Cheer Camp Killer (2020 Lifetime)
Cast: Andrea Bogart, Mariah Robinson, Sydney Malakeh
Director: Randy Carter
Written by: Anna White
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Synopsis (via Lifetime)
When Sophia gets into an exclusive cheer camp with her best friend Charlotte, she is ecstatic at the chance to show off her skills. Camp queen bee Victoria does not take kindly to a newcomer like Sophia taking her spotlight, so she launches a dangerous plan to get her rival out of the way.
Thoughts
Lilly and her friend, Charlotte, are driving to a party. A man puts something in her drink, and she crashes her car. Lilly was one of the top cheerleaders in the state.
Cut to Sophia, who is going to cheer camp for a college scholarship. Her father encourages her, and they have a sweet relationship. Sophia’s mother passed away, and they are getting by the best they can, but really need that scholarship.
Sophia and her friend Jack meet the other athletes. Charlotte is still sad about her friend’s disqualification from the camp due to her system’s drugs in the accident. Charlotte and Sophia are happy to be roommates. A group of mean girls lead by Victoria Richards, who has 500,000 Followers on Social Media.
Coach Cooper introduces herself and her fellow coaches. Mary (a redhead) and Beth (who is also Victoria’s overbearing mother) seem to be at odds. There is also a medical doctor named Greg, and he is HOT. Hopefully, he isn’t a creeper.
Auditions happen, and Victoria is pretty terrible. Beth is impressed, but I am not. Andrew is not much better and looks like he is doing a TikTok video. When Sophia’s dancing is lackluster, I realize it is a choreographer issue. YIKES!!!
I think Jack is gay, but the movie wants me to believe that he and Sophia are meant to be. The athletes are split into two teams—the red team, coached by Beth, and featuring Victoria. Sophia is on the blue team, coached by Mary. Sophia is afraid to fly, but she should be frightened of Victoria and her baseball hat-wearing bad boyfriend, also the camp doctor. He is 100% a bad guy. He is also 100% SEXY AF!!!!
Victoria asks Sophia to join the red team and invites her to a party. Sophia is too trusting, and Charlotte/Jack calls her out on her naivety. (They still decide to go to the party.) At the party, there is a lot of drinking. Jack overhears the coaches doing a room check and saves the day. Victoria is pissed because she was attempting to set Sophia up to be removed from the camp. She sets her sights on getting rid of Jack next. Victoria stalks him on social media and decides to seduce him.
The plan works, and Sophia gets jealous. She tells him to go for it with Victoria. Jack does. They do a late-night cheer session together, and things get sexy-lite. Jack shuts it down when Victoria kisses him and promptly puts her in the friend zone. Victoria’s response? “No one has ever said no to, THIS!) Then she lures him to a parking lot in the middle of the night using Sophia’s phone.
In the parking lot, Jack almost gets run over. He is angry that Sophia stood him up and tells her the next day in practice. Sophia is confused because she didn’t send any test asking him to meet up. She speculates with Charlotte that Jack is only cheerleading because he wants to date with Sophia, which is a little creepy.
Some cheer choreography happens, which involves ONE GIRL DOING A CARTWHEEL and a lot of poms shaking. The coaches host a pizza party afterward, and Victoria convinces Sophia to skip it because cheese and carbs “are gross.” (They are essential to living your life to the fullest, actually.) The two girls are spending more and more time together. Sophia needs to wise up to the act that she is being played. Jack and Charlotte piece things together that Victoria hacked into Sophia’s phone. Kara is also at the pizza party and records the whole conversation.
Sophia and Victoria go out for drinks. Sophia does a shot and says, “That is strong.” After a few drinks, Sophia goes into the details of her mother’s death. It was a sudden brain aneurism. Sophia is too drunk, just like Victoria wanted. When campus security catches them out past curfew, the girls give other campers names (Kara and Charlotte), so they don’t get in trouble. Charlotte puts drunk Sophia to bed and isn’t aware of the betrayal. Kara is kicked out of the camp, and Charlotte gets off with a warning.
The pressure is being up on Victoria to win the scholarship from her mother. Beth and Victoria conspire to put Sophia on top of the pyramid. Sophia falls and is but on crutches by the shady and morally bankrupt doctor.
Lilly is back and shares what she knows with Sophia. They realize that Victora has been working with the team doctor to sabotage them both to get ahead. Sophia plans to get proof. She promptly records a video of Victoria and the doctor making out and sends it to the other coaches. Victoria claims to be attacked and gets the doctor fired.
Sophia comes crawling back to her friends. Her apology is heartfelt, and their friendship is adorable and true to life. A cute/happy montage happens with Sophia, Jack, and Charlotte training for the camp champion’s big competition.
Happiness doesn’t last long, because it is almost the end of the movie. Victoria kidnaps Sophia and takes her to the woods, tieing her high in a tree by her arms? It is confusing and racially insensitive. Can’t we tie this girl up to a chair in the basement like normal? Sophia gets herself untied and is rescued by her friends. Yay!
Sophia and her teammates make it back for the showcase. It isn’t the show-stopping moment you’d hope for, but it is heartfelt and the best choreography in the movie. Sophia gets the scholarship and celebrates by turning Victoria into the police for trying to kill her and tying her to a tree. Then she kisses Jack. The end!
Side Note
Minority Report: Sophia (in the female protagonist role!), Coach Cooper, Kara,
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Overall rating
🔪🔪🔪 (3 Knives, Added an extra knife for Mariah Robinson)
🍷🍷🍷 (3 glasses of wine required.)
*Photo Credit: © 2020 Lifetime
Where can I watch this movie (Cheer Camp Killer), specifically in Canada? I can’t seem to find it anywhere, including the night it was released. LifeTime channel in Canada did not have it on their schedule. I can’t seem to find an answer from anyone! Thanks
I’m not sure! Some times in the US the movies are available on Hulu afterwards. Good luck.
Hello! I don’t think it has been released in foreign markets yet. Sometimes the movie can be found on Hulu if you have that in Canada. Good luck!