Sleepaway Camp (1983) User Reviews

That Ending! (Spoiler-Free)

[baileycrawly · 6/10 · 21 June 2020]

As far as discount Friday the 13th slasher ripoffs go, this one is pretty average for the most part. It's weird, and the ominous tone of uncertainty is held throughout the entire film. It's a movie that's not afraid to deal with some heavy subjects while at the same time sticking to the slasher genre. For its time and budget, the effects are pretty good too. It's an extremely campy movie but it's one that stands out from the others in the sense that it's one you'll never forget for the twist ending. It's perhaps one of the most well-known - and shocking, especially given the societal changes between then and now - twist endings in history. But I'm not here to spoil the movie; go give it a shot and see what you think.

Creepy

[Pigalina · 6/10 · 11 June 2005]

This was part of a Cheesy Horror night and most of the time my friends and I were just amused by the funny 80s hair and clothes but the ending freaked us out, it is really creepy! And, they freeze it on a freaky image for nearly(if not all) the whole credits. Ick. Nobody expected the ending to be what it was. Most of the film is your standard summer camp horror movie - though the body count is rather high - kids getting it on, pranks etc.

I recommend this film for its 80s value AND shock ending, though now everybody has told you the ending is shocking then you will probably spend the whole movie trying to figure out what it is.

oh my god...

[zombear · 6/10 · 23 January 2000]

this was definitely a weird one. the realisticly ruthless portrayal of kids at camp, the pedophiliac in the kitchen, the unexplained insanity of the aunt, the homosexual undertones, the ENDING! i was utterly floored when i rented this one. if you can find it, rent it. watch it. show it to your friends and watch them cringe. Just follow my advice and hold onto something when it winds down to the end. i promise, you will be shocked, and will probably have the final image stuck in your head for a week.

Just...yeah...wow

[BandSAboutMovies · 7/10 · 31 May 2018]

Let's take a trip back to 1975, when John Baker and his boyfriend Lenny took John's kids on a boating trip. Those kids are madcap scamps that capsize their dad's boat for fun. But on the swim back to shore, a waterskier kills John and his son Peter, leaving Angela traumatized.

Eight years later, Angela is living with her weird aunt Dr. Martha Thomas (who would be able to unite Superman and Batman, based on her first name), along with her cousin Ricky. They go to Camp Arawak for the summer. As someone who has never been to summer camp, nor ever wanted to go, I fail to see the fun that places like this promise.

Angela gets bullied at every turn, even when the counselors try to help her. And to top it off, the head cook even tries to rape her. Sure, he's soon scalded by hot water. But it seems odd how many people have it in for this little girl. I guess the good news is that everyone that screws with her dies horribly - if that can be good news. Like Kenny, a kid that mocks her. She also finally gets a friend, Paul, who has the hots for her.

As Paul and Angela attend a movie at the camp, two of the boys throw water balloons at them. Billy, one of the throwers, is soon killed by bees. At this point, Mel, the owner, starts to realize that maybe there's a killer in the camp.

Paul tries to kiss Angela, but she has a flashback to catching her father in bed with Lenny. Oh no! And it gets worse, as Judy - one of the worst behaved girls - kisses Paul and then throws Angela into the water. Ricky saves her, only for a bunch of kids to throw sand in her face! Will the torment ever end?

The film then descends into slasher film madness. Meg, a counselor who is sleeping with the owner of the camp, a man nearly fifty years or more her senior, is killed in the shower. The kids who threw sand at Angela? Nearly all of them are dispensed of with a hatchet. And the evil Judy? She's raped with a hot curling iron (!) and smothered with a pillow, which feels like the roughest and softest kill ever. And finally, the owner of the camp blames Ricky and attacks him, only for the real killer to shoot him with an arrow.

The police come to investigate the murders while Paul and Angela decide to go skinny dipping. Two of the counselors find them and we learn that she has decapitated Paul and jumps up, fully nude and fully a dude, making a hissing sound and looking like a complete maniac. The truth? Angela is really Peter, the boy we thought died in the opening. Dr. Martha had raised him as the daughter she never got to have..

It's funny. In the early 80's, so many people bemoaned how many slashers were playing in theaters and drive-ins. But today, we're lucky to get a horror film into theaters. And truly odd films, like Sleepaway Camp, go direct to streaming or DVD. Let's face it - none of today's films are as goofy as this either. And by goofy, I don't mean the SyFy or Troma movies that are made to be dumb. No, this is a film that appears to be an attempt at a legitimate, serious film that ends up being something wonderful crazy. It's filled with ridiculous dialogue, over the top murders and that ending!

Warning Spoilers: Misidentified

[spknezek · 6/10 · 31 December 2002]

Many people have made the connection to the Friday the 13th series with Sleepaway Camp for obvious reasons. They both came out within a few years of each other and all the action takes place at a summer camp. However, the primary theme in the Friday the 13th series is vengeance. Vengeance of a mother for the neglect and drowning of her son and then vengeance by the son for the murder of his mother. Of course vengeance is also key to all the murders in Sleepaway Camp but for entirely different motivations. The murders of Sleepaway Camp come from sexual repression, being picked on, and sexual molestation. All these derive from feelings of shame and embarassment which is different than the motivations of Friday the 13th. A better comparison for Sleepaway Camp would be Psycho. First let me say that in no one are the two comparable, Psycho is a masterpiece of story, directing, acting, and camera work, Sleepaway Camp is none of these. But they share similar thematic characteristics. Norman Bates suffers an Oedipal complex but when his mother takes a new lover he kills her and suffers tremendously. He is overwhelmed by guilt and shame and brings her back to life in his mind. But whenever he sees an attractive woman he feels guilty and shameful and murders them because his mother is jealous for his affection. Sleepaway Camp is a more bizarre twist on these themes. Angela's (who turns out to be a boy) father and sister are both killed in a boating accident. But unlike Jason, Angela does not wreck havoc on the camp for those deaths. Instead Angela is adopted by her demented Aunt and forced to become a girl because the Aunt already has a son, Ricky. There are two scenes in which I'm guessing a young Ricky and Angela witness two men, presumably Ricky's father and his lover having sex. These scene is followed by a scene in which suggests a sort of sexual molestation between young Ricky and young Angela. These two pivotal events greatly affect Angela and cause a sexual crisis within him/her. What begins the rampage at Camp Arawak is another sexual molestation performed by the cook on Angela. This act sets her/him off the deep end and she/he begins to kill anyone who hurts her/him in any way. Then to complicate matters she begins to have a relationship with Paul. Angela has a gender identity crisis and cannot decide whether she/he is attracted to Paul or to other women. It probably doesn't help her that she is surrounded by Men in booty shorts and half shorts, who would be mistaken for flamboyantly gay in today's culture. So she decides to have a relationship with Paul and seems happy but he wants more, to feel her breasts, which of course she doesn't have. Angela finally loses all control when she catches Paul cheating on her with Judy. She brutally murders Judy by raping her with a curling iron. Then she goes berserk and kills four younger children in their sleeping bags. I think they kicked sand at her. Then she decides to reveal her secret to Paul. And she does and promptly decapitates him. Finally in the creepiest scene that I never saw coming she makes a crazy face with a gaping open mouth, ax in hand, completely naked and breathes heavily making slight animalistic noises. This facial expression is comparable to one that Norman Bates makes dressed as the mother at the end of Psycho. The sister of Marion is in the basement, finds the skeleton of the mother and then turns to see Norman dressed as the mother making a very similar crazy expression. So in conclusion Psycho is a much more accurate comparison because both involve characters who are sexual confused, are men who dress as women, and kill when their sexual identites come into crisis. I do not think Sleepaway Camp is a great movie, but had it better acting and special effects it could be. It is a thoroughly rich text. The reason many people have responded to the ending, which I found shocking and disturbing and will unfortunately never leave me, is because it plays on deeply disturbing psychological events in people's lives. And for that matter I think it is much scarier than a Friday the 13th or Nightmare on Elm Street which are basically about vengeance for the murder of a person.

One of the Most Memorable Slashers

[Michael_Elliott · 15 February 2015]

Sleepaway Camp (1983)

*** (out of 4)

Angela (Felissa Rose) goes with her cousin Ricky (Jonathan Tiersten) to a summer camp where she's constantly picked on and harassed by the most popular girl in camp (Karen Fields). Over and over again Angela is picked on due to her shyness, which causes Ricky to have to defend her and before long dead bodies begin to pile up.

