Boot Camp (2008)

A group of at-risk teens are sent to a what they think is a rehabilitation program on Fiji, but it's really a prison-like camp where kids are abused and brainwashed.

Director:

Christian Duguay

Writers:

Agatha Dominik, John Cox

Stars:

Mila Kunis, Gregory Smith, Peter Stormare

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Mila Kunis	...	Sophie
Gregory Smith	...	Ben (as Gregory Edward Smith)
Peter Stormare	...	Norman Hail
Regine Nehy	...	Trina
Alejandro Rae	...	Jack
Christopher Jacot	...	Danny
Tygh Runyan	...	Logan
Matthew Smalley	...	Nick
Colleen Rennison	...	Ellen
Barbara Gates Wilson	...	Rhonda
Christianne Hirt	...	Lucy
Lexie Huber	...	Marianne
Serge Houde	...	Karl
Cris Nannarone	...	Stan (as Christino Nannarone)
Joe Norman Shaw	...	Ben's Father

Storyline

When provocatively impish drug addict Sophie is forcibly shipped off by her passive mother and brutally domineering stepfather to dodgy, messianic and platitude-spouting Dr. Arthur Hail's completely isolated Fiji island boot camp for wayward teens (a.k.a. Camp Serenity), her perfectly respectable boyfriend Ben refuses to stand passively by. He fakes a drug problem to get himself enrolled in Dr. Hail's Advanced Serenity Achievement Program, where he plans to find and escape with Sophie. Meanwhile both teens witness and endure the physically harsh and psychologically brutal conditions fostered by the doctor and enforced by Logan, his militaristic and imposing chief of security - where all "enrollees" have "less rights than prisoners on death row."

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Plot Keywords:

kicked in the balls | island | boot camp | male rear nudity | sex | 

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Taglines:

Every year troubled teens are sent away to change their lives. On this island they must fight to save them.

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Thriller

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Did You Know?

Goofs

One of the slides in Dr. Hail's presentation at the seminar in L.A. says "Responsability". The correct spelling is "Responsibility".

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Quotes

Sophie: So what's the big idea?
Dr. Arthur Hail: The idea? I'll give you one cookie; in return, you open up and tell me all your deep dark secrets.
Sophie: Well, here's a deep, dark secret for you, Doc - I hate cookies.

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Soundtracks

New Noise
Written by David Sandström, Dennis Lyxzén, Kristofer Steen, and Jon Brännström
Performed by Refused
Courtesy of Burning Heart, a division of Epitaph

User Reviews

the many red flags

Sophie (Mila Kunis) is an impetuous teen who rebels against her domineering stepfather Carl. After embarrassing him, he sends her away to fake doctor Hail (Peter Stormare)'s isolated boot camp Camp Serenity on Fiji island for a year. Her boyfriend Ben (Gregory Smith) fakes a drug problem to get to the camp. It's a place of disturbing psychological torture and brutality enforced by security chief Logan.

This is an useful movie for parents to see the waving red flags. The most obvious red flag is Fiji. It's a bad move to send your kid outside of proper legal jurisdiction. I wouldn't send kids to Columbia either. An isolated island halfway around the world with no visitation should obviously be a big red flag. Then there is the coed situation. Why would parents send their girls to a coed prison? That's a recipe for disaster. The problem for this movie is that it seems to be trying to make a point about all of the boot camps. Then it makes the case with the strangest and weirdest situation. Mila Kunis also fails miserably to engender any sympathy for her character. This would be a little better by making this more of an outlandish Lord-of-the-Flies story. By trying connecting it to reality, it fails as realistic and fails as a drama.

Details

Country:

Canada USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

8 May 2008 (Kuwait)

Also Known As:

Straight Edge

Filming Locations:

Calgary, Alberta, Canada

Box Office

Budget:

$14,000,000 (estimated)

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$151,827

Company Credits

Production Co:

CD Films, Edgey Productions, Nomadic Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

99 min 99 min (European Film Market)

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1