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yendiSleepaway Camp. 1983. Written and Directed by Robert Hiltzik. Released by American Eagle.
Yes, I was a spoiled little kid who went to sleepaway camp (Camp Wildwood, which didn’t have a website back then, likely owing to the fact that the Web didn’t exist in the early ‘80s), a place only slightly nicer than the fifth circle of hell, and filled with many of the same people. It’s entirely possible that sleepaway camp is a more enjoyable experience now than back then. But when I went to camp, it was a place where bullies (kids and counselors) thrive, where outcasts take it from all sides (including the owners and supervisors), and where petty sadists hone their talents.
In short, sleepaway camps have never been portrayed more accurately than in the movie Sleepaway Camp*.
I can think of few horror films that tend to be more polarizing than this film. Aside from the “shock” ending (which we’ll talk about later), the movie often gets compared unfavorably to other ‘80s slasher flicks. There’s an entire camp** that dismisses this minor classic as nothing more than a Friday the 13th rip-off. I suspect that few of those folks ever actually went to sleepaway camp; the between-murder filler reflects life back then perfectly. But even those who don't see a reflection of their own lives are ignoring the fact that this was one of the few slasher films of that era to even bother with character development.
We open with a flashback. Two young children (a boy and a girl) are playing in a lake with their father. Elsewhere on the lake, we see some teens from the local sleepaway camp piloting a motorboat, and getting distracted as they watch their friend waterskiing behind them. Turning back to the family (where we meet the other parent, who turns out to be another man, much to the shock of our collective Reagan-era homophobia), we see them recognize the danger of the out-of-control motorboat a little too late, and as tragedy strikes, we cut to the future.
The only survivor of that accident, Angela, is now a shy young teenager, and she and her overprotective cousin Ricky have been raised by Ricky’s loopy (and alcoholic) mom Martha. Ricky’s been to Camp Arawak before, but this will be Angela’s first year. Ricky’s real excited, as he’s looking forward to seeing Judy, the girl with whom he went steady last summer. Alas, although she’s filled out quite nicely over the last year, she’s also turned into snotty teenager with no time for Ricky, and with nothing but disdain for Angela. We also meet Paul, Ricky’s nebbishy best friend from camp, who takes an instant shine to Angela.
After a couple of days at camp, Angela’s counselors are concerned about the fact that she hasn’t been eating, so they take her to see the head chef, Artie, who (in a move showing the importance of background checks) also happens to be sexually attracted to young teen girls. He’s about to take advantage of her when Ricky comes across them, and gets his cousin out of there.
Shortly thereafter, someone comes in when Artie is ready to toss a huge amount of corn into a pot of boiling water. Since he’s standing precariously on a chair to pour the corn into the pot, Artie doesn’t realize what’s happening until the chair’s been knocked over, and as he falls, he hits the pot, tipping eight quarts of boiling water all over him.
The camp director, like all camp directors, is concerned about the reputation of his camp more than anything, so he bribes the assistant cook (played by Robert Earl Jones, father of James) to keep quiet about it.
We then got some more camp scenes (a baseball game filled with cursing, some practical jokes), before segueing to a scene featuring some of the older boys, who start teasing Angela. Ricky nearly gets into a fight with Kenny, the boy doing most of the teasing. When the boys go skinny dipping later that night, someone sneaks out and drowns Kenny, whose body doesn’t show up until the next morning. Naturally, camp director Mel declares it a tragic accident, even though Kenny was known to be a good swimmer.
We get more character development. Paul invites Angela to the camp social. Judy and obnoxious counselor Meg tease Angela some more. That night, Paul kisses Angela (who shies away; she clearly has intimacy issues), and Judy teases him about Angela not being his type. The next day, Meg gets so frustrated with Angela’s lack of participation that she shakes her (getting a reprimand from the head counselor), and Judy gives Angela grief over the fact that she doesn’t shower with the other girls. Finally, a bunch of bratty boys, lead by Billy, throw water balloons at Angela, leading to yet another rescue by Ricky. All the boys (Ricky included, for his foul mouth) get in trouble.
Billy then goes to take a “wicked dump.” While doing so, someone bars the door to the stall with a branch. Billy assumes one of his buddies is playing a joke until someone cuts the screen window and inserts a beehive into the stall. Even Mel can’t deny that there’s something fishy going on at this point. He blames Ricky, but can’t prove anything, of course.
