Sleepaway Camp (1983)

Too much of everything

the audience applauded

Such a frustrating disappointment

A lot more amusing than I thought it would be.

This movie starts off as a campy regular flick, but wow what a twist!

...but who are we kidding: Sleepaway Camp is the best summer-camp slasher movie ever made.I compare this movie (and the original, underrated Friday the 13th) to getting on a sketchy-looking carnival ride. The ride looks old, it seems to have been carelessly assembled, and the ride operator is drunk; you never feel that your life is in the hands of capable, trustworthy people, and that's half of the fun.The weird appeal of Sleepaway Camp starts pre-credits, with its bizarre dedication, and continues all the way to the closing credits, with its freeze-frame and its magnificently horrible would-be pop hit, "Angela's Theme."I don't know, man. This is obviously an irresponsible movie, with some very outdated ideas about gender and sexuality, but I think we just have to love it like the weird cousin we see at Thanksgiving.As is true with the best cult genre movies: sometimes Sleepaway Camp is so bad it's good, and other times it's just good. (Rarely is it in the boring middle.) Sometimes you're laughing with the movie, and sometimes you're laughing at the movie. Some of the performers are entertaining because they're pretty good actors, and some are entertaining because they're so terrible (but we sense that they don't really care; this production isn't Shakespeare, or a first-step towards stardom).Crazy Aunt Martha, what have you started here?PS: the orchestral musical score is one of the things that's good-good. Effectively scary!

I'm not one to review films that already have so many reviews. So, I'm not really going to. I'm 40 years old and I've never heard of this film; which is odd seeing how I've seen a lot of horror films and films in general. From the very beginning I didn't think I was going to like it mainly because of the acting which is primarily horrible throughout but I've seen enough indie films to discard that impression and keep going. This film, for the type of film it is, actually addresses some serious issues, especially for its time (early 1980s). Topics like molestation, child abuse, bullying, homosexuality, and transgenderism. Some very serious topics for an indie slasher film. I like how the killer just doesn't kill indiscriminately. That's a problem with some slasher films: everyone's fair game but doesn't really play into the psychosis of the character (usually told in flashbacks or opening scenes; such as with this film) and just makes it about the kill rather than the purpose of it. There's purpose to the kills in this film which makes for a better film. There's also a bittersweet romantic side to this which I found ironic, at times.There's actually hints throughout the film that shows that the character Angela isn't just some shy and quiet girl because of what happened to her father and sibling shown in the beginning of the film. I always felt bad for her, throughout. She's tormented and bullied constantly by some of the kids and some of the adults. Some try to protect her but to no avail. Her cousin is always there for her, almost too there for her; it's like: what is it that he knows that we don't? Of course the ending tells us what he knows and I kind of felt he was like the greatest cousin ever though his mother was a nutjob; of course, I had that impression of her from the beginning of the film. She already seemed as if she had few screws loose.I'm a technical rater, when you've seen as many films and TV shows as I have, typically that's what one becomes. On a technical basis, it's a 4/10. Most of the acting is horrible. The direction and writing is subpar. Even the music isn't very good (compositionwise). As I said above: it does delve into some serious issues; mainly bullying and for even taking the chance on that, especially with the surprise ending, I'd give it an 8/10. So, 6.3/10. I'll round that up.

I watched this because I read reviews raving about the twist at the end.... I was expecting a sixth sense kind of ending. So I put up with the horrible acting, ridiculous dialogue, predictable story line, and the oddest killing tools that I've ever seen. The first attempt to kill someone should have been my first clue. Pulling a chair out from someone (yes a chair not a ladder) which by the way the guy sees it coming, they fall and pour boiling water on top of them. Now I won't even get into how most people would have jumped down because it's ridiculous that anyone would grab a huge pot of boiling water to stop them self from falling, but he was alive and yelling and crying and no one thought to ask "hey who did this?" I'm assuming as they kept saying how much pain he was in that that was there way of explaining why he couldn't tell them anything. Now I've sat thru movies thinking the victim was pretty stupid to be caught like they were, but sitting on the toilet in a public bathroom when the killer uses a broom handle to keep the door from opening and then releases bees and your to stupid to crawl under the stall? I was so frustrated that I rooted for the bees. Then there was the kill with a curling iron? Where exactly does one put that to kill someone(her clothes were still on in case your mind went there). Then half way thru the movie they realize there is a killer and NO ONE goes home? Instead they continue on as if nothing is wrong. Then the writers who think we weren't paying attention have someone call the camp and they are told yes their is a killer?!?! Huh? Then we are finally at the end and I'm thinking OK this is it, this is where I get rewarded for not shutting the stupid movie off and the killer is revealed AND ITS...... well I won't go into that much detail. All I can say is that yes when I saw who it was and they flashed on why I went wow didn't see that coming.... However it wasn't worth getting there. My advice watch the first 15 min. Then the ending and call it a day.