Hello critters!
Today I want to talk about another DCOM movie because I'm kind of on a roll of revisiting movies that marked my teenage years, so let's go with Camp Rock. This 2008 style catastrophe is an iconic movie that jump started the careers of Demi Lovato and the Jonas Brothers, made everyone want to go to music camp for the summer, and gave us some major teenage romance earworms (cue the legions of fans singing in unison: you're the voice I hear inside my head...). But is it really that good?
The plot in itself is ok, dozens of hormonal teenagers go to a music summer camp to find their voice and escape the dullness of staying home alone for 3 months. The directing style feels a bit dated and forcefully obvious but as we all know, Disney Channel isn't known for its subtlety. The outfits are outrageously 2000s (which here means pretty f*cking bad), except for the adults, but oh well, we know better now. (Did I ask my mom to buy me boots with tiny heels like the ones Demi wears for her Final Jam performance? Yes, yes I did, but that is beside the point.)
Rewatching it as an adult though, I now have issues with some of the characters. Let’s start with Mitchie.
First of all, who in their right mind has this much time to spare before school? Who has this much time to try on several different outfits, play music and have breakfast? Unless she lives 10 minutes away from the school (which I did, and let me tell you that the only reason why I got up 1 hour before I had to go was because I was a sloth, or I had to wash my thick long hair), it just doesn’t make sense to me. Also, how in the world does she have this much energy before… I think it’s reasonable to say 8am, so before 8am??
Then, if you’re going to lie because gods forbid you be uncool, don’t go this big! First rule of lying, make it small enough that it’s believable yet manageable. Also don’t use the one parent that’s actually on site with you in your lie, that’s bound to become a problem. Jeez Mitchie. She may be a good singer and have a good heart, but she’s not terribly smart, is she?
Also, in the could-have-used-brain-more department, when Tess accuses her of stealing her bracelet, she really could have come up with a better defense than “I have no idea why it’s there”. Something along the lines of “if I had stolen it, do you really think I’d leave it in plain sight for all to see? I’m not that stupid, I would have hidden it better, which proves that I’m not the one who placed it there only for me to be caught” would have worked, right? But I guess she really is that stupid.
Finally, am I the only one who gets uncomfortable when she smiles? I mean her big wide full-teeth stretched out grin, not her cute little normal smile. I think her big grin is kinda creepy. You’re a teen singer Mitchie, let’s take the serial killer attitude down a notch, shall we?
Other than that, she’s a regular teenager who makes mistakes and owns up to it because it’s the right thing to do, aka an idiot with a heart of gold, aka textbook Disney Channel main character.
Moving on to Shane.
What’s up with the attitude bro? You’re what… 16? You may be Shane Gray for crying out loud, but you’re still just a boy so get off your high horse.
Thankfully, he grows out of his entitled bad boy mood and goes back to being tolerable and nice. That is one good thing that Mitchie did, incite Shane to stop being a jerk and make him want to go back to his roots to play good music again.
When he asks for help to find “the girl with the voice”, he HAD to know that that’d be a mess. On the one hand, “the girl with the voice” is waaay too generic and vague to possibly hope to actually find the right one efficiently. On the other hand, if he didn’t set a time and place to hear the girls sing, he was bound to get bothered in weird places at odd times of the day. Not so smart either. I guess that’s why he goes so well with Mitchie.
At least by the end of the movie, Shane isn't such a douchebag anymore, just another teenage idiot with a heart of gold and a questionable haircut.
Now for Tess.
I get it, she suffers from her mom not giving a damn about her, but that doesn’t give her the right to be a straight-up bitch to everyone. You want people’s attention and affection little girl? You gotta earn their respect first.
Sure, she sings well and has cool songs, but no, she’s not cooler than everybody else. She seemingly only wants recognition for her talent and to be admired but deep down, we all know she simply wants to be seen. Newsflash, you can’t be seen if you hide behind walls of insufferable disdain keeping anyone who might care about you away. You can’t be seen if all you do is try to control other people into letting only you shine. You can’t be seen for who you are if you never show who that person really is.
The way she treats the other campers, whether it be her rivals, random people, or even her own “friends”, is so detestable. You can’t talk to people like that Tess, it’s not right. You’re not more important than them just because your parent is rich and famous. You’re not better than them just because you publicly drag them down. You’re a scared little girl who needs a reality check.
I guess I’m a bit harsh on the children, but they all could really use some therapy sessions.
As I rewatched it, I realized that I now like the adults better. Brown kicks ass as camp director. He has the best interest of his campers at heart. He wants them to have fun and enjoy their music, to dig deep and tap into their artistic flair and creative potential. He’s a champion of the arts while providing a safe space for the teens to explore their musical style and find themselves. The camp in itself looks so fun, shared cabins with friends, close to the lake for water activities, good food three times a day, what’s not to like?
Speaking of good food, Connie Torres deserves all the applause! She’s a businesswoman with a high-quality service that she delivers with a high-quality attitude. She’s got super fun ideas for theme nights and makes sure the kids are well-fed. Even when she finds out that Mitchie lied about who her mother was, she doesn’t take it personally and she supports her daughter because she knows that Mitchie isn’t really embarrassed of her, she just wanted to fit in with the cool kids. She’s just a child who didn’t quite think things through. Connie is a fantastic chef and a wonderful mom.
Our main protagonists and antagonist created a lot of drama but honestly, aside from their ego problems, Camp Rock looks like a chill place to spend the summer. I’m sure the other campers who minded their own business had the time of their life.
The music is pretty good and some tunes are even infectious (chorus of “This Is Me” anyone?), but if I’m totally honest… I much prefer the songs from Camp Rock 2. Still, “Gotta Find You” is so sweet and Joe Jonas is a great singer so all the yes to that. (When he performed it on the Happiness Begins tour, needless to say, I was beside myself. Such a magical moment.)
Overall, Camp Rock is fine, though filled with annoying teenagers. But in my humble opinion, if you wanna watch a good JoBros and Lovato movie, skip it and go straight to Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam.
Canoes and glitter 🛶
Nicky 🦊
Comments