SLEEPAWAY CAMP is a pretty notorious entry in the 80's slasher genre due in large part to a terrific twist at the end, which I obviously won't spoil here. If you want to play a uptight critic it's easy to really cream this film because there are some pretty bad things throughout including some at times hideous acting. However, if you're a fan of the genre, which I am, there's no question that this film has a lot going for it and it fits nicely into the genre, which at times delivered one cliché after another. There's no doubt that SLEEPAWAY CAMP has some clichéd moments but there's still no doubting it's impact on the genre and the all around good time you can have with it.

I think the best thing about the film is that it just feels so much like the 80's. The movie has the basic set-up taking place in a camp with a psycho running around but there's a lot of other stuff thrown in including a bizarre subplot dealing with a pedophile and there's even some stranger stuff that I won't go into so that I avoid any spoilers. The film also shows how bullying was handled in the 80's, which was usually with a big fat nothing. The film manages to really make you feel the time that it was set in and I think writer- director Robert Hiltzik deserves some credit for putting some of the more bizarre things in here.

It also doesn't hurt that you've got a group of characters that you can root for and against. One can't help but feel sympathy for Angela and you also can't help but like Ricky and Paul. The villains in the film are so over-the-top cruel that you also don't mind seeing them get knocked off one at a time. Then there's Judy who's certainly one of the most memorable villains in the history of the slasher period. Fields performance is just so spot-on that you can't help see the glee in her as she torments Angela. Rose is also quite charming in her role and there's certainly not a better slasher actor than Tiersten when it comes to saying profanity.

The murder scenes are mostly off-camera, I'm sure due to budget reasons but they're still quite memorable and especially the aftermath when we see what actually happened. The make-up effects are quite simple but effective enough. I also liked how the main goal of the film wasn't the gore and violence but instead the characters and especially the mystery. I'm sure some will guess what's going on but if you go through the film without knowing and just guessing who's doing the killing, it certainly adds to the entertainment level. SLEEPAWAY CAMP has a lot of nostalgia going for it but it's also one of the more entertaining films in the 80's slasher cycle.

One of the Very Best Slashers of the Early 1980s

[gavin6942 · 7/10 · 20 October 2010]

Slightly disturbed and painfully shy Angela Baker (Felissa Rose) is sent away to summer camp with her foul-mouthed cousin Ricky Thomas (Jonathan Tiersten). Not long after Angela's arrival, things start to go horribly wrong for anyone with sinister or less than honorable intentions.

This film is either loved or hated, and with good reason, but it has been embraced more and more as the years go on by fans of the horror genre. The acting is excessively cheesy, especially from Desiree Gould, but purposely so. The kills are grisly and nasty, even if not always shown on screen. When that curling iron strikes, you know the situation. And the pedophile cook? Oh man... that is pushing boundaries that even horror films dare not cross (Freddy Krueger can be a child killer, but not a child molester).

One cannot vouch for the next two sequels, which have little connection to this film, but the original stands as a true modern classic, and if you have not seen it, you are really missing out on an important piece of horror history. What could have been a ripoff of other horror slashers that take place at camp (notably "Friday the 13th") turns out to be far different from any other title out there. And keep in mind the whole crew, more or less, had just come from "Creepshow", so these were folks who knew what they were doing.

Writer-director Robert Hiltzik (who graduated NYU with Ang Lee) mysteriously went decades without directing again. Many of the actors also never acted again, at least for a long time. And then you have Christopher Collet, going on to make such things as "Prayer of the Rollerboys"... does that make him the biggest success from this film?

Not only does the film get better with repeated viewings (which make the humor and camp more fun), but there are actually some clever subplots that will likely be missed on the first time or two. Mel Kostic (portrayed wonderfully by the late Mike Kellin) not only is one of the best characters, but has his own story and relationship with the campers and counselors that may not be immediately evident.

The Scream Factory Blu-ray is ridiculously good and worth owning. Beyond the excellent presentation, it has three different audio commentaries, where you learn odd trivia like Felissa Rose's husband Deron Miller meeting her as a fan, and much more. There is even a short film showing whatever happened to Judy (although it is not very good).

