Tune In or Tune Out: Camp (NBC)

Camp (NBC)

Created by: Liz Heldens (Friday Night Lights), Peter Elkoff (Ugly Betty) 

Starring: Rachel Griffiths, Tom Green, and Tim Pocock

I never went to camp when I was a child, well overnight camp in the woods, and I thank my parents for that daily.  I am also glad I have no association with this show, although I guess I would be making more money than I do at my current job.

The premise of Camp is simple, the rich camp with the frat boys versus the poorer camp with the "outcasts." There are talent shows, crafts, counselors trying to sleep with one another, and a single mom whose life is crumbling.  I feel as though Mrs. Potts should be singing "Tale as Old as Time" in the background.

The show has a cast full of relative unknowns, except for television star and sometimes movie player Rachel Griffiths (Six Feet Under, Brothers and Sisters).  This material is WAY below the talent that she has an actress, the writing is bad, and while there are moments when you want this to be a guilty pleasure, and it could be, there is not even enough kitsch to live within that category.  This is going to be a quick summer burn off for NBC, it has the premise to be a good summer show, just not the stamina.

Tune Out!...Never Tune In

Pitch Perfect may not be Perfect, but it's one the Most Fun Films of the Year

Pitch Perfect (3 1/2 out of 5 Stars)

Jason Moore (Dawson's Creek, Avenue Q)

Kay Cannon (30 Rock, New Girl)

Starring: Anna Kendrick, Brittant Snow, Anna Camp, Skylar Astin, and Rebel Wilson

The first thing I have have to get out of the way before I go any further is, I hate a capella.  You heard that right, for the most part I find it a bit obnoxious, and the characters in this movie are not far from what those students who a capella are like.  Working at a college has provided with interesting insight into the world of the different groups a cliques that form after high school, not much changes.  With my admission out there on the table I have to say I loved this film.

Pitch follows Beca (Kendrick) in her first year at college.  Beca is greeted by annoyingly chipper girl (not far from reality), and the adventure begins.  Beca does not want to be at college; she wants to be a DJ, but her father who is a college professor wants her to get an education.  Beca ends up joining the Barden Belles a capella group, trying to get them to break their stifling old school ways and join this centuries musical revolution.

Sounds like a bad cliche ridden poorly made teen flick, right? Wrong!  While there are for sure some massive story holes, useless characters, forget about it!  This is one of the funniest films of the year, and like the film Easy A transcends the teen flick genre.  Like with Easy A the concept of paying homage to the classic films, and concepts is important to making this film entertaining, and a big success.  

The director/writer behind this show mainly have television and Broadway credits to their name.  Director Jason Moore was the Tony nominated director for the Broadway Musical Avenue Q, and his work on one of the best Broadway shows helped elevate his direction within this film.  The wit and charm are also there because of screenwriter Kay Cannon.  Cannon has worked on both 30 Rock, and New Girl.  Together these two have formed a great team, making one funny film.

Where would the laughs in this film be without the scene stealer Rebel Wilson who plays the self proclaimed "Fat Amy."  Wilson has the best lines in the film, and her delivery is so sharp.  Throughout the last few years Wilson has proven herself to be one of the up and coming funny ladies out there, with small roles in Bridesmaids; she is now going to host the MTV Movie Awards.  This performance reminds me of Melissa McCarthy is Bridesmaids, and it is a shame the Academy does not go for performances like this one more often.

As more of the straight woman Kendrick is less funny, but still proves she can light up the screen; she too is one of those actresses who has so much talent and potential to play a wide range of characters.  Who would have thought that anyone from the movie Camp, would be as famous as she has become?

While I have revealed my hatred for a capella I can't help but think that this film has warmed my heart to giving it another try.  This film is delightfully charming, and you can't help, but smile, and laugh a lot while watching it over and over again.

Flashback Music of the Week: It may be a Follie, but I'm Still Here

Last night watching the film Camp got me in a Broadway mood.  The kids who go to Camp Ovation are obsessed with Stephen Sondheim (Follies, A Little Night Music, Into the Woods, Sweeney Todd), and the famed Broadway legend even makes an appearance at the end of the film.  Not all of the music is from his shows, but one song (although poorly performed in the film) stood out to me and that's "I'm Still Here" from his show Follies, which originally ran in 1971.  The show follows aging performers from a 1920s vaudeville show, and their reminiscence of the past glory, lost youth, and loves that never were.  The show has seen numerous revivals and I was able to see the most recent, the show stopping number is "I'm Still Here."

This song has so much hope/yet reminds you of obviously "the good times" and "bad times"  The goal of the song is to put life into perspective, and make those within the show to think about the different places they have been.  This is one of my favorite Sondheim songs from his shows; he takes the emotional heft of his characters, and makes you feel that emotional weight you should about your own experiences.

"I've run the gamut from A to Z, three cheers, and damn it! c'est la vie!"  this line brings the song home, and says a lot about how I am feeling at the moment.  At the moment I have worked 32 days straight without a day off, I am feeling tired and frustrated, but that's mostly the work side of things.  In my own personal life I feel like I am trying to change things up, take risks, and realize that having good and bad times is just part of the game. I have worked to become more positive in my life, and through this I have also realized that with this comes the risk, and forces me to put myself out there more than I ever have.