Who doesn’t love The Parent Trap?

Both versions are amazing, but as a 90s baby I am partial to the Lindsey Lohan remake that came out in 1998. There are so many iconic camp moments in the beginning of the movie, but as a past camper and now camp professional, some scenes really make me question if the director had ever attended summer camp before. So let’s take a look at some things the movie definitely got wrong and a few it definitely got right…

 

First off, a quick summary

In 1986, Nicholas “Nick” Parker and Elizabeth James meet and fall in love. They eventually marry and have twin daughters, Hallie and Annie. However, they divorce shortly after the twins’ birth. Nick gains custody over Hallie and raises her on his vineyard in Napa, California, while Elizabeth raises Annie in London, England, where she works as a wedding gown designer.

Eleven years and nine months later, the twins are coincidentally sent to the same summer camp, where they form an intense rivalry. After Hallie and her friends perform a dangerous prank on Annie’s cabin, the twins are sent to the isolation cabin, where they begin to bond over their similarities. After discovering the parallels between their respective family situations, they show one another a photograph of their parents and realize that they are twins who were separated at birth. They decide to switch places to convince their parents to reconcile; each girl trains the other to act like her… and shenanigans ensue!

Fencing all over the place!

This one might seem small but as Foley fencing instructor, I have some opinions! The twins Hallie and Annie have their “meet cute” while dueling with foil fencing blades. The masks make the dramatic reveal that they are identical even better. Now a normal regulation fencing bout (as they are called, not duels) happens on a piste or strip that clearly marks the boundaries for each fencer.

While it is not unheard of at Camp Foley to do some freeform fencing, the theatrics these girls come up with would never stand in a normal fencing bout. They are twirling, running up trees, swinging wildly, not to mention endangering other campers! At one point the girls end up fencing on a wooden patio surrounded by other campers eating. The girls are swinging their foils around wildly, it is a total safety hazard!

 

Underground poker games

Now this whole scene is hilarious! That night after the big reveal that they do look alike, Hallie and Annie attend a camper led poker match. The amount of things that have to happen to make this night possible in a real summer camp is unreal. The very first thing I notice about the scene is that they have real money! At Foley we collect all money the campers bring to camp for a few important reasons, so they don’t lose it or give someone the opportunity to take it… AND to stop this exact scene! We don’t want campers forming underground poker rings, and especially not one this organized!

We love to host games of poker here at camp, but the only prizes won during our poker games are good times and laughs with friends. Collecting camper’s money ahead of time would also avoid the horrible skinny dipping prank the game ends with.

Pranks

Speaking of pranks… they take on another level in this movie. Which leads me to the question that should have been asked in the beginning… WHERE ARE THE COUNSELORS? To take revenge on Annie winning the poker game and then stealing Hallie’s clothes while she takes that infamous skinny dip, Hallie recruits her girl squad to create an elaborate system of traps for Hallie’s cabin. The first thing to mention is these girls must be the heaviest sleepers alive to not be awoken by any of these antics. But more importantly, where are the counselor’s keeping the kids in their own cabins? Maybe in some crazy world I could believe that campers were sleeping unsupervised, I cannot believe there was NOONE around to stop this cabin sneak in.

My next question is how they have access to all of their supplies when pranking. From the scene it looks like they needed to find honey, shaving cream, yards of string, a basketball, a gallon of vegetable oil, four large cans of chocolate sauce, and copious amounts of water balloons. In what world does a camper have access to any of this? Especially at night!

The Isolation Cabin

No one really thinks sending two campers (who hate each other!) out to an isolated cabin ALONE is a good idea. Which to be clear, it is not. Our main characters are sent to this “isolation cabin” to hash out their differences and bond. There are no isolation cabins at Camp Foley, it would defeat the purpose of cabins! Your camp cabin is supposed to make you feel safe and included in a camp community.

While in the film it does have a good outcome, with Hallie and Annie coming together to realize they are in fact long lost twins, in real life these girls needed space AWAY from each other to cool off and process why there is so much animosity between them. A well trained counselor would have seen that and been able to facilitate a discussion between the two, supporting them, not just sending them off alone to figure out what to do.

What did they get right?

A lot of things! Fencing at a summer camp can be very fun. Campers really can meet people form all over the world. Friendships can form at summer camp that will last a lifetime, you don’t need to be secret twins separated at birth to do it too! Ultimately summer camp is just as fun as the movie made it look, but with far more supervision and far less secret family drama (in our experience anyway). Does the idea of a real camp experience appeal to you? Sign up for Camp Foley! 

Like this comparison? Check out our blog on Camp Rock!