Summercamp!

Play trailer

Summercamp!

2006

1h 24m

Documentary

Play Trailer

Watchlist

Watchlist

Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

78%

Tomatometer

23 Reviews

53%

Popcornmeter

500+ Ratings

Bradley Beesley and Sarah Price's documentary captures the experiences of a group of children over the course of their summer at the Swift Nature Camp in the woods of Wisconsin. Many of the kids have behavioral problems and are on medication for attention deficit disorders. At Swift, however, the focus of the counselors and kids on engaging in vigorous physical activity (horseback riding, kayaking, archery, swimming) and living harmoniously creates surprising results.

Critics Consensus

Like stories about camp, Summercamp! might be best appreciated by those with memories of the experience -- but for its target audience, it's appropriately fun and poignant.

Read Critics Reviews

Paul West

Seattle Times

Summercamp! maintains a gentle, lackadaisical tone that eloquently captures the triumphs and traumas of this ageless ritual.

Rated: 3/4

Sep 14, 2007

Full Review

Robert Abele

Los Angeles Times

Brief bits of real charm, personality and camp-life detail squeeze through, suggesting why some thrive in an oasis of animal worship, outdoor revelry and zero-to-hero popularity that forgives a nerdy rep back home.

Rated: 3/5

Aug 31, 2007

Full Review

Bill Stamets

Chicago Sun-Times

Unlike the intense cadets for Christ and creationism in the recent documentary Jesus Camp, the kids in the sweet Summercamp! have fun!

Rated: 3/4

Aug 24, 2007

Full Review

Bill White

Seattle Post-Intelligencer

For those who enjoyed the camping experience as a youth, the movie, with its marshmallow roasts, canoe rides and talent shows, offers a bit of nostalgia. Others may find the whole thing a little pointless.

Rated: C+

Sep 14, 2007

Full Review

Kevin Courrier

Boxoffice Magazine

Summercamp is so haphazard it might as well be someone's digitally enhanced home movie.

Rated: 1/5

Aug 30, 2007

Full Review

Matt Pais

Metromix.com

Sweet and alive with homesickness and high-fives, sing-a-longs and armpit farts.

Rated: 3.5/4

Aug 23, 2007

Full Review

Read all reviews

Audience Member

a cute little doc following a Wisconsin summer camp & it's campers. innocent but enjoyable

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

02/03/23

Full Review

Audience Member

A fine documentary that covers 3 weeks of children at a nature camp. It is a little too broad at times, keeping some kids too distant, but it's a great nostalgia trip into childhood.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

01/19/23

Full Review

Audience Member

An ok doc but pretty boring. We follow around a bunch of kids but there isn't enough screen time to really get to know these people. I would have rather seen this tackle the summer camp from the view of the counselors. <br/>It plays more like a commercial for the camp at times. It's ok to miss this one.

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

02/24/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Never went away to summer camp so perhaps that's why it didn't connect with me? My perception of summer camp is a mixture of "Friday the 13th" and "Meatballs"... seriously!

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

01/17/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Cute film albeit short with very little structure. Makes me feel like my films will do just as well. It is definitely adorable as the kids themselves are great in a "they say the darnedest things" way. Simply a charming film though with little to no conflict or arc.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

02/17/23

Full Review

Audience Member

best beesly docu...better than okie noodling...and way better than the flaming lips one...

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/05/23

Full Review

Read all reviews

Read More

Read Less

POST RATING

WRITE A REVIEW

EDIT REVIEW

Bradley Beesley

Director

Sarah Price

Director

Devorah DeVries

Producer

Bradley Beesley

Producer

Sarah Price

Producer

JoLynn Garnes

Co-Producer

Jesus Camp

89%

80%

Jesus Camp

Watchlist

Thin

100%

84%

Thin

Watchlist

Stagedoor

63%

55%

Stagedoor

Watchlist

A Lion in the House

100%

98%

A Lion in the House

Watchlist

A State of Mind

89%

92%

A State of Mind

Watchlist

Discover more movies and TV shows.

View More

TORONTO: Blog Day 2 — "Fiction," "Babel," and the Flaming Lips Live!!

View more photos

Synopsis

Bradley Beesley and Sarah Price's documentary captures the experiences of a group of children over the course of their summer at the Swift Nature Camp in the woods of Wisconsin. Many of the kids have behavioral problems and are on medication for attention deficit disorders. At Swift, however, the focus of the counselors and kids on engaging in vigorous physical activity (horseback riding, kayaking, archery, swimming) and living harmoniously creates surprising results.

Director: Bradley Beesley, Sarah Price
Producer: Devorah DeVries, Bradley Beesley, Sarah Price
Production Co: Roadside Cinema
Genre: Documentary
Original Language: English
Release Date (Streaming): Nov 25, 2018
Runtime: 1h 24m

Most Popular at Home Now