Surprising Ending

[claudio_carvalho · 5/10 · 24 June 2020]

A family is destroyed by a speedboat in a lake nearby a camp. Eight years later, the outcast teenager Angela (Felissa Rose), who survived the accident and was raised by her nutty Aunt Martha (Desiree Gould), travels with her protective cousin Ricky (Jonathan Tierston) to spend vacation in the Arawak Camp owned by Mel (Mike Kellin). Soon the pervert cook of the camp has a tragic accident in the kitchen that is followed by the death of several teenagers and kids. Who might be the killer?

"Sleepaway Camp" is a campy American slasher that is worthwhile watching because of the surprising ending. The plot is silly and the acting is terrible (Aunt Martha is laughable so bad it is) and becomes funny for the viewer. But the last scene turns the movie into a cult for horror fans. My vote is five.

Title (Brazil): "Acampamento Sinistro" ("Sinister Camp")

There are two scenes in this film that I will never forget

[baumer · 8/10 · 13 July 1999]

Horror films seemed the easy way to make a quick buck in the 80's. There was an abundance of them that graced video. I don't think half of them actually made it to the big screen. You can add Sleepaway Camp to that list. This is a typical scary film. It has it's moments and it is scary in some parts. It has some nice humour especially when they play camp jokes on each other. But having said all that, this movie is as good as it is and it's not too bad ) because the mother in this film is creepier than Mrs. Bates and she actually makes you want to kill her. But the two parts that I will never forget are images that are firmly planted in my brain, especially the part of it that stores nasty horror elements in it.

The first was the death by curling iron. It is so horrific that it bothered me so much that I had to cover my eyes the second time I saw it. It is qutie graphic, not because of what they show, but because you know how nasty it is.

But the one thing that will stay with me and probably anyone else that has seen this film is the very end. That last shot is so horrific, so way out of left field that you never see it coming. It just hits you and then it ends. It has a power of its own. And judging by the comment on here from other users, they feel the same way. This is a film absolutely worth checking out.

Judy, we love you

[momorguci · 7/10 · 12 March 2006]

One of the all time B movie greats of the 1980's. With a disturbingly young cast and bizarre queer subtexts this is a must for anyone into camp/cult films. Not to mention a great ending and some creative death scenes. Judy as the main bad girl truly makes this film for me,and her demise is tragic, a fate so terrible that the filmmakers don't have the guts to show the aftermath. Yes, a curling iron to the crotch is never a pleasant experience R.I.P Judy, R.I.P. The plot really is secondary, a tragic boating accident leaves a newly orphaned Angela, who looks a lot like Sarah Silverman, with her aunt Martha and cousin Ricky, and off to camp the kids go, where bad things start to happen. This is from a time when horror was an odd creature, the film is clearly made for 12 year olds, much in the way that Deadly Friend was too, but contains fairly graphic, albeit silly, death scenes and strings of profanity designed to make the young ones giggle. If this were made today, no doubt it would be neutered, given a PG-13 rating, with bland yet classy production values, and a cast from One Tree Hill.

What an ending!

[Leofwine_draca · 5/10 · 6 February 2015]

Let's face it, SLEEPAWAY CAMP isn't a great slasher movie. Despite being heavily indebted to the likes of Friday THE 13TH and THE BURNING, it's not half as good: the production values are pretty poor, the script is pretty lunk-headed, and the characters just don't grip you like in some other movies.

In addition, the movie is cheesy in the extreme, with the kill scenes involving such improbable methods as somebody getting a bee's nest thrown into their cubicle while they're on the toilet. It's all frankly rather laughable, although not without merit for those with a soft spot for '80s nostalgia. Certainly the fashions and the style of film-making readily date this to the early '80s.

However, things do turn around for an infamous twist ending which, I have to say, is one of the most simple and yet effective that I've ever seen. I thought Argento did similar twists well in the likes of PHENOMENA but the twist in SLEEPAWAY CAMP is superlative, closing on one of the most chilling freeze-frames I've ever witnessed. It really is that good; a shame that the rest of the film couldn't rise to the same level.

Accidental Masterpiece

[Neon_Gold · 10/10 · 23 May 2020]

This movie is by now means a "good movie" but it just has something so special about it.

It has so many Issues like for starters no one could act their way out of a paper bag but when your watching it just adds to its charm in such a strange way. It also makes it hilarious. The first scene with Aunt Martha is just so funny for all the wrong reasons.

