making you feel those emotions through his performance.

Mika Abdalla as Brooke was another revelation to me. I think her character’s confidence and demeanor was key in creating tension between Moose and AJ.  She’s good at embodying the cool-girl persona. I don’t like her character - which may be by design but I haven’t talked to enough other people that have seen the film - but I don’t find her compelling or endearing in the way I do Moose and AJ. Even though the 2 guys are flawed themselves and do bad things, she seems almost proud of the turmoil she’s putting them through (especially AJ), almost like she’s overtly trying to get them to turn against each other? The movie works because of the conflict created, so probably not worth complaining about.

David Costabile as AJ’s dad The Judge is great - he’s one of my favorites. Gillian Vigman is very funny and embodies the 80s mom well.  I really Like Shane Robinson too - the quintessential older friend helping the young pups get booze, talking/teaching them about girls, a role model for AJ.  

What Worked

From here on out, plot-specific spoilers will be denoted in green.  I think the pros of this movie really begins and ends with the relationship between the two best friends at the center of it - Moose and AJ.  And it has to work for the movie as a whole to work.  They balance each other out well and there are so many aspects of the friendship that are relatable.  Everyone had that friend growing up that maybe wasn’t the best influence and got you in over your head with their various schemes, and if you didn’t it’s cause you were the friend.  Skipping out on an 8th grade field trip to go across state lines and bet on greyhound races, for example. But I like that, even early on, the movie doesn’t try to depict their relationship as perfect - they butt heads, but they have goals and want to accomplish them together.

Another thing I really liked was the relationship between Shane and AJ.  Shane may not be the most perfect role model - getting 14 year-olds wasted and bringing them to parties and drinking while driving them around are not awesome qualities - but it’s super relatable. As a younger brother, I often looked up to my brother’s friends and found myself going to them for advice. (Like the guys 2 years older than me have everything figured out - it’s silly in retrospect but it's so accurate to how it feels when you’re that age). But they have a really sweet relationship, and the work they do to build that relationship throughout the 1st two acts is why the last is emotional when Judge goes up to AJ’s room at the least opportune time ever to tell him what happened to Shane. 

My last big praise for this film is the VIBES. It reminded me a lot of Richard Linklater’s Everybody Wants Some, a movie I fucking love, but rather than college baseball the backdrop is early high school summer jobs.  I don’t think this movie is as successful, but I really enjoy the quick cut scenes serving customers in the snack shack, the soundtrack, the bike riding, the sparring between Moose and AJ discussing a plan - I eat all of that shit up and think it makes the film so much more fun. My favorite example of the above is when AJ is manning the shack while Moose goes to talk to Brooke, a kid orders a hotdog, AJ writes FUCK in Ketchup on the dog, the kid loves it and AJ charges an extra 75 cents all summer for “fuck dogs.”

What Didn’t

I don’t have a ton of issues with this movie at all really. I think for the most part they made really good choices and, while the script isn’t winning any awards, thought it was simple and straightforward, allowing the actors to embody the roles themselves.

One that I’ve already touched on earlier in the cast section is just that the Brooke character wasn’t my favorite - but I think so much of it was probably intentional that I have a hard time holding that against the film.  Maybe it’s just a personality thing for me, maybe it’s personal experience affecting my perception on screen, maybe it’s just preference.  The things that she does are vital to the movie in creating a rift between AJ and Moose, which in turn drives the plot of the movie forward. I think the crux of the issue is, I don’t quite get AJ’s continued interest in her.  Girls flirt with boys by teasing/being mean when they’re young, that much I get. I think the moment AJ catches Moose and Brooke kissing, not to mention the following weeks/months watching them together at the pool, is when I’d just lose all interest. Especially when she continues to kinda be a dick to AJ, talk to him about Moose, weirdly continue flirting, I think it’s just so many red flags that I don’t relate to still pursuing it. Again, probably a me problem, not a movie or character problem.

Couple of small nit-picks to close things out.  The notion of two 14 year-olds being able to make their own beer, and not only that, a GOOD tasting beer, is absurd. The 14 year-olds also drink so fucking much alcohol in this movie - times have changed since the 80s I guess. I was confused by the usage of Moose’s parents in the movie. One moment they seem entirely uninterested and the next he’s going to the grocery store with his mom. Feel like if the implication is Moose is the wild child/bad influence, just make the parents fully oblivious and/or not in the picture. AJ’s sister is also a shite dancer, no way she would’ve made captain.  

Final Thoughts

I had a ton of fun with this movie and all of my complaints are either 1) super minor, or 2) due to my own personal feelings and not in the construction of the film.  I thought it had a ton of heart, had plenty of laughs, incredible vibes, was super relatable, had heart-warming moments, made me think about life, and introduced me to actors I either didn’t know, or barely knew, and turned me into a fan of them.  Wasn’t trying to reinvent the wheel, but told a really fun story and made something that I think anyone can find an aspect they connect with.

Score

74/100