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“Operation Varsity Blue” Documentary Offers Hints for People

to Reflect Upon the 2019 College Admission Scandal

Yijian Jin | May 30, 2022

Matthew Modine as Rick Singer in 'Operation Varsity Blues' Picture from Netflix

College admission may be a troublesome process for most high school students. However, what

if students may have an alternate path that bypasses all the difficulties such as getting a high

score on all standard tests, or having a diverse portfolio of academic and extracurricular awards?

Directed by Chris Smith, the documentary “Operation Varsity Blues: The College Admission

Scandal” reproduced the famous college admission fraud which happened in 2019. With the

utilization of filming techniques, a structured storyline, and the accompanying music effects,
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Chris Smith was able to reenact the mastermind behind this scam which sneaks the rich kids into

the top colleges of the US; not only did it reproduce this scam from its root to the end, but also it

unveils a rotten system behind the entire college system. Overall, I believe this film is very well

plotted, and it is trustworthy anatomy of that scam. This film is highly recommended for the ones

who heard about the 2019 college admissions scandal but don’t know much about it, and also it

is for students and their parents who are preparing for college admission.

The name of this film, “Operation Varsity Blues”, is the actual operation code of the operation

which investigated the entire network behind the admission scheme. More than thirty parents of

college applicants got accused of paying Rick Singer more than millions of dollars just to get

their kids into top colleges in an assured manner. Rick Singer, who is the mastermind behind this

scam, used part of that money to bribe college officials and make modifications to the standard

test scores in a filthy way. Singer started this “business” back in 2011, and most families know

him as a private college admission counselor who guides their kids to prepare for college

applications. Normally, when college applicants apply for college, they have to send their

applications through the application portal, where they will pack up their test scores, admission

essays, and academic or extracurricular awards, to the admission office of each school, and the

admission office will examine the potential applicants on whether their ability matches the

requirements of the college. Also, some rich families may donate millions of dollars to the top

universities such as Harvard or Princeton for a better chance of getting into that college.

However, in almost 8 years, he unethically sends kids to top US universities in a way which he

calls the “side-door”, which is much cheaper and more effective than directly donating to

colleges.
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The montage effect has been frequently used in the film. Montage, meaning “editing” or

“assembly” in French, is an editing technique that combines a series of separate video footage to

create a continuous sequence of storytelling. The use of montage is effective in quickly

developing characters through the manipulation of time and space by inserting multiple narrating

perspectives on one object. For example, the director can shape a character through objective

voiceover, third person narration, and the subjective expression of a person’s thoughts. At the

beginning of the film “Operation Varsity Blues: College Admission Scandal”, a series of video

footage was presented showing college applicants’ reactions toward their received admission

decision. Suddenly, the scenes shift to news clips reporting this scam, and the news reporters in

the clips are giving important details such as repeatedly say out the name “Rick Singer” and the

code “Operation Varsity Blues”, and also giving multiple descriptions of the federal investigation

on this scam as well as its influence on public reaction. Even though the combined footage

doesn’t last two minutes, such a series of video clips is able to provide the audience with a

general idea of what exactly happens in these events through multiple perspectives.

The montage effect is also used in developing characters in this film. Rick Singer, the main

character throughout this entire film, has an elusive personality. Also, instead of directly

presenting Singer’s character by himself like depicting his inner heart or direct voiceover,

Singer’s character and personality may be different in different people’s minds. A big part of this

film is driven by Singer’s conversation with his clients on the phone. Through multiple

conversations with those parents, those parents reveal a sense of trust in Rick Singer’s ability in

what he does rather than humanize Singer. In addition, interspersing between the progress of the
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film, there are multiple interviews with people who have some connections with the events.

Through part of those interviews, Singer’s character is gradually been built up from different

perspectives. For example, in one of the interviews with one of his friends who he used to date

from a dating app, she says “I really don’t know what made him happy or what his desires really

were…It’s almost like a rat on a wheel, trying to get to a means to an end, and there was really

no end in sight.” Just like this, even at the end of the film, there’s still no proper explanation of

Singer’s personality and the motivation behind his doing, but rather there are multiple narrations

from other people depicting Singer. Such effects give the audience a sense of mystery, and it left

the audience with more speculation about Singer as a person. Ironically, Rick Singer is still

technically a free person and waiting for a court sentence, as compared to one of the last scenes

where all the rich parents walk out of the court followed by the details of their verdicts.

The incorporation of music brings the viewing experience to an even higher level, as well as the

overall color tone of the film. The background music is settled in a tense tune, which is effective

in bringing the audience into the plot more immersively. In one scene where Rick Singer is

talking to one of his clients on the phone regarding how he is going to “cheat” on the ACT exam,

the music tone is similar to the pattern of heartbeats when people are nervous about doing

something. Combining the cold colors of the scene, the music, and the color is able to immerse

the audience just like they are actually doing such things, bringing the audience a sense of

nervousness. Furthermore, connecting with the plot and the character of Rick Singer, the

rhythmic music and cold color set off the anxiety feeling of the audience with the progress of the

plot, as well as the mysterious and elusive intention of Rick Singer.

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Last but not least, even though the documentary itself is documenting a scam as we saw, the

most interesting aspect of the film is that it is able to indirectly reflect the reality of how higher

education nowadays became a commodity, rather than simply knowledge. At this point, the film

is bringing itself to a whole new level and depth. There are scenes in the film where other college

applicants are complaining about how wealth is able to alter the results and some expert is

explaining the reality of the ranking system in higher education. Those scenes serve as the

implicit message from the film, and that message unveils how “prestige” contributes to the fact

that wealthy families are voluntarily paying millions to colleges to keep the endowment high,

and ironically, the film exposes that “top universities” actually want that to happen. If famous

people and wealthy families are voluntarily paying Rick Singer for his scam and potentially

facing criminal charges, then such action is worthy, right? The film ends with an open question

for the audience to reflect upon this phenomenon, and everyone may have an explanation for

themselves.

In summary, I believe “Operation Varsity Blues: College Admission Scandal” is a very well

presented documentary. The use of the montage technique effectively constructs the plot in an

effective and efficient manner, and it is working well in developing characters. The music and

color tone is able to levitate the viewing experience of the audience, which immerse the audience

into the film. From my point of view, this film is highly recommended for college applicants who

are preparing or will be preparing for college applications, their parents, and those who wish to

know more about the 2019 college admission scam.