User Reviews

With the 'Ernest' film series, there are people who get much entertainment out of them and finds a lot of appeal in Ernest. There are also people who dislike, or even outright hate, the films and find the character annoying.

For me, while they are not great films, the 'Ernest' films are mostly silly harmless fun that don't try to be any more than they need to be. They're mostly uneven but entertaining in a guilty pleasure sort of way, and Ernest is the sort of the character one can relate to easily. The sort of character that is a well-intended serial bungler with a strong heart but always finding himself messing up. 'Ernest Goes to Camp' was the film that started it all off, and while not one of the series' best to me it really wasn't bad.

'Ernest Goes to Camp' is an uneven film sure. It is thin in story which makes the tacked-on and ridiculously over-the-top evil businessman/company subplot and ending even more muddled and out of place. Low budget does show in some of the slapdash camera work.

Not all the humour and sentimentality work, though mostly do. Some of the slapstick is very childish, even for an Ernest film, and some of the sentimentality is cloying and cornball. Other than Jim Varney and the appealing children, the rest of the cast are not all that memorable.

Varney however is immensely likable and great fun as Ernest, thought he had a lot of charm and to be honest in the 'Ernest' films in general the mugging that he has been criticised for is to me not that apparent. The camp setting is nicely nostalgic, for anybody with fond memories of camping will it will be like a trip down memory line, and the music is an energetic delight.

It was said earlier that not all the humour and sentimentality worked. Most does, from personal opinion that is. Most of the time it was a range of being quite amused to being in hysterics in the laughter factor, and there are some sweet and touching moments. Also appreciated some of the messaging/values done without preaching.

Overall, not a bad start for Ernest even if it's not one of his best. 6/10 Bethany Cox

I am a big fan of Jim Varney and his Ernest P Worrell character. I saw all four of the Ernest movies in the theater. I saw "Ernest Goes to Camp" in theater (Cinema City, Fresh Meadows, NY) when I was 23 years old. "Goes to Camp" is my least favorite of the theatrical movies. It has a lot of funny parts but there's too much downtime. The movie is too serious at times and is way too violent at one point. That said, I still enjoy watching "Ernest Goes to Camp'. I just don't watch it as much as I watch the other movies in the series. (True confessions: I snuck into this movie after watching "Ishtar".)

Ernest's summer camp adventure is actually his second feature-length adventure after he began life in TV commercials (not a lot of people know he actually starred in Dr. Otto and the Riddle of the Gloom Beam the year before), and it's fairly standard mid-80s family fare.

The clumsy handyman (played, by the late, ever appealing Jim Varney) gets a job as a counselor for delinquent kids who are having trouble fitting in with the more privileged lot. Through pain and pranks he manages to build their confidence. A very tacked-on subplot about an evil businessman wanting scam the Indian camp owner in order to mine the area into oblivion builds to a moderately entertaining climax as Ernest and the kids revolt.

It reminded me a lot of Meatballs and Bushwhacked (both better films) and while it's shot for the big screen (in lovely anamorphic Panavision) John Cherry still directs like it's for TV, and clearly should have done more takes and rehearsals. I doubt kids will notice or care, but it gives the film the rushed feel of a TV production.

Worth watching, if only just once.

This was the first "Ernest" film, and I've been reading a lot of people's comments, how they're bashing this movie, and saying it wasn't good. I disagree. "Ernest Goes To Camp" is a great "Ernest" film. The plot is very solid, and Jim Varney's first theatrical movie as the dim witted Ernest P. Worrell was a LAUGH RIOT!!!! Varney did a great job in this film, and this was the movie that got me hooked into "Ernest" films in the first place.

Jim Varney Rules (I miss you!!)!

While many have put down the Ernest series, I have always held a special place in my movie collection for this particular film. Sure, it wasn't an Oscar worthy film and it didn't have much of a script, but it quickly introduced us to an icon which I will consider one of my favorite movie characters of all time. Ernest P. Worrel embodied so many simplicities, yet he was sensible and likable simply because of his down-home nature. Also, this film embodied the old story line of the loser teaching the bully a lesson, which is a story paradigm I have always levitated toward. A good heart warming story that was cool and fun to watch.

This is one of the worst of the "Ernest films," starring the likeble Jim Varney. Good 'ole "Ernest B. Worrell" might be a good guy - and Varney was a wonderful comedian almost all of us loved, even if just for his famous television commercials - but I didn't really care for this movie.

It was mostly the obnoxious kids in here that ruined things for me. They weren't in the "Midstate Boys Detention Camp" for no reason: they were nasty. Oh, all that is but one: the black kid, of course. The white kids are all bad. Can you say "political correctness?" Can you save "reverse racism?" Sorry to see that racial nonsense in an Ernest, but there's more Liberal baloney in here, too.

Football player (and no actor) Lyle Azado plays one of the bad guys. That also tells you something about the quality of this lamebrain effort.

"Ernest" has a mission in this movie: "Shaping and molding youthful minds into a focused world view." Yeah, right.

Still, I miss Jim Varney.