The effects used in this movie are also like two ends of a spectrum some are so cleaver and creative like gelatine being pumped through a pipe underneath a man to simulate blisters pulsating and then you have half a raspberry being used as a bee sting. Which once again is hilarious.

The story is also great. It has something that the other summer camp 80s movie don't have.

I think if you strip away all it's issues like the acting and the budget that must have been about $17 there is such a solid idea. But I also think that if you stripped all the issues away it wouldn't be as fun and as charming and creative.

So I would say definitely check this movie out if you like 80s horror or if you love bad movies because the is the best bad movie you will ever see.

Objectively : the ending is what makes this movie watchable.

[insomniac_rod · 7/10 · 27 August 2006]

A slasher flick that has got the attention of fans of the genre mainly because of it's gruesome, shocking ending. To be honest, this is a regular Slasher flick with the usual death scenes, campy acting, cheesy gore, and clichèd characters.

But also, being honest, "Sleepaway Camp" has a tremendously chilling and shocking ending that could only be imagined in the worst nightmares. The lullaby song... the bloody mouth... the chopped head... the expression on Angela's face... This is one of the best moments in Slasher history, yes. Or at least, one of the most popular moments.

The movie tries too hard to create more character and plot development than usual but it never gets very interesting. In fact, if it weren't for the ending, this could easily pass as a regular Slasher with nothing else to add. Sure, there are some good death scenes with good gore but nothing impressive.

The acting is really good specially by Felisa Rose. The rest of the cast is just okay. The direction is dark and creepy but looks like an aged Slasher in these days.

Overall, this is a classic for it's gruesome ending. The rest of the movie is just good. Totally recommended for fans of the sub-genre.

Worth it, though only because of the ending.

[Ziggy5446 · 5/10 · 15 June 2007]

Sleepaway Camp is an unusual film in that it contains a great deal of homo erotic overtones. It may very well be the only trash horror film from the '80s where the boys show more flesh than the girls. From the numerous shots of shirtless men in shorts that would make Brazilians embarrassed, to the overt cheapening of the girls, director Robert Hiltzik is throwing the entire slasher genre into an uproar by mixing his messages on the kind of gender proclivity that gets you killed in such a scenario.

One could easily say it's a cheap Friday the 13th knock-off, but with good 'camp' value. So, therefore, the story is rather familiar. When Ricky and his slightly off-kilter cousin Angela visit Camp Arawak for the summer, they're hoping to spend some quality time away from home. But wouldn't you know it, the place has a problem all its own - a serial killer is on the loose, one who is slicing and dicing his way through the campers.

It sure is, however, worth it, though only because of the ending. Angela is really Peter and that Aunt Martha inexplicably decided to raise him as a girl after the accident that killed his sister and hunky dad, a series of flashbacks sheds light on the identity crisis of the film's killer: two men (yes, the hunky guys in the film's opening scene) caress each other in bed, and after witnessing this '50s-PSA spectacle of queer petting, two siblings reach for each using an E.T.-phone-home-pull-my-finger gesture that seems to imply that they're going to "desire" each other (in the butt perhaps?).

With that being said, sure, the film mimics Friday the 13th's (not entirely the most original film either) summer camp setting, but because it's so hilarious, and the final money shot is so damn creepy, Sleepaway Camp has a string of mysterious bloodshed.

"Uh Oh! Here Comes The Wicked Witch Of The West!"...

[azathothpwiggins · 15 October 2018]

After some VERY dramatic, ominous music during a panning shot of the titular camp Arawak, SLEEPAWAY CAMP begins.

Right off the bat, tragedy strikes on the lake. We know this mostly because of the water-skier who won't stop screeching like a pint-sized tornado siren.

Several years later, the scene switches to the soon-to-be camper, Ricky (Jonathan Tiersten). He and his shy cousin, Angela (Felissa Rose) are getting ready to leave. Angela survived the aforementioned tragedy, and was taken in by her Aunt, Ricky's -extremely odd- mum. Next stop, the camp.

It's probably not a good sign, when one of the first adults to be introduced, obviously likes kids a bit TOO much! He's Artie (Owen Hughes) the cook, and he's one of the most vile characters since the gargantuan neighbor in ALICE SWEET ALICE! Yecch! Don't worry though, he quickly becomes... overheated.

