The Floaters

NEWPORT BEACH FILM FESTIVAL 2025 REVIEW! The Floaters is an authentic summer camp comedy with a Jewish spin. Director Rachel Israel’s film has a contemporary feel as it carries the memorability of John Hughes’ teen comedies.

Nomi (Jackie Tohn) is a rebellious member of a rock band. Everything is going smoothly until she is ousted from the group. This devastates her as she was anticipating their European tour. Her best friend, Mara (Sarah Podemski), calls her at the right moment and offers Nomi the position as a last-minute counselor at a Jewish summer camp, Camp Daveed. She reluctantly takes the offer, and she is assigned to the outcasts of the camp, known as “floaters.”

“…offers Nomi the position as a last-minute counselor at a Jewish summer camp…”

Jonah (Judah Lewis), new to Camp Daveed, does not want to be there. He is uninterested in his Jewish heritage. Eli (Jonathan Silverman) and his father sent him to make potential Yale connections and friends. The Dahlias (Bekah Zornosa, Jillian Jordyn), who are always in-synch, and Lindsey (Nina Bloomgarden), a martyr figure. Nomi encourages the kids to express themselves and adapt a famous work through their own perspective. Jonah takes a bold risk and reworks Sodom and Gomorrah into a raunchy college comedy that pokes fun at pretentious institutions. This unorthodox teambuilding exercise leads to new friendships and shakes up camp traditions. Mara also has to deal with Daniel (Seth Green), the counselor at Camp Barak, who engages in petty antics. She desperately needs extra funding for their facilities as the plumbing system has gotten worse. The camp’s fate relies on fundraising from the annual competition between Camp Daveed versus Camp Barak.

The Floaters is the perfect summer comedy. Brent Hoff, Andra Gordon, and Amelia Brain’s screenplay has believable characters, a love for Jewish culture, and earnest comedy. It is the perfect mash-up of John Hughes’ teen comedies, School of Rock, and Grown Ups. On the surface, it seems like a story about outsiders, slobs versus snobs, and teen angst, yet there is so much more. It recontextualizes aspects of the Old Testament with a fresh lens, especially in Lindsey’s storyline. Israel’s film elevates the ensemble comedy to new heights. The cast is memorable! Audiences will love Jake Ryan’s and Jim Kaplan’s performances as Wetspot and Tums.

The humor is sharp and tackles cultural differences between Gen Z and Gen Xers in a clever way. There is a fun running gag with Lily (Aviya Leong), one of the campers, who gives witty one-liners defending Gen Z’s unusual tastes. The Floaters definitely has potential to be a major hit! Especially as comedies struggle to make a mark in theaters, Rachel Israel’s piece has the legs to make it to the big leagues. Put on your sunblock and soak in the antics at Camp Daveed.