Camp (2003)

User Rating:

6.4/10   

Director:

Todd Graff

Writer (WGA):

Todd Graff (written by)

Release Date:

5 September 2003 (UK)

Genre:

Comedy | Musical | Drama

Tagline:

A Comedy About Drama

Plot:

After a series of Broadway flops, songwriter Bert Hanley (Dixon) goes to work at a musical camp for young performers. Inspired by the kids, he finds an opportunity to regain success by staging an altogether new production.

Plot Keywords:

Teen | Theater Owner | Alcoholism | Gay Slur | Gay Teenager

Awards:

6 nominations

Cast

Daniel Letterle	...	Vlad Baumann
Joanna Chilcoat	...	Ellen Lucas
Robin de Jesus	...	Michael Flores
Steven Cutts	...	Shaun
Vince Rimoldi	...	Spitzer
Kahiry Bess	...	Petie
Tiffany Taylor	...	Jenna Malloran
Sasha Allen	...	Dee
Alana Allen	...	Jill Simmons
Anna Kendrick	...	Fritzi Wagner
Don Dixon	...	Bert
Robert Orosco	...	Emil
Stephen DiMenna	...	Glen
Omar Edwards	...	Alston
Camilla Millican Samuelson	...	Hillary

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for mature thematic elements regarding teen sexual issues, and some language.

Runtime:

114 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Spanish

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Malaysia:U | Australia:M | Germany:o.Al. | Hong Kong:IIA | Singapore:PG | UK:12A | USA:PG-13

Company:

IFC Productions

Trivia:

Several additional scenes with featured characters show during and after the credits.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Fritzi insults the fat girl they are discussing casting of "Promises, Promises", but that had already been settled earlier. The same problem comes up during what appears to be auditions for "Follies", which was also already settled (during the cast sheet montage, we see that the role of Carlotta, who they are singing for, has already been cast).

Quotes:

[first lines]
[scene opens on Dee, Shaun and Company singing "How Shall I See You Through My Tears"]
[as singing continues, scene shifts to Vlad in his bedroom]
Vlad: To all the critics out there, I know they're gonna review this, and I know they're gonna try to knock me - is it OK if I say this to the camera, Amber? - Okay. I only am who I am 'cause I was born that way. I have a gift, and I'm trying not to be selfish about it, but to use it. Okay? If you're gonna knock me for that, that's your problem. Jealousy will get you nowhere. And I'm gonna keep rockin' on.
[scene returns to singing cast, then shifts to Ellen's bathroom]
Ellen's Brother: Ellen, what's the matter with you? Don't tell Mom I'm taking you to your stupid junior prom.
Ellen: [in shower] Get out of here!
Ellen's Brother: Your brother - how gross is that! Come on!
Ellen: They don't know you're my brother. Please Ben you have to - I'll pay you.
Ellen's Brother: Find someone who's not related to you. Loser.
[...]

Movie Connections:

References "Jenny Jones" (1991)

Soundtrack:

How Shall I See You Through My Tears

An inside view of a fun movie

Camp is based on a real camp in the Catskills, NY. I have worked there for the past few years and had the slightly strange experience of attending the national premiere with the whole of the camp in addition to Todd Graf and the cast who then came back to the camp to sit in on rehearsals for the evening. For this among other reasons, I found it quite difficult to view the film objectively. The whole film was shot on location at the camp, apart from a couple of shots which were shot nearby, and so the majority of film was spent with the kids cheering whenever a new location was shown, or for a number of the cast who had really attended the camp in the past few years. For the sake of the film you have to accept that this is a camp with no counsellors, dorms that opposite sexes can go into at will among other things. However the depiction of the characters were strong. As a theatre kid said to me this summer, `I come here because everyone else is just as weird as I am!' And that is kind-a the motto of the movie. I do wish they'd showed more of the sports counsellor (who again does exist at a theatre camp in the same way that most sports camps put on a play). I know they shot more footage and had to edit it out. The songs are overdubbed as a previous reviewer wrote, but it is the kids singing them, they were just recorded in a studio. All in all I enjoyed the film, and am interested in hearing other peoples opinions who are not involved with the camp the film is based on. Yes kids like these do exist, and yes they are the guys you will see on Broadway and in the movies in a few years.