A group of juvenile criminals is sent for vacation to Kamp Kikakee. The clumsy Ernest (Jim Varney) has to care for them, although he doesn't even know how to take care of himself.

There were a handful of good Ernest films. "Saves Christmas" is excellent, and both "Goes to Jail" and "Scared Stupid" are pretty good. This may be the best one, though. It really tried to have a deeper message that appealed both to kids and adults. It may be silly, it might have delinquents who seem like nice kids, and it may have a Sicilian who plays an Indian chief... but it is a good movie.

I understand why this film has an overall low rating, but it should not be as low as it currently is (5.4 in September 2015). This is a true children's classic.

Textbook example of a movie that worked when you were eight years old, with significantly diminishing returns. I must've watched this a hundred times, back when Ernest was still a minor national phenomenon, then left it on the shelf for three decades before a recent re-visit with my kids. Today the roles have reversed, of course, and while the youngsters cheered for exploding toilets and parachuting box turtles, I rolled my eyes at the tacky one-liners and lazy, cut-rate production.

Jim Varney really is the film's sole redeeming quality, recklessly hurling himself into the title role with unconditional abandon. He's boundlessly energetic, a short-fused bundle of nonstop physical comedy with a halting, drawl-tinged voice. No wonder he caught on for a brief, fifteen-minute flirtation with fame. Ernest is about more than easy laughs, too. Varney's charisma is magnetic, with a noticeable trace of sweetness at the root of it all. He's garish and one-note, but that inherent, simple openness is genuine and disarming. The story might force-feed him into sappy situations, befriending a bullied kid and standing up to the ultimate 80s stereotype (a corporate businessman with no respect for nature, the horror), but we can't really blame him for failing to polish that brown nugget. It wasn't for lack of trying.

The bumbling Ernest is a handyman at Camp Kikakee and is forced to take up for the "bad" kids from juvie. A crooked mine developer wants the camp and Ernest gets everyone to fight back to save the camp.

This movie was a hit to me as a kid in the 80s and it holds up fine for kids today. Yeah it's just slapstick and goofiness for 90 minutes but it's fun enough and simple enough that it works for a specific audience. Taken away from the Ernest mania of the time you might wonder just what the deal was, but once the thing gets going, you can pick up on the vibe. A few songs are pure 80s cheese and the final fight is ridiculous, but it's still a simple good time.

Other than this movie featuring Ernest from all those wacky commercials, this movie just plays out as your basic summer camp movie. Why is it so bad, because you have Ernest as the main character, plus very annoying children, and a silly subplot involving some company trying to take over the camp. I just do not think the Ernest character should be center stage for a movie. The short lived television show was the only thing this character needed as it featured other characters and such to draw some of the focus away from Ernest himself. Lets face it, the character got his start in commercials as a rather annoying individual and it was funny to see him torment Vern, but more funny to see Vern get back at Ernest for bothering him in the first place. The movie here would feature a couple of the characters from the television show as cooks and they provide some comedy and Ernest has his moments. However, most of the movie is rather groan inducing and to top it off it gets overly sentimental at times as well. I can not really recommend this movie unless perhaps you have seen his other movies and liked them. Granted if you have seen them I am sure you saw this his first movie.

This is by far, the funniest ernest p. worrell flicks ever. What I still like about it, its that not only is it heartwarming and rejuvenated; but from the series itself, this is the only normal one I consider funny. I know its slapstick comedy when Ernest gets squash from a coke machine or when he is flying from the toliet; but at least he's not chasing trolls, playing basketball, in the army, in africa, in jail, saving santa, or worse yet, school. I can't go any farther than this, but this is the only ernest flick that I will only watch, and still like until the day I die.

The goofy yet lovable Ernest P. Worrell portrayed by the great (Jim Varney) is a classic comedy Icon of my childhood. Me and my cousin could laugh for hours just quoting lines from his films.

Ernest Goes To Camp is my favorite of all the Ernest movies. Even though I enjoyed him saving Christmas, going to jail, and getting scared stupid, it always will be him as the dim witted Kamp Kikakee counselor of the last chance kids that I love best.

From the classic jokes, to his endearing rendition of (Gee I'm Glad It's Raining), this is in my opinion the best Jim Varney performance as the Ernest character.

I recently saw this movie on DVD at a friend's house, and surprising it wasn't as terrible as I expected. Alot of the reviews of this movie are either by diehard Ernest fans or people who are totally against his brand of humor. I consider myself somewhere inbetween, as this was one of my first Ernest films. Some of Ernest's antics are entertaining, in a goofy/innocent slapstick way. The general plot of Ernest trying to save a camp works well I suppose.

The only things that ruin the movie are the supposedly criminal kids and the ending. The juvy kids are actually 100 times more well behaved than the "normal," non-criminal children! I assume the juvy kids were put in the "institution" for a reason! I mean they could have at least made them badasses who reform, but instead the writers made them lovable from the start, which was pretty annoying.