Later that night, Paul again kisses Angela, and tries to get to second base with her. She flashes back to the time when she and her sibling were younger, and they wandered into their parents’ room and saw their father and his partner getting it on. This causes her to run away, and although she apologizes the next day, when Paul tries to get close to her, she shies away.
Things escalate over the next half hour. We get lots more teasing of Angela, a possible reconciliation between Paul and Angela (they agree to meet that night on the waterfront) and no fewer than six revenge murders. Three more of the bratty boys are chopped up with an axe while on an overnight camping trip. Meg (who, incidentally, is sleeping with camp owner Mel) is stabbed while in the shower in an abandoned bunk. And Judy is ambushed while curling her hair alone in the bunk. The killer whacks her upside the head, places a pillow ever the face, and then uses the curling iron in a way that’s most definitely not recommended by the manufacturer***.
As head counselor Ronnie gathers the other counselor together to figure out what’s going on, Mel finds Meg’s body and goes into a rage. He eventually finds Ricky and beats the kid (half his size) into unconsciousness. Alas, he beat up the wrong kid, as Mel soon encounters the real killer at the archery range, and gets an arrow shot into his neck.
Angela and Paul meet at the waterfront, and she suggests that they take off their clothes and go for a swim. Paul doesn’t hesitate.
Meanwhile, folks (including Ronnie and the police officers who have been called in) are searching the camp, and find the unconscious Ricky as well as Meg’s corpse. Ronnie and one of the remaining girls hear some singing from the waterfront, and on investigating, see Angela sitting there, naked, with Paul’s severed head in her lap. A quick flashback to just after the boating accident reveales that the only survivor was the little boy, but loopy Aunt Martha had always wanted a girl, and hands “Angela” a dress.
Back in the present day, Angela stands up, and OMG, She’s Got a Penis!
Seriously. It ends with Angela standing up and revealing that she’s not only got a penis, but a decidedly male body, complete with body hair (even in places where there clearly wasn’t any previously), and some of the worst special effects ever (they put a mask of Angela over the face of a local college student to create the effect). The movie ends with a freeze-frame of her screaming face.
Like I said, I adore this movie on all sorts of levels. I don’t buy any of the bullshit about this being a F13 knock-off, other than the summer camp setting. Unlike most slashers, we actually get some serious character development here, and we’re given multiple sets of motivations for the killer. Further, we get arguably the most accurate depiction of summer camps on the big screen (the first Meatballs came close, to be fair). And better yet, the kids actually act like kids, from the foul language to the awkward awareness of newfound sexuality.
You can’t overlook the gender issues here, of course. Writer/Director Robert Hiltzik (in his only film to date, although IMDB does claim that he’s working on two new sequels) doesn’t exactly bring major Freudian credentials to the plate, but the backstory here adds a layer of complexity to the character of Angela, even if the plotline doesn’t seem to settle on whether it’s pitching homophobia, tolerance, or something in between.
The cast here isn’t exactly A-list (or even D-list), but they do a good enough job making their characters seem a lot more real than the more polished kid actors you’ll likely see in a horror movie today. The effects are decent enough for 1983. If there aren’t any true scares here, there are some nicely disturbing moments (the off-screen killing of Judy being the most notable), and the use of real kids throughout the productions – whether as typical foul-mouthed campers or as victims – adds a sense of danger that just isn’t there in many other ‘80s horror movies.
A quick note on the sequels: I love both of the existing sequels to this movie (and will review them later this year), but they maintain a completely different tone, and although they profess to feature the same Angela character, I choose not to consider them canon.
As for the original Sleepaway Camp, there are few ‘80s slashers that I’d recommend more than this one. With a bonus recommendation to any folks who had to suffer through sleepaway camp themselves.
*Well, except for the murders.
**Sorry.
***If any curling irons have, “Warning: Do not stick in your coochie” warning labels, it’s likely because of this scene.
Yes, I was a spoiled little kid who went to sleepaway camp (Camp Wildwood, which didn’t have a website back then, likely owing to the fact that the Web didn’t exist in the early ‘80s), a place only slightly nicer than the fifth circle of hell, and filled with many of the same people. It’s entirely possible that sleepaway camp is a more enjoyable experience now than back then. But when I went to camp, it was a place where bullies (kids and counselors) thrive, where outcasts take it from all sides (including the owners and supervisors), and where petty sadists hone their talents.
In short, sleepaway camps have never been portrayed more accurately than in the movie Sleepaway Camp*.