As it turns out, there's no shortage of creeps and jerks at Camp Arawak, which means there are lots of victims for whoever starts bumping them off in grisly ways. Most are vindictive idiots like Judy (Karen Fields) and Meg (Katherine Kamhi), who simply must torment Angela as LOUDLY! AS! POSSIBLE! This could be a long summer, if anyone lives through it!

Though everyone remembers this movie's "shock" finale, the rest of it is interesting in that it contains so many hateful, unbalanced characters. EXHIBIT A): Mel (Mike Kellin), who's unwarranted paranoia verges on the maniacal! This is especially disturbing, since he runs the camp!

EXTRA POINTS FOR: #1- The fake mustache on the cop at the end! #2- The cheap, cheeezey, yet somehow creepy song during the end credits!...

The High-Strung, Melodramatic, Trashy World of "Sleepaway Camp"

[LanceBrave · 6/10 · 7 July 2014]

Throughout the early eighties, the market was saturated with cheap slashers. Many of these quickie films were set at summer camps, playing off the success of the wildly popular-profitable "Friday the 13th" series. Some of these films, like the hyper-gory "The Burning," have become cult favorites. Others, like "Summer Camp Nightmare," aren't well-known. But there's no camp-set eighties slasher flick cult-ier then 1983's "Sleepaway Camp." The movie is most notorious for its gender-bending twist ending. Yet the conclusion is hardly the only odd thing about the film. "Sleepaway Camp" is one of the weirdest films from the first wave of American slashers.

This is mostly thanks to the movie's implacable tone. "Sleepaway Camp" does not exist in our reality. The film is a horribly uneven mixture of nightmare images, camp, a low budget, unexpected subtext, and mean-spirited violence. The film's opening credits are set over shots of an empty camp, the voices of far-off children playing, a genuinely eerie moment. Early on, one of the camp chefs makes lewd comments towards the prepubescent kids. The other chef reacts not by reporting the man but by laughing off the would-be pedophile's behavior. All of the characters act in this exaggerated, trashy manner. Meg the camp councilors, despite being older then the other kids, still picks on shy, socially awkward Angela. "Pick on" isn't even the right word, as her language is highly abusive. Despite brutally dispatching the pedophilic chef, "Sleepaway Camp" also features a romance between teenage Meg and fifty-something camp owner Mel. The movie doesn't treat this behavior as predatory.

The movie appears to be an earnest attempt to create a frightening experience. However, any attempt at horror is undermined by how unintentionally hilarious most of the film is. The acting from all involved is terrible. Felissa Rose's lead performance as Angela is somnambulist, characterized by flat line-reading and unblinking stares. Karen Fields as bully Judy seems unsure of how to handle her outrageous dialogue, delivering it in meaty lumps. The rest of the slasher fodder have a similar problem, giving broad performances without even the basic ability to read lines convincingly.

As bad as the teens are, the adult actors give even worst performances. Desiree Gould is Aunt Martha and gives one of the strangest performance in any '80s horror film. Her dialogue is spoken in a spaced-out, antiqued manner. Gould honestly seems to have wander out of a David Lynch movie. As bizarre as Gould is, Mike Kellin as Mel is much worst. The mush-mouth Kellin is given some of the heaviest dialogue in the film, a feat beyond the actor's ability. Mel's obsession with keeping the camp open, even with bodies piling up, is inexplicable. When he deduces Ricky is behind the deaths, he brutally beats the kid. An adult beating a child should never be hilarious but Kellin's tone-death performance and the movie's melodramatic delivery makes it funny.

The hilarity doesn't stop there. "Sleepaway Camp" also serves as a time capsule for fashion in 1983. Pastels are the color of choice. One of the male camp counselor wears tiny shorts hiked up to his crotch. The fashion isn't the only source of unintentional humor. The sole cop in the movie reappears at the end, his real mustache replaced with fuzzy duct tape. The movie could be commended for having the kids act like kids. They let loose explicit profanity, play mean-spirited pranks, and generally act like entitled d-bags. The nasty way they act is so unexpected that it frequently becomes hilarious. All of this characterizes the high-strung, melodramatic, trashy world of 'Sleepaway Camp."

The whole movie is also characterized by discomfort with, not just teen sexuality, but human sexuality in general. The film has a strong homoerotic undercurrent. At the beginning, we see Angela and Ricky's father with a male friend. Turns out, that friend is their father's lover. In addition to this element, the film is full of half naked teen boys. They wear mid-drift barring shirts, go skinny dipping, and shove their bare butts in other kids' face. The whole film is focused on the kids' budding sexuality in a greasy, unseemly fashion.

Of course, the biggest queer element is the infamous ending. Turns out, Angela is actually a boy who has lived his life as a female. The film lets this twist explain away Angela's murderous desire, a deeply transphobic element that probably wasn't thought about much in 1983. The film doesn't have time for that, as its final image of a naked Angela, penis in full sight, is bizarre. Not because of the nudity but because the character's face freezes in an animalistic growl while an eerie hiss escapes her throat.

Befitting the off-putting tone, the film's murders are unusual. A man is burned with boiling water, his body covered with bursting blisters. One kid drowns while another is stung to death by bees, the camera lingering on their brutalized bodies. A stab to the back and an arrow in the neck are more typical but pulled off convincingly. The most notorious death happens off-screen. Judy is somehow killed with a curling iron, the implication being that she was stabbed in a very uncomfortable place. As opposed to most eighties slashers, the kids here are played by visibly young actors. That such violence is being inflicted on young children is one more thing that makes "Sleepaway Camp" a mean-spirited mess of a film.

That mess isn't for everybody. Initially, it wasn't even for me. I found the film difficult to swallow on first viewing. However, "Sleepaway Camp" has grown on me over subsequent watches. The film is utterly unique among slashers and too generally weird not to be memorable.

A classic discovered in 2020

[danielcereto · 7/10 · 7 November 2020]

I am a big fan of Friday the 13th and the 80's, that's why I gave it a try to this one. Honestly I think it's quite interesting even it's a B-movie. First, the vibe is great and acting from the main characters is correct. Second, even not as brutal as Friday the 13th, murders are quite acceptable. Last, the settings looks good, almost as good as Crystal Lake. So, overall a great B horror movie if you're a fan of Friday the 13th.

Wacky Camp Arawak

[Ms_Carter · 6/10 · 12 August 2023]

This isn't exactly what comes to mind when I think about camp movies How this escaped my attention for such a long is beyond me Based on my only experience with summer camp Camp Arawak certainly feels like a real campground Speaking from my own experience they certainly got the mean spirited bullying kids part right and the kids feel like actual teen's and not 20 somethings Also I liked the gore effects I think most people know by now about the notorious ending But because It slipped under my radar for so long and I try to to avoid spoilers when watching something for the first time As usual I never saw the ending coming.

Golden Garbage

[m-od · 5/10 · 27 February 2006]

I'd give this movie a passing grade. Some of the actors are crazy bad, while others keep ya watching. The story line is like any slasher film. Sleepaway Camp is full of classic horror stereotypes. They spent the budget (thankfully) on effects, not actors. I couldn't believe the size of the cast for what was surly a small budget movie. The eighties wardrobe was hilarious (Men in short shorts and cut off Tee's), that alone was worth watching the movie for. The actor who plays Ricky could have went on to have a career, cause his natural acting ability grounded the movie. Without him being realistic there'd be no foundation, no solid core of normality to keep us watching. My viewing him as a good actor could be based on the fact that everyone else seemed like Over-dramatic high school performers. Sorta awkward, waiting for there cue types. But as far a low budget, low quality horror films go this is watchable with an open mind and no high hopes. Great for group viewing, creates great laughs.

Great American Slasher with an ending you'll never forget

[freq32 · 8/10 · 14 June 2003]

This is 80's American Cheese at it's greatest! The cast does a great job and the script is actually really good. If you're a fan of cheesy slasher flicks this is one you should certainly check out...and absolutely DO NOT MISS THE ENDING!!!! One of the creepiest endings I've ever seen in a movie which is sure to give anyone the chills. A truly wicked low budget horror flick.

Worth It For A Single Shot

[johnspringer-95440 · 7/10 · 24 February 2023]

This is a low-budget '80s horror ostensibly in the mold of similarly cheesy and dated slashers like the early Friday the 13th movies. The characters are given more development than the typical slasher meatbags queueing up to be slaughtered and there's a vague implication of something untoward besides a murderous psycho tromping through the woods. It's difficult to decide what's intentionally off-kilter as opposed to what's just the product of bad acting and a low budget, which actually works to the movie's benefit. But what really elevates this movie is a single shot, which is less of a twist or revelation than a moment of bizarre and inspired weirdness best experienced in mixed company. You'll know it when you see it.

