Preteen girl looking at a cell phone with her parents

Personalized picks at your fingertips

Get the mobile app on iOS and Android

Parents' Guide to

Camp Nowhere

By Pam Gelman, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 11+

Bullying, iffy behavior undermine comedy's relatable themes.

Movie PG 1994 96 minutes
Camp Nowhere Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this movie.

Community Reviews

age 10+

Based on 6 parent reviews

age 9+
At the end of the movie, two of the main characters, well, do it. Earlier in the movie the kids but alcohol and I think cigarettes as well. Besides that, great movie, absolute classic, a must watch.
age 9+
This movie is Tween/teen friendly,It might have Some adult scenes and Language,but other than that its a great movie.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (6 ):
Kids say (6 ):

CAMP NOWHERE touches on relatable topics for junior high-aged kids about their changing physical selves, becoming attracted to others, and having frustration with parents and authority. Unfortunately it plays out by these kids lying to the parents and all the social pressures felt at school continuing through the hierarchy of power amongst the kids. The climatic scene is not when the parents discover the lies of their young teens but when Mud comes forward and admits it was his idea. Here is a lesson that kids can take from this movie: the importance of standing up and taking responsibility for one's own actions.

Christopher Lloyd fans will enjoy him at his best in the scene where he takes on different personas to tempt parents into sending their kids to this camp. With offensive name calling and sexual undertones, it's a film that is poorly executed about kids wanting independence and to have fun and progress through the oh-so-memorable challenges of the middle childhood years.

Movie Details

Did we miss something on diversity?

Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by suggesting a diversity update.

Common Sense Media's unbiased ratings are created by expert reviewers and aren't influenced by the product's creators or by any of our funders, affiliates, or partners.

See how we rate