The other glaring annoyance is the ending. At the end of the film Ernest and the kids attack a group of Krader Construction workers with firebombs and stuff and I'm pretty damn sure they were trying to kill these guys. At least in this part the Juvy kid's true nature is exposed. This scene is made even more over the top by the Krader boss with the hunting rifle who tries to kill Ernest but can't because of some Indian powers that protect him from bullets. It was poorly done and ruined what was otherwise a fun little movie.

Besides these painful flaws, Ernest Goes to Camp has some fun hijinks that children or viewers in the mood for something light might enjoy. I was surprised by a pretty clever reference Ernest makes about being in the Vietnam war at one point, too bad they didn't use more of such humor.

Ernest goes to camp was released in 1987 to not so good reviews. That didn't stop people from going to the theater. The film brought in nearly 25 million domestically. That's pretty good considering the film cost only 3 million to make. This movie might not be award winning, but if truly watched, you'll find that Ernest P. Worrell isn't as annoying after all. He can be funny at times. The story isn't all that bad for being written by unknowns. It involves Ernest, a goofball counselor who must save his camp from being destroyed by miners with the help of some juvenile kids. It's more interesting than it sounds. Give it a try, you'll know in the first 15 minutes whether it's your kind of movie or not.

Rating: C+

I was completely shocked at how bad the humor in this movie is. my jaw literally dropped in the first minute of the movie. i almost stopped it after 3 minutes, which would have been a record for me. the only reason i kept going is because i couldn't look away. i watched in disbelief at how horrendous this movie is. i made it to the 19 minute mark before quitting. only watch this movie is your are 5 years old (about 3 viewings, 11/21/2020

Many people have rejected the Ernest Line, but it holds a place of prominence within my own movie collection for its heart and verve. Varney's self-generated character, Ernest, embodies the hapless hero, the underdog who triumphs in spite of his inadequacies, and sometimes because of them. He is not a jock, nor an intellect, nor is he particularly bright, but his heart shines above all adversity, and his honest earthiness breathes throughout his performances, even when he's being a complete idiot.

I've always been One to cheer for the underdog, and when it comes to life, Ernest was the epitome of an underdog.

This work tells the story of the underdog going against big business in order to save something he loves. What's more gungho American than that? In Ernest Scared Stupid, Ertha Kitt labeled him the "Great Redneck Hope," and that sentiment permeates every single one of Varney's Ernest movies, and even manages to surface in his last (and ultimately BEST) film, the Beverly Hillbillies.

This is my personal favorite of the line, as well as being the best.

It rates a 7.4/10 from...

the Fiend :.

This was the first theatrical fare for Ernest P. Worrell, the lovable and clumsy character from the 80s TV commercials. Not sure exactly how it went from "Hey, Vern" to starring in a string of his own movies (not even sure how many there are).

In this Ernest movie, he is in charge of taking care of kids sent to a juvenile detention camp for kids who are considered trouble. As always though, Ernest causes chaos and must ensure that he fixes his mistake by the end of the film. Chief Dan George (although Italian, and not Native American) makes a small role helping Ernest to teach the kids to behave.

I rated the film a 5/10 just because it is slow paced, much more than the other Ernest films.

I remember seeing this movie for the first time back when I was 7, and I thought it was the coolest! I would go around school and mock Ernest with his trademark 'ewwww' facial impression. Hadn't seen it in quite a while until I found it and bought it on DVD recently. Great family movie, suggest watching the series.

No, it's not a great film. It's a showpiece for Jim Varney, and nothing more. I always laughed at him, and he had tremendous talent. So I found this little film somewhat enjoyable. There are two cooks in the film which provide some good laughs as well. Keep them and Jim, lose all the rest and you have about a half hour of funny material.

One wonders why Jim couldn't break out of these Ernest movies, get more movies like Toy Story and Toy Story 2. Movies with a better script and budget so he could showcase his other talents.

Jim Varney was a good man and his movies are always funny and entertaining. Jim knew what the people wanted and put his soul into his movies. They are emotional, funny, and entertaining all at the same time. Jim was a movie god and his movies deserve nothing less than a 10 rating because they were more than excellent. R.I.P. Jim "Ernest" Varney

Wacky and undeniably funny, the Ernest movies are one of a kind. No other movie series can capture the same level of fun slapstick hijinks and goofiness of the Ernest series, not even the POLICE ACADEMY movies.

When I first saw this movie, I didn't think much of it. I didn't think it was a bad movie, but I didn't think that it was a good movie either. However, after seeing the movie a second time, I grew to appreciate the crazy antics of Ernest and he instantly became one of my favorite movie characters.

It is in ERNEST GOES TO CAMP that Ernest is at his best. The movie contains some hilarious scenes between Ernest and the campers, which help make this one of the best summer camp movies ever. Jim Varney, possibly the most underrated actor of the 1990s, was able to create such a unique and interesting character with this movie that it is really hard to dislike Ernest. There is a little Ernest in us all. Rest in peace, Jim Varney. Your legacy lives on!

I remember seeing this at the theater and Loved it!! 32 years later and still loving it and can't wait to let my son watch it. RIP Jim Varney your legend lives on. Thank you for this classic. I kinda tear up when you sing Gee I'm Glad it's Raining.