I can think of few horror films that tend to be more polarizing than this film. Aside from the “shock” ending (which we’ll talk about later), the movie often gets compared unfavorably to other ‘80s slasher flicks. There’s an entire camp** that dismisses this minor classic as nothing more than a Friday the 13th rip-off. I suspect that few of those folks ever actually went to sleepaway camp; the between-murder filler reflects life back then perfectly. But even those who don't see a reflection of their own lives are ignoring the fact that this was one of the few slasher films of that era to even bother with character development.
We open with a flashback. Two young children (a boy and a girl) are playing in a lake with their father. Elsewhere on the lake, we see some teens from the local sleepaway camp piloting a motorboat, and getting distracted as they watch their friend waterskiing behind them. Turning back to the family (where we meet the other parent, who turns out to be another man, much to the shock of our collective Reagan-era homophobia), we see them recognize the danger of the out-of-control motorboat a little too late, and as tragedy strikes, we cut to the future.
The only survivor of that accident, Angela, is now a shy young teenager, and she and her overprotective cousin Ricky have been raised by Ricky’s loopy (and alcoholic) mom Martha. Ricky’s been to Camp Arawak before, but this will be Angela’s first year. Ricky’s real excited, as he’s looking forward to seeing Judy, the girl with whom he went steady last summer. Alas, although she’s filled out quite nicely over the last year, she’s also turned into snotty teenager with no time for Ricky, and with nothing but disdain for Angela. We also meet Paul, Ricky’s nebbishy best friend from camp, who takes an instant shine to Angela.
After a couple of days at camp, Angela’s counselors are concerned about the fact that she hasn’t been eating, so they take her to see the head chef, Artie, who (in a move showing the importance of background checks) also happens to be sexually attracted to young teen girls. He’s about to take advantage of her when Ricky comes across them, and gets his cousin out of there.
Shortly thereafter, someone comes in when Artie is ready to toss a huge amount of corn into a pot of boiling water. Since he’s standing precariously on a chair to pour the corn into the pot, Artie doesn’t realize what’s happening until the chair’s been knocked over, and as he falls, he hits the pot, tipping eight quarts of boiling water all over him.
The camp director, like all camp directors, is concerned about the reputation of his camp more than anything, so he bribes the assistant cook (played by Robert Earl Jones, father of James) to keep quiet about it.
We then got some more camp scenes (a baseball game filled with cursing, some practical jokes), before segueing to a scene featuring some of the older boys, who start teasing Angela. Ricky nearly gets into a fight with Kenny, the boy doing most of the teasing. When the boys go skinny dipping later that night, someone sneaks out and drowns Kenny, whose body doesn’t show up until the next morning. Naturally, camp director Mel declares it a tragic accident, even though Kenny was known to be a good swimmer.
We get more character development. Paul invites Angela to the camp social. Judy and obnoxious counselor Meg tease Angela some more. That night, Paul kisses Angela (who shies away; she clearly has intimacy issues), and Judy teases him about Angela not being his type. The next day, Meg gets so frustrated with Angela’s lack of participation that she shakes her (getting a reprimand from the head counselor), and Judy gives Angela grief over the fact that she doesn’t shower with the other girls. Finally, a bunch of bratty boys, lead by Billy, throw water balloons at Angela, leading to yet another rescue by Ricky. All the boys (Ricky included, for his foul mouth) get in trouble.
Billy then goes to take a “wicked dump.” While doing so, someone bars the door to the stall with a branch. Billy assumes one of his buddies is playing a joke until someone cuts the screen window and inserts a beehive into the stall. Even Mel can’t deny that there’s something fishy going on at this point. He blames Ricky, but can’t prove anything, of course.
Later that night, Paul again kisses Angela, and tries to get to second base with her. She flashes back to the time when she and her sibling were younger, and they wandered into their parents’ room and saw their father and his partner getting it on. This causes her to run away, and although she apologizes the next day, when Paul tries to get close to her, she shies away.
Things escalate over the next half hour. We get lots more teasing of Angela, a possible reconciliation between Paul and Angela (they agree to meet that night on the waterfront) and no fewer than six revenge murders. Three more of the bratty boys are chopped up with an axe while on an overnight camping trip. Meg (who, incidentally, is sleeping with camp owner Mel) is stabbed while in the shower in an abandoned bunk. And Judy is ambushed while curling her hair alone in the bunk. The killer whacks her upside the head, places a pillow ever the face, and then uses the curling iron in a way that’s most definitely not recommended by the manufacturer***.
As head counselor Ronnie gathers the other counselor together to figure out what’s going on, Mel finds Meg’s body and goes into a rage. He eventually finds Ricky and beats the kid (half his size) into unconsciousness. Alas, he beat up the wrong kid, as Mel soon encounters the real killer at the archery range, and gets an arrow shot into his neck.
