“Adventureland” is a return to form for director Greg Mottola – by which I mean that it calls to mind his 1996 debut film, “The Daytrippers.”

Never mind that the ads trumpet this as a film by the director of “Superbad.” As solidly funny as that film was, Mottola was a director for hire, working in Apatown, the province of Judd Apatow. “Adventureland,” on the other hand, is only masquerading as a youth comedy, despite a cast that includes Jesse Eisenberg, Kristen Stewart, Ryan Reynolds, Bill Hader and Kristen Wiig.

In reality, “Adventureland” is a personal comedy about post-teen characters. Partially autobiographical, it’s about coming of age – but using the loss of one’s virginity as only a secondary aspect of that process.

James Brennan (Eisenberg) is coming of age because he’s suddenly made sharply aware of what adulthood means: specifically, he is smacked in the face with that moment when one emerges from the parental cocoon to find that spreading one’s wings isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. You’re forced to confront life on its terms, not yours.

In James’ case, it’s the summer after college – and he’s got his life all planned out (or, at least, the rest of the year). He’ll backpack around Europe with his roommate, then move into a New York apartment while he starts journalism grad school at Columbia. It’s the summer of 1987 and the possibilities seem limitless.

One small problem: This is all supposed to be on his parents’ dime – but his dad has just suffered a financial reversal that wipes all of James’ plans off the table.

Even worse: He’ll have to take a summer job while living at home in Pittsburgh, to earn money for grad school.

The crushing blow: The only job available is running games at a low-rent local amusement park called Adventureland.

So, to recap: No money, no car, no girl, crap job, live at home.

Let the fun begin.

Misery loves company, however, and the erudite James finds himself thrust into a community of equally disgruntled Gen-X’ers, trapped in the dregs of the Reagan era with dashed dreams. Joining this community not only assuages James’ pain – it provides a new focus. He’s instantly accepted into a group with low expectations and even finds himself pursuing and pursued by the group’s two cutest girls: Erin (Stewart) and the juicy Lisa P (Margarita Levieva).

Despite the set-up, Mottola isn’t interested in gross-out antics (though there are a few). Rather, his film is about the opening of James’ eyes to the real world – in other words, about forcing James to find other choices by eliminating his preferences. He’s been ripped from the pseudo-intellectual coziness of college and thrown into a world where Romantic notions – the capital letter denoting an academic notion of Romance – seem kind of silly, given the hormonal imperative of hooking up and the realities of the job market.

“Adventureland” never condescends to these characters. Sure, the more swinish of the park’s customers is played for jokes but, otherwise, James and his crew are likable slackers, snidely undermining the system when they can (but rarely beyond the act of catching a buzz before starting a shift).

Eisenberg has played this kind of role before: smart, insecure, a little nerdy, verbally adroit in a world that mostly doesn’t get his jokes. He finds new ways in each film to play the kid who gets his heart crushed in a painfully funny way and then learn from it.

Kristen Stewart makes an interesting match for Eisenberg, whether she’s puncturing his bubble or raising his hopes unexpectedly. It’s nice to see her play tough; given her fragile appearances, it creates comic friction.

Just a quick mention, also, of Martin Starr as James’ sardonic, bespectacled pal – a Russian-lit major whose major affectation is smoking a pipe. Starr’s throwaway deadpan style is deceptively funny – just as it is when he appears on the new Starz series, “Party Down.”

Sweet but bittersweet, funny without working at being outrageous, “Adventureland” is a finely etched character comedy smart enough to touch any audience. It’s rarely needs to be raucous because it’s always on the mark.

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