Summer Camp
Directed by Bradley Beesley and Sarah Price
TORONTO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
CHICAGO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
SXSW FILM FESTIVAL
HAMPTONS INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
2006, 85 min
Summercamp! follows the day-to-day drama of 90 kids let loose in the woods at Swift Nature Camp in northern Wisconsin. Camp is a place where kids can be kids, where their home and school lives momentarily fade into the background as they go through the highs and lows of adolescent rituals: sing-alongs, talent shows, homesickness, counselor mutiny--and first love.
Press
Salon.comthe saddest, sweetest, most magical and most deeply affecting movie of the season.
The New York TimesSummercamp is a riot of talent shows and campfires, canoeing, and holistic clowning.
Time Out New YorkWith tenderness and joy, Bradley Beesley and Sarah Price capture the precious moments of preteen freedomÑnot from parents and school, but from self-awareness and doubt.
New York PostA sweeter, more unassuming movie isn't likely to come our way anytime soon.
TV Guide Onlineutterly charming.........Beesley and Price's young subjects are smart and unusually articulate, and they talk about their lives with a perspective one doesn't expect from children.
New York SunSummercamp, a marvelously honest new film.
The ReelerIn its shuddering truth, Summercamp! dares to suggest that the grand disaster of youth as we knew it was actually... fun.
The OnionA feel good hit for the summer.
The Oklahomanthe sweet nostalgia is irresistible.
Oklahoma GazetteIt's funny, it's sad and leaves you with a big smile on your face.
Milwaukee Journal SentinelAnd if Summercamp!" is any indication, happy camper or not, the experience remains a formative one.
Ain't It Cool Newsone of the finest profiles of childhood I've ever seen.
Entertainment Weeklyyou can practically taste those burnt wieners.
Tuscon Weeklythis is pure cinema‰Û_It's like Lord of the Flies with exhausted post-teen counselors running around grilling hot dogs and serving as the objects of first love...richly rewarding.
Lincoln Journal Starinsightful and refreshing.
The Boston Globeobserves the specific until the specific turns universal...until you find yourself moved beyond words.
Chicago Tribunesweet and alive with homesickness, high-fives, sing-a-longs and armpit farts
Timeout Chicagowonderfully funny....lighthearted and a helluva lot of fun, Summercamp! is a perfect end to the season
Chicago Sun-Timesdelightful
Seattle Timeseloquently captures the triumphs and traumas of this ageless ritual.
The Strangerthe music, by the Flaming Lips, is stellar.
Chicago TribunePure and heartbreaking, if you don't relate to this film you were never a kid.
Filmthreat...it will go down as one of the most entertaining movies of the year
Ain't It Cool NewsYou'll definitely leave with a smile on your face
The Austin Chronicle...a respectful, contemplative, and often blithe portrait of kids being kids
Time Out ChicagoHilarious, touching and a hell of a lot of fun