Summer Camp

We talked a lit bit last year about how older women get treated in the industry. They really don’t have that many acting opportunities and when they get them the roles are regulated to grandmothers and witches. So when 80 for Brady and Book Club came out it was a win for both the industry and for women but those films are still few and far between. This year the only one we really got was Summer Camp starring Diane Keaton, Kathy Bates and Alfre Woodard. Keaton also helped produce the film.

Okay before we get into the concept and the actual deconstruction of the other elements, the sound mixing is weird. The volume fades in and out like they didn’t have enough mics placed or something. I just think it's very strange for a film starring 3 extremely high caliber actresses has truly horrible sound mixing.

Okay so the premise for this is that these women are rejoining for a summer camp reunion, they see their old crushes, the girls that used to bully them and they get the chance to reconnect with each other.

The comedy chops of this cast are unmatched. The jokes all land, it is inherently funny just because these actresses are incredible.

These films are so important. People do not lose their value after 30 and they still have stories to tell. So getting to watch a woman who is widowed fall for her camp crush, and watching another woman who is in a very unhappy marriage realize that she deserves more, and a woman hold her friends as close as her success is really amazing. People don’t stop needing to see themselves, people never stop needing to see their experiences represented. And the women that are driving these stories, and encouraging them is really changing the industry for the better.

God the sound mixing is really bothering me, there's just no excuse for it. Even independent films don’t have this problem, this movie 100% had professional sound people and more than enough money so what the fuck.

And of course these women get into a huge blow up because they've been bottling things in for 50 years. I love watching these movies because they are like watching a therapy session. It's very healing. And honestly it's very real, because what boomers have ever actually dealt with their feelings? Not one ever. So watching these older people bottle things up until they explode is very realistic.

I also love that these kinds of movies always have at least one monologue or drawn out two person scene. It's very theatrical and it allows the actors to use their skills in a way that they probably haven’t in a while. It's also a nice change from other films. Unless something is actually adapted from a stage play we don’t really get monologues in films anymore, and it's very rare to get a scene between two actors that actually explores in depth emotions. Those kinds of scenes are really important for actors. And honestly they are really important for narratives as well. We do get a happy ending for a lot of these movies as well, it's a sweet conclusion.

I think the movie was fun and I think it was extremely important to the industry. It knew exactly what it was supposed to be and it delivered. The casting was incredible. And the story did a great job of showing that regardless of your age you are never too old to change your life if you are unhappy and I think that message is incredibly important. Summer Camp is a very solid 8.5/10.