Wet Hot American Summer (2000)
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A group of camp counselors navigate the final day of a 1981 summer camp while dealing with personal dilemmas and a looming space debris threat.
The story
Set in 1981, the film follows the counselors at Camp Firewood, a fictional summer camp located near Waterville, Maine. As the final day of the season arrives, the counselors—most of whom are around 16—navigate various personal struggles and interpersonal dynamics. The narrative follows several intertwined storylines, including a cook trying to hide his fetishes, a pair of drama instructors preparing a talent show, and a counselor dealing with a complicated romance. The stories converge during a talent show on the final evening, where the characters must face their personal truths amidst the backdrop of a summer camp's closing festivities.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
On the final day of the 1981 summer camp Camp Firewood in Maine, the counselors' lives intertwine. Cook Gene, a Vietnam veteran, tries to hide his fetishes but eventually confesses them to the crowd during a talent show. Drama instructors Ben and Susie, who are in love, get married by Beth before a mysterious stranger named Steve causes a storm with his mind. Counselor Coop struggles with his feelings for Katie, who is dating the obnoxious Andy. After a training montage, Coop wins Katie's heart, only for her to return to Andy because of his looks. Meanwhile, Beth befriends an astrophysics professor, Henry, who helps children prepare for a falling piece of Skylab; they ultimately divert the debris from the talent show. Counselor Victor, a virgin pretending to be a ladies' man, gets lost and separated from his group before reuniting with them. Finally, arts and crafts instructor Gail overcomes her past with her ex-husband Ron during the talent show, eventually finding love with a student named Aaron.
- First release year
- 2001
- Runtime (minutes)
- 92
- Production countries
- United States
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- David Wain
- Writers
- David Wain · writer; Michael Showalter · writer
- Cast and characters
- Janeane Garofalo; David Hyde Pierce; Molly Shannon; Paul Rudd · Andy; Christopher Meloni; Marguerite Moreau; Ken Marino; Michael Ian Black; Zak Orth; A. D. Miles; Amy Poehler; Bradley Cooper
- Genres
- satirical comedy; sex comedy; teen comedy
- Themes
- identity; romance; coming of age
- Tone and mood
- satirical; absurd
- Setting
- Camp Firewood, near Waterville, Maine, in 1981.
- Premise and plot tags
- summer camp; ensemble cast; parody
- Source material / true-story basis
- Based on the experiences of director David Wain at Jewish camps.
- Franchise connections
- Wet Hot American Summer
- Reception
- The film was a critical and commercial failure but has since developed a cult following.
- Reported review scores
- Rotten Tomatoes · score: 39% · review count: 77; Metacritic · score: 42 · scale: 100 · review count: 24
- Production trivia
- The film was shot at Camp Towanda in Honesdale, Pennsylvania.; The soundtrack features songs from bands like Jefferson Starship and Kiss.; The film is a parody of and homage to films like Meatballs and Sleepaway Camp.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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