Netflix Review – Operation Varsity Blues: The College Admissions Scandal (2021)

Netflix’s new documentary details the ins-and-outs of the college admission scandal which saw famous faces, powerful CEOS and more being found guilty of using illicit measures to get their children into university.

Created by Chris Smith, the director of previous Netflix hits Fyre: The Greatest Party that Never Happened (2019) and The Disappearance of Madeleine McCann (2019), Operation Varsity Blues uncovers the scheme, master-mined by Rick Singer – an “admissions coach”, which meant rich families could pay to have their children accepted into top league universities in the US.  The story is told primarily through re-enactments alongside interviews and some archive footage, covering Rick Singer’s life and career; the high-profile families involved; and even the individuals that were accidentally caught up in the scam.

I’ve been sceptical about documentaries recently, especially Netflix documentaries, after a tirade of sensationalist content that has nothing valid or interesting to say however I needn’t have worried with this. From the outset it had me hooked with a montage of college acceptance vlogs followed shortly by the first re-enactment we see of Rick Singer talking to a “client”, negotiating how he’s going to get the client’s child into a top-of-the-league university. I find re-enactments in documentaries can often come across as amateur and cringe but that isn’t the case with Operation Varsity Blues. The direction is excellent, it’s shot well and the acting is the ideal tone for the piece – more than that, the re-enactments work well as a vehicle to illustrate the details of the scam.

For much of the film, the focus is on Rick Singer – his personality, his history – painting a detailed picture of this man at the centre of the scandal. However, at points the discussion around Singer teeters towards the “sinister” – a master-manipulator – which is slightly reductive and can sometimes hint at the idea that the scam was a one-off created by one evil genius. However, it’s undeniable that centring the focus on Singer propels the story in an engaging and clear way.

At the core of the documentary, what saves it from becoming simply a profile of a criminal, is the discussion surrounding the culture of US colleges. It’s the underlining story all the way through, highlighting the huge pressure students feel as well as uncovering the deception around the image of “prestige”. At the end of the film, as the dust settles after the media storm, it’s made clear that the uncovering of the scandal has had little effect on the culture of “prestigious” colleges, the culture that facilitated the scam. In fact, the colleges have only benefitted and the punishment of those involved is markedly inconsequential.

This documentary has a powerful and relevant message which is the rich and powerful can and will continue to exploit the system to their benefit, and get away with it. Even without paying hundreds of thousands of dollars for Singer’s scheme, the documentary highlights the fact that children from higher income families perform better in SATs because they can afford tutoring. The final sentence of the film reading “the “back door” remains open”, referring to how the colleges will admit a student if the donation is large enough, serves as a bleak reminder that nothing has really changed – the universities are in a way carrying out a scam of their own.

Overall, Operation Varsity Blues is an engaging, revealing and relevant film. The production quality is excellent and the story-telling is tight, weaving together the elements to construct a clear narrative. Most importantly, this documentary has a compelling argument which makes it worth the watch.

★★★★

Documentary, Crime | USA, 2021 | 17th March 2021 | Netflix | Dir. Chris Smith | Matthew Modine, Sarah Chaney, Leroy Edwards III

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Alice Sampson

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