2023 Catchups: THEATER CAMP
A mockumentary that’s a tad too much of an inside joke, but still worth a look.
What works in Theater Camp is so good that I’m willing to take the blame for some of the things that don’t. The mockumentary from co-directors Molly Gordon and Nick Lieberman understands the in-jokes, personality quirks and dynamics of drama geeks so well that the film likely plays best for anyone who’s ever been a teenager who spent a week singing Rent in the woods.
I was never one of those kids, although it wasn’t for a lack of desire. I had my own brush with theater in middle school, when I was in two Shakespeare productions, Taming of the Shrew and Romeo and Juliet (for which my prepubescent voice was perfect for a solo), and snagged a bit part in our high school’s production of “The Girl in the Mirror.” It was then that I got a brief window into the high-energy, high-emotion, high-(offstage)-drama world of theater kids, although I wouldn’t return to the stage for the rest of high school, as I was involved with church youth group – a subset probably deserving of its own mockumentary.
It's that energy that Theater Camp perfectly nails, gaining a great deal of humor from transferring the overdriven hormones to the preteen set as well as the assorted counselors who guide them. While I’m sure many jokes bounced right off me, those who grew up with a passion for the stage – as well as the assorted crushes and existential and identity crises that came along with it – should find a lot to enjoy.
When Camp AdirondACTS’ director (Amy Sedaris) is hospitalized after suffering a seizure during a community production of “Bye Bye Birdie” (a title card helpfully informs us this is the first-known “Bye Bye Birdie” injury), the responsibility of running the camp is given to her son, Troy (Jimmy Tatro). A social media influencer and dudebro with even less drama knowledge than business savvy (although he does identify as an “En-Troy-preneur”), he quickly is drowning in debt notices and foreclosure warnings, and tempted to sell the camp. Meanwhile, the campers prepare for a variety of shows, most notably a musical about the camp’s director that the two instructors, best friends Amos and Rebecca-Dianne, still have to write. There’s also an assortment of dramatic-beyond-their-years campers, a counselor who faked her way through the interview process (The Bear’s Ayo Edebiri), and more characters scattered around.
There’s a little too much going on, and Gordon and Lieberman never really find the film’s emotional center. Is Tatro’s bumbling interim director the main focus? Amos and Rebecca-Diane and their toxic, codependent relationship? Edebiri’s character, faking it until she makes it? Rather than allow the characters to bounce off each other and build a cohesive narrative, the movie largely separates them and meanders from story to story without much in the way of narrative thrust. It’s a tad too shaggy and unfocused to totally work as well as, say, Christopher Guest’s Waiting for Guffman (an obvious comparison). And I wish the film had found a way to integrate the kids better; they kind of get lost in the shuffle amidst the adult stars, but they’re funny when given a moment to shine (I love the girl whose idea of insulting a counselor is to call him a “cis-het bitch”).
Theater Camp, instead, works best as a series of scattered, heavily improvised sketches, and benefits from a cast that understands the high emotions of theater kids. As Amos and Rebecca-Dianne, Ben Platt and Molly Gordon are a lot of fun. The two childhood friends have a codependent, cutely toxic relationship – she’s been held back from pursuing performance jobs until Amos feels ready. The two are funny as the passive-aggressive, overly critical counselors (of one prepubescent actor, he complains “I can’t see her as a French prostitute”) who take their craft and its impact on their identity way too seriously (one of the film’s best jokes involves Rebecca-Dianne doing past lives analysis on her young students and informing one this is her final life). Tatro was the highlight of Netflix’s first season of American Vandal, and few people give himbo joy as good as him. And Edebiri’s already established herself as a master of awkwardness on The Bear, and she’s very funny in her small role here, although the film tends to forget about her.
Most mockumentaries succeed due to dry, almost subtle humor that helps the absurdity clash with the realistic tone. Theater Camp’s characters don’t know how to be subtle; they’re all emotion and passion, which would normally pull me right out of this type of film, except it’s a perfect fit with their environment. The overheated emotions, tantrums and existential angst is all a part of the teenage theater crowd experience, and it’s familiar even to someone like me who only had a brief association. When the jokes don’t land, it was often because it was a joke that I wasn’t in on, but that those in tune with its world will likely love; and there’s enough silliness on display to make it a painless watch despite your level of theatrical love.
Despite the film’s scattered focus, it comes together for a finale that is surprisingly earnest, a musical number that is an ode to the people who come to theater camp to find their place. It’s a nice reminder of something the film weaves through its story; this is the rare place where kids who might otherwise feel out of place – the drama kids, the LGBT kids, the overly emotional and dramatic ones – feel welcome and even in charge. It’s a touching note to end the film on, followed up by a pretty solid final gag.
I wouldn’t go so far as to call Theater Camp one of the year’s best films or even a sterling example of the mockumentary format; it’s a bit too shaggy and pleased with itself to be that. But it’s a pleasant and funny diversion, and worth a look.
Theater Camp is now streaming on most rental services and Hulu.