Parents' Guide to Family Camp

The Skit Guys have answered faith-based movie lovers' prayers: This is easily the best Christian comedy made to date. With excellent production values, solid direction, and fantastic comedy chops from the cast, Family Camp is a winner. Its laugh-out-loud humor may help it cross into the mainstream, as could the way it depicts the Ackermans, who positively represent many families of faith in "the secular community": They go to church and believe in God, but they don't talk about it all the time. Writer-director Brian Cates smartly contrasts the Ackermans with their bunkmates, the smugly pious Sanders family. This allows Christian families to laugh knowingly at two extremes they may recognize.

Woodard and James' dynamic is reminiscent of Steve Martin and John Candy in Planes, Trains and Automobiles, right down to the "I Like Me" speech. Their energy is also reminiscent of Martin and Eugene Levy -- and the more you realize that, the more it becomes obvious that Family Camp is very similar to Cheaper by the Dozen 2. The plots are almost identical. And the movie's super-fake (but fun!) beaver is most definitely a nod to the Caddyshack gopher. Even the characters' marital issues are generically unoriginal: Tommy Ackerman (Tommy Woodard) spends too much time at work, and his wife, Grace (Leigh-Allyn Baker), rides him for it. The bigger problem, though, is that when the dads get lost in the woods, the film as a whole gets lost with them. Better plan some second-act s'mores or you might lose the kids' interest. Bottom line? Family Camp isn't perfect, but its issues are forgivable, and it's lots of fun.