Angela and Paul meet at the waterfront, and she suggests that they take off their clothes and go for a swim. Paul doesn’t hesitate.
Meanwhile, folks (including Ronnie and the police officers who have been called in) are searching the camp, and find the unconscious Ricky as well as Meg’s corpse. Ronnie and one of the remaining girls hear some singing from the waterfront, and on investigating, see Angela sitting there, naked, with Paul’s severed head in her lap. A quick flashback to just after the boating accident reveales that the only survivor was the little boy, but loopy Aunt Martha had always wanted a girl, and hands “Angela” a dress.
Back in the present day, Angela stands up, and OMG, She’s Got a Penis!
Seriously. It ends with Angela standing up and revealing that she’s not only got a penis, but a decidedly male body, complete with body hair (even in places where there clearly wasn’t any previously), and some of the worst special effects ever (they put a mask of Angela over the face of a local college student to create the effect). The movie ends with a freeze-frame of her screaming face.
Like I said, I adore this movie on all sorts of levels. I don’t buy any of the bullshit about this being a F13 knock-off, other than the summer camp setting. Unlike most slashers, we actually get some serious character development here, and we’re given multiple sets of motivations for the killer. Further, we get arguably the most accurate depiction of summer camps on the big screen (the first Meatballs came close, to be fair). And better yet, the kids actually act like kids, from the foul language to the awkward awareness of newfound sexuality.
You can’t overlook the gender issues here, of course. Writer/Director Robert Hiltzik (in his only film to date, although IMDB does claim that he’s working on two new sequels) doesn’t exactly bring major Freudian credentials to the plate, but the backstory here adds a layer of complexity to the character of Angela, even if the plotline doesn’t seem to settle on whether it’s pitching homophobia, tolerance, or something in between.
The cast here isn’t exactly A-list (or even D-list), but they do a good enough job making their characters seem a lot more real than the more polished kid actors you’ll likely see in a horror movie today. The effects are decent enough for 1983. If there aren’t any true scares here, there are some nicely disturbing moments (the off-screen killing of Judy being the most notable), and the use of real kids throughout the productions – whether as typical foul-mouthed campers or as victims – adds a sense of danger that just isn’t there in many other ‘80s horror movies.
A quick note on the sequels: I love both of the existing sequels to this movie (and will review them later this year), but they maintain a completely different tone, and although they profess to feature the same Angela character, I choose not to consider them canon.
As for the original Sleepaway Camp, there are few ‘80s slashers that I’d recommend more than this one. With a bonus recommendation to any folks who had to suffer through sleepaway camp themselves.
*Well, except for the murders.
**Sorry.
***If any curling irons have, “Warning: Do not stick in your coochie” warning labels, it’s likely because of this scene.
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
(no subject)
Date: 2007-01-12 06:57 pm (UTC)Who? Who? Whooooooo? Fill in the blank, please and thank you.
(I might be a little too wrapped up in this.)
(no subject)
Date: 2007-01-12 07:01 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2007-01-12 07:58 pm (UTC)Yeah, I know that can mess with us.
(no subject)
Date: 2007-01-12 07:01 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2007-01-12 07:02 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2007-01-12 07:15 pm (UTC)Also, comedian Bill Engvall has a bit on a CD of his (from a few years ago) dealing with a curling iron that (allegedly) bore almost that exact warning label.
(no subject)
Date: 2007-01-12 07:20 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2007-01-12 09:46 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2007-01-12 07:43 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2007-01-12 09:48 pm (UTC)Oddly I don't remember the two fathers bit, though...
(no subject)
Date: 2007-01-12 09:53 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2007-01-13 12:49 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2007-01-13 11:51 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2007-01-13 12:01 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2007-01-15 06:18 am (UTC)"Somebody help them!"
"....."
"Somebody help them please!!"
"....."
"They'll die!"
"......."
"Oh, god damnit!"
The boiling water scene was also amusing. I mean, they panned to his screaming face at least three times, at which point I said to myself, "Allright, I get it. You were burned. RAAAAA." The doctor was a genius as well.
CAMP DIRECTOR: What's the prognosis, doc?
DOCTOR: Well, he's been badly burned.
ME: ya THINK?
All in all? A flick I can be proud of. Made me laugh more than a few times. Danke for the review.
(no subject)
Date: 2007-01-15 03:03 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2007-01-15 04:13 pm (UTC)