Coming of age stories are a dime a dozen, but writer/director Michael Lewen aims to breathe new life into the genre with Tiny Fugitives, a summer-soaked adventure that certainly has its charms and heart in the right place, but is ultimately woefully forgettable.
Tiny Fugitives centers on a young boy named Jacob (Benjamin Pajak), a sweet, but awkward child who lives for the summer, especially spending time at his sleepaway camp where he feels most like himself surrounded by his closest friends. However, when it appears he may not be able to return to camp the following summer, Jacob and his friends hatch a dangerous and chaotic scheme to escape their reality and spend the rest of their days at summer camp. Unfortunately, they’re faced with one man in their way named Bob (Johnny Knoxville), a middle-aged camp counselor determined to put their plans to rest for good.
This raunchy coming of age comedy stems from Lewen’s own childhood and fondest summer memories spent at camp, a nostalgia and tenderness that wonderfully seeps into this adventure. It also helps that he’s assembled a terrific young cast here. Pajak makes for a very likable lead, conveying Jacob’s awkwardness and insecurities in addition to his evolution into a young man more confident in himself with a delicate, nuanced touch as he’s faced with a wide variety of stressful, heartbreaking and life changing circumstances. His best friend Charness (Aaron Harris) is also a delight here, the two of them sharing a palpable chemistry and comfortability with one another that makes their friendship feel lived-in. Every great friendship will face its trials and tribulations and seeing these two young performers navigate them together here becomes one of the film’s most notable assets.
However, Knoxville is the film’s most pleasant surprise, making Bob far more of a three-dimensional, misunderstood character than a one note antagonist. Knoxville thankfully dials back his more erratic and high energy tendencies in favor of a more understated performance, a choice that makes the character the best in the film by a wide margin. He not only gets a chance to continue showing his physical dedication and prowess when it comes to stunts, but show a softer, more vulnerable side to his talents, a discovery that hopefully continues to be mined in future roles. The central dynamic between Bob and Jacob is easily the most entertaining facet of the film, their cat and mouse dynamic providing ample amounts of entertainment as their relationship and rivalry reaches its fever pitch. In fact, the way in which the two characters’ journeys mirror and run parallel to one another becomes the film’s most fertile territory that it explores exceedingly well.
The winning ingredient the film possesses though is the immersive and nostalgic atmosphere Lewen is able to create, making the summer camp setting feel as if it’s a warm, comforting memory the audience can simply step into and let wash over them. Couple that enveloping atmosphere with a film that has its heart in the right place and you have a very accessible and charming comedy. However, this is a comedy that is far more compelling when it wears its heart earnestly on its sleeve than when it’s trying to aim its sights at delivering raunchy laughs.
The film’s humor is noticeably hit or miss here, Lewen and co-writer Jacob Kaplan’s script relying far too much on lazy, foul-mouthed jokes that land far left of center with an audible thud. The film far too often feels as if it’s trying to be akin to other R-rated comedies like Superbad or Good Boys, a choice that simply doesn’t suit the story and characters well. The inherent shock value of seeing young children use foul language wears thin very quickly, the language feeling more like a crutch than an asset. Sure, there are some jokes that do land and show shades of a far sharper, more mature comedy, but those moments are unfortunately few and far between.
It also doesn’t help matters that the film’s characters are thin to say the least. While Jacob is given a fair amount of depth with the film’s potent glimpses into his home life amongst other explorations, the supporting characters fall considerably short of being well-rounded. Charness and the rest of the core group of young characters including Tali (Isa Bernal Steiner) Sophie (Alyssa Gervasi) and Leon (Jai Soundar) don’t get any interesting material to work with, each of them mostly relegated to stock characters found in a litany of coming of age tales. Even talented comedic performers like Jay Baruchel and Blake Anderson feel stranded in roles that waste their respective talents.
3 out of 5 stars.
Tiny Fugitives may not be the most emotionally compelling or hilarious entry into this well-worn genre, but Lewen’s personal and heartfelt touch helps it stand out amongst the very crowded pack. Childhood summer memories can be the most profound memories and experiences that can be the catalyst for change, growth, hardship, heartbreak and ultimately maturity. This comedy demonstrates that quite well, but it would’ve been far more memorable and enduring if it focused more on exploring that instead of trying so hard to be the next R-rated classic.
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