Coming to theaters from Fathom Events July 22-27, Bad Counselors, directed by Chris Dowling, follows two frat brothers, Grayson and Tyler (Matt Cornett and Ramon Reed), as they attempt to finish 120 hours of community service or face expulsion.
The opening scenes tell the audience what they need to know about Grayson and Tyler. On a video interview with a potential employer, Grayson depends on information fed to him by Tyler, who’s googling as fast as he can off camera. Blowing off steam one night, the best friends accidentally wander into a Christian church during a worship service. Eager to exit what they consider a freak show, a flyer asking for volunteers for camp counselors gets thrust into their hands. Finally finding the bar they were intending to visit, they party on through the night, ending up in jail.
Officer Montgomery (Missi Pyle) delivers the ultimatum: complete 120 hours of community service in the next two weeks or be expelled from the university. While wondering how they could possibly do the hours in the time allotted, Tyler pulls the camp flyer out of his pocket.
The two manage to bluff their way through the interview with Pastor Tom (Chris Klein) and are on their way to Camp Burning Bush. Grayson gets assigned to Patrick (Brayden Gleave), a lonely kid who gets bullied by some of the other campers. Tyler ends up with a kid named Shadow (Dominic Lopez).
Bad Counselors follows the formula of almost every summer camp movie I’ve ever seen, especially the Christian-themed ones. However, just because it’s predictable, does not mean it’s bad. There’s plenty of comedy as Grayson and Tyler try to pass themselves off as knowledgeable followers of Jesus, flirt with the female camp counsellors, including the pastor’s daughter, Jenna (Brec Bassinger), and try to connect with kids they deem as not worthy of their time and attention.
In one scene. Grayson works with Patrick to make a ceramic mug. Looking at the stick figures of a man and a boy, Grayson asks Patrick if it’s he and his father. “No,” says the boy, “I don’t have a dad. It’s you and me.” This interaction sets the stage for Grayson learning that there’s more to life than partying with frat brothers and begins to lift him out of his own self-absorption. Tyler goes through his own journey, when asked to write a lie he believes about himself on a piece of paper and then throw it in the fire.
Expected as the outcome of the film may be, Bad Counselors inspires through a story that moves from thinking only of oneself to caring for others. The symbolism of the Kintsugi style of art, the Japanese practice of fixing a broken vessel with precious metals, speaks volumes that there is beauty in imperfection and that brokenness can be healed and lead to growth.