Surprise Ending Does Not Save This Bad Movie

[rwint · 1/10 · 15 July 2001]

A Really bad slasher movie that is exactly what it looks like. A low grade rip-off of FRIDAY THE 13TH with no suspense or atmosphere. Yes there is a surprise ending, but it's kinda dumb and implausible. Besides the rest of the film is so completly meaningless that the ending becomes that way too. Forget it.

A ghastly ghoulish go go delight!

[nailhead · 10/10 · 10 April 2000]

It had been years since I saw this movie, but I remembered the key elements. Young girl is harassed at camp, her bullies start dying off, unforgettable ending. I just never realized how big of a classic this really is. For those of you who don't know, the film starts off with a man on a boat in the middle of a lake with his two children. The boat tips over, another boat comes racing towards them and kills all but one.

Flash forward 8 years later, the sole survivor now lives at her aunts house, where she sends the girl, Angela, and her cousin, Ricky, to summer camp. At camp, Angela is brutally teased and taunted by her fellow campers. Her cousin Ricky continuously comes to her defense, but the bullies are all being killed off by a mysterious unknown attacker. All of this leads up to an ending that I believe to be one of the most shocking in cinema history.

Felissa Rose gave an excellent performance as Angela, who makes you sympathize heavily for her, due to her soft mannered and soft spoken personality. She is very much the kid we all were, and some of you might still be. A vulnerable target for those with a superiority complex, very much the outcast.

Writer/Director Robert Hiltzik fills the film to the brim with psychological undertones, masterfully creating a genuine thriller out of this low grade, slasher extraordinare. But you don't care about that, do ya'. You want gore! And while it's not an overtly gory film, there are enough offerings of blood here and there to keep you gorehounds satisfied. Not to mention some nifty death scenes. And the ending, my friends, is what makes Sleepaway Camp worth the watch. That's not to say SC isn't a good film, in my opinion it's great, but for those of you who have no clue as to how it ends... You will not be disappointed. They just don't make horror films like this anymore, folks.

Finally visited Sleepaway Camp!

[That1Guyy · 7/10 · 30 October 2022]

After 39 years of this movie being out, I can finally say I've seen Sleepaway Camp. This movie was pretty decent, and a lot of crazy I have got to say the acting wasn't the best, but that didn't take anything a way from it, at least the movie kept you into it, and wanting to find out more. The ending was a complete twist never expected that at all in all it was a fun watch, and I would recommend it to people who have never seen it. If you're into horror, that is, but just pay close attention it's one of those movies in my opinion that you may miss something important if not. Well that about wraps this up!

A Complete Mess

[bobwildhorror · 3/10 · 24 February 2008]

Good God, have I fallen into an alternate universe? I can't believe the comments I'm reading about this flick. All I can do is imagine that a bunch of impressionable horror geeks, the type that saw this at a drive-in in the eighties, where shocked by the ending of this supposed "masterpiece." SLEEPAWAY CAMP manages to be both derivative and annoying. It's patterned after already derivative body count pictures like Friday THE 13TH. It copies the whole setup, actually. But it's severely hamstrung by a cast that looks like volunteers from a junior high drama class. I mean, these kids are bad. And the majority of the adults in this sorry excuse for a horror film are just as bad.

"Scream Queen" Felissa Rose, who somehow made a career from her catatonic performance here, looks like a deer caught in a searchlight. She is given little to do besides stare blankly into the camera, which is hilarious in most instances, as this look is supposed be menacing. At least, that's what I assume.

The only thing creepy about this picture was the undercurrent of child obsessed homoerotica (if you can get past the fact that EVERY male, from 10 to 60, appears obsessed with forging some kind of abusive sexual relationship with an underage kid). It's easy to dismiss all the young, shirtless boys running about - or wearing skin tight short-shorts - as a sign of the times. But the killer's motivation, a gender identity issue somehow motivated by her father's homosexuality, was a bit much...especially when it crescendos in a "shocking climax" of underage, full frontal nudity.

I've got to give this picture a couple points for its death sequences, but you'd expect that of a slasher film. Believe me, that's no recommendation.