Netflix’s A Week Away – Potential Consumed by Singing and Dancing

A Week Away follows Will (Quinn), a teenage orphan with a shady past who has just blown his last chance to avoid being sent to a facility for wayward youths. However, by some stroke of luck, he is introduced to a foster parent and her son George (Cook) and is invited to summer camp for a week run by a religious father and daughter team. Will doesn’t know that the “summer camp” is actually religious. To fit in with the other kids, George tells everyone that they’re cousins. Obviously, this isn’t all that believable, but that’s the story they use. As Will is being introduced to some camp attendees, he spots Avery (Madison), who happens to be the camp owner’s daughter. It’s all a little too “typical” and cliched, and the film doesn’t improve from there.

The above makes A Week Away once again come off as a predictable bad boy meets good girl rehabilitation tale. While Will is trying to figure out how to get closer to Avery, there are some games that the camp kids work their way through, focusing on teamwork and team-building. Oh, did we forget to mention that this is also a musical? Normally this kind of film would be way out there next countless other musicals in recent memory. The music and dancing are very uplifting. The dance choreography is a little off, and some of it isn’t good, but the kids all look like they’re having a fantastic time. In the spirit of goodness and kindness, the film is nonetheless sure to find an audience.

The romance in A Week Away is completely transparent, which makes the relationship between Will and Avery superficial. Their singing from Quinn and Cook as Will and George is top-notch, and they both appear to be a lot more talented than the supporting cast in terms of their singing ability. As a musical, the film falters in its choreography a great deal, and it’s probably the most disappointing aspect of the film. Meanwhile, the rest of the acting across the board was fine.

In the end, it’s just hard to think that people could act this way towards each other in the real world as it all seems a little too good to be true and unbelievable. The religious overtones, surprisingly, aren’t as overwhelming as expected. The camp kids get together and sing, dance and even cry about God and it’s well-integrated into the film. What brings it down was that it was simply too predictable. While the story did have potential, it unfortunately gets lost in the dancing and singing about a higher power. And even though the music and dancing may be mildly entertaining, A Week Away doesn’t offer nearly enough to keep viewers invested.

still courtesy of Netflix

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