Magic Camp (film)

Plot

Theo Moses, an aspiring young magician grieving his father's death, learns he has been accepted to the Institute of Magic, a summer camp run by Roy Preston. Assuming his late father applied for him, Theo agrees to attend. Andy Duckerman, a former magician bitter over being overshadowed by his ex-partner Kristina Darkwood, is persuaded by Preston to return as a counselor. At camp, students compete in the Top Hat competition for the Golden Wand.

Andy leads the Hearts cabin, which includes Theo, allergy-prone Nathan Jenkins, rabbit-obsessed Ruth Brusselbach, Judd Kessler (son of a famous magician), and antisocial Vera Costa. Darkwood leads the Diamonds, including bully Vic d'Antonio and Janelle Santos, who likes Theo. The Hearts struggle until Andy discovers Theo's gift for card tricks. Andy helps each Heart realize their hidden talents, and reveals that he and Darkwood were once a couple and magic partners until she took a TV deal behind his back.

Darkwood encourages Janelle to embrace magic. Andy takes the Hearts into town to train with found objects, and they perform publicly.

Production

On November 2, 2016, Walt Disney Pictures announced Adam DeVine and Jeffrey Tambor would star in Magic Camp, directed by Mark Waters from a script by Dan Gregor and Doug Mand, with a previous draft by Steve Martin. Suzanne Todd was set to produce, with Gabe Sachs and Jeff Judah as executive producers. Earlier drafts had been written by Micah Fitzerman-Blue and Noah Harpster, with the project developed by Matt Spicer and Max Winkler. Gillian Jacobs was cast on November 9, 2016. Cole Sand was cast as Nathan Jenkins on November 21, 2016, and Josie Totah as Judd Kessler on January 4, 2017. Principal photography began on January 10, 2017 in and around Los Angeles. The film's trailer was released on August 10, 2020.

Reception

On Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating based on reviews. Jennifer Green of Common Sense Media rated it three out of five stars, calling it a tween-friendly comedy about teamwork and valuing unique talents. Kate Erbland of IndieWire gave the film a C rating, finding the concept original and noting humorous moments, but describing the moral lessons as easily perceived and the plot as predictable.