Netflix movie eyes college admissions scandal
“Operation Varsity Blues: The College Admissions Scandal” is a pretty straightforward title for such a strange – and effective – documentary.
You may remember the scandal as the sting that nailed Aunt Becky from “Full House,” among other celebrities. It was. But it was much more than that, and after you watch Chris Smith’s film, you’ll probably think of it a little differently. Smith, who directed “Frye” and produced “Tiger King,” doesn’t absolve anyone of blame, especially not Rick Singer, the former coach who allegedly masterminded the whole thing.
But Smith also focuses on the American education system, particularly at elite universities. The movie, now streaming on Netflix, is as much about white privilege as it is anything else, an examination of the incredible
advantages the wealthy have – advantages that don’t prevent them from cheating anyway. These are people who don’t hear the word “no” very often, and have no intention of hearing it from a college admissions department. That helps explain why simply settling for a lesser school wasn’t a consideration for some.
This isn’t exactly breaking news, that the rich game the system for their own benefit. But it’s the way Smith lays everything out that is so compelling. He uses a combination of news footage, interviews with experts and investigators, even the former Stanford sailing coach, who took money from Singer.
Smith also uses reenactments. Wait, don’t stop reading! You should still watch. Yes, reenactments in documentaries often are awkward at best, stupid and disruptive at worst. That’s not the case in “Operation Varsity Blues,” however. Smith casts recognizable-but-not-super-famous actors, including Matthew Modine as Singer, in scenes in which they use actual transcripts from FBI wiretaps and documents for dialogue.
If it sounds weird, that’s because it is. In the best possible way. The technique makes the film seem more personal, which also means more maddening, because these people are weasels.
Singer, it seems, was aloof (and with good reason – he couldn’t afford to get too close to anyone). But he knew how to work people. After a brief stint coaching basketball, where his temper evidently was a liability, he hit upon a scheme in which he could get students into colleges out of their reach (or that he said were
– one person says actress Felicity Huffman’s daughter could have gotten into the college of her choice without Singer’s help).
Of course this came at a price. A hefty price. Want his expert to take the SAT for your child? That started at $75,000, and involves your child pretending to have learning differences to qualify for a private exam. Nice.
There are three ways to get into college, we hear Signer telling a client. The first is the front door – on merit. If you can imagine such a thing. Next is the back door – donating millions to build a library or some such.
Singer’s route was the side door.
Typically this meant targeting minor sports that are always looking for money. Singer would doctor applications, sometimes something as brazen and simple as changing the race of the applicant. Sometimes, he used Photoshop to make it appear the applicants were athletes who wanted to walk on at the school, even though they weren’t. Combine that with a hefty donation to Singer’s foundation – not build-a-library cash, but something in the six figures, maybe – and once he converted that to a bribe, in you go.
Of course, it takes two for the scheme to work. If someone’s offering the money, someone on the other end has to accept it. That’s why Singer went for minor, money-starved sports.
Lori Loughlin (she’s Aunt Becky) and Huffman are the biggest names associated with the scandal. Smith includes the videos of Laughlin’s daughter, Olivia Jade, whining about school. This juxtaposes nicely with the videos we often see of kids at their computers, hitting refresh until their dream school’s decision is revealed – the school’s decision on them. Yes, we see some happy results.
But Smith also shows us some unhappy ones, too, rejections that are devastating. It’s not subtle. Nor should it be.
Huffman and Loughlin served time. The Stanford sailing coach was fired and sentenced to house arrest.
You know who hasn’t served any time? The answer probably will not surprise you: Singer. Of course. The real surprise would be if he had.