Film

As we grow up, summertime morphs from three months of freedom to a few weekend getaways. But even the oldest of us can still get nostalgic over memories of green Jell-O, crafts made from dried pasta and tree bark, and first kisses down by the dock. The documentary Summercamp! takes us back to those halcyon days.

The movie doesn’t take any formal risks, but Price and Beesley seem to have always been in the right spot at the right time—capturing kids as they make new friends and then fight, as they bond with their counselors and then get into trouble, as they try to act mature and then descend into silliness. Best of all, the movie is wonderfully funny, as when one child uses a canoe oar as an air guitar to pound out his own private Deep Purple jam.

The humor arises from the crisp editing and from the fact that no matter how much our culture changes (the number of campers in the movie on ADD meds is shocking), kids remain pretty much the same. Summercamp! also finds the poignant moments: A girl’s obsession with chickadees becomes a metaphor for loss; an obnoxious boy finds his own space on a deserted island. And fans of the Flaming Lips will appreciate the band’s contribution to the original soundtrack.

A few critics have grumbled that the movie doesn’t dig into the sociology of summer camp. That complaint is akin to kids muttering about camp food; it might be true, but it’s also beside the point when everything else is so entertaining. Lighthearted and a helluva lot of fun, Summercamp! is a perfect end to the season.