Camp Be Better centres on a 17-year-old sentenced to 100 days at a luxury boot camp.
Camp Be Better centres on a 17-year-old sentenced to 100 days at a luxury boot camp.
REVIEW
In comedy, timing is everything. With the Government’s recent reintroduction of military-style boot camps for young offenders, the timing of TVNZ’s new youth dramedy Camp Be Better couldn’t be better. Although it’s fair to say that the spa pool, horse-riding and Wi-Fi on offer at the luxury detainment centre of the show’s title is a far cry from what the Government has in mind.
“Most of you should be in jail. Or worse, cancelled,” the camp’s leader “Papa” Sterling says, welcoming the newest intake of privileged young offenders to his cushy camp. “But you are all promising young people with bright futures ahead.”
As well as setting up the premise, this line also doubles as a good litmus test of the show’s humour. The “cancelled” bit is a good example of the gags to come.
Camp Be Better follows Niah Zhou, a 17-year-old who is sentenced to 100 days at the camp after breaking into the house of her mother’s employers, stealing some earrings and defecating on their kitchen bench for good measure.
Instead of being sentenced to boot camp, mysterious benefactors step in and pay for her to serve her time at the cushy Camp Be Better. Upon arrival she finds herself surrounded by “nepo babies” and rich kids.
Louise Jiang plays wayward teen Niah Zhou.
The setup is not quite the classic “slobs vs snobs” but it is an examination of privilege and how money talks, even in the supposedly impartial eye of the law.
In an attempt to fit in Zhou presents herself as a fellow rich. The scene where she claims her parents invented the Chinese version of darts is the funniest moment in the episode and is delivered with impeccable timing by actress Louise Jiang.
Accepted as one of their own, there’s a misadventure with A-Class drugs that leads to the ruination of Egyptian organic silkworm sheets and a gentle scolding from Sterling.
But Zhou’s lies are quickly exposed and her new group of BFF’s instantly – and improbably – turn on her.
Class, crime and punishment are explored in the TVNZ show.
“So you’re actually Crazy Poor Asians?” one of them says, dunking on her. “Eww, what smells like poverty?” asks another.
In the climactic moments of the opening episode, there is an inevitable showdown.
“I will not feel shame for who I am,” one of the kids snaps at her.
“I’m not saying you should feel shame for being rich,” she shoots back. “I’m saying you should feel shame for being inconsiderate, selfish pricks.”
The fight ends on a cliffhanger. Can rich and poor truly ever be friends? Keep watching to find out.
You may be thinking all this sounds a bit over the top. It is. Most of the opening episode is played very broadly and does lay it on a bit thick. The show is aimed at a youth audience but even the kids might recognise its occasional dive into obviousness and cliche – the pair of “mean girls” at the camp are ripped straight from every American high school drama ever made, for example.
That said, the writer and directing duo of Chye-Ling Huang and Hayden J. Weal keep the energy up, the pace snappy and the jokes flying. Even teens with TikTok-length attention spans will find enough going on to keep invested.
Louise Jiang gives a solid and believable performance as the outsider Zhou. Her grounded relatability allows the rest of the cast to ham up their wealthy stereotypes.
Amongst the adults, Barnie Duncan is great as the shady “Papa” Sterling and Tom Sainsbury of course stands out, even with the precious few moments of screen time he’s given in this first episode.
Camp Be Better's adults are there to keep the adolescents in line.
But with just 22 minutes to establish its world, the opening episode goes wide almost by necessity. Given how much info it needs to get across and how many characters it needs to introduce, Camp Be Better does an admirable job.
So the potential is certainly there, especially within its expected audience. Could it be better? Well, everything can always be better. Teens will find it an encouraging first day at camp, and one that promises to get better the longer they stay. Everyone else, however, may find the jury’s still out.
Camp Be Better is streaming from today on TVNZ+.
Karl Puschmann is an entertainment columnist for the Herald. His fascination lies in finding out what drives and inspires creative people.
