Sleepaway Camp 2: Unhappy Campers

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Jason T @SlasherFan82 Oct 4 This is my favorite of the original trilogy. Pamela Springsteen is fantastic as Angela. This camp slasher has it all, T&A, plenty of gore and a great cast of characters. See more TheMovieSearch R @TheMovieSearch Aug 10 Sleepaway Camp II: Unhappy Campers is definitely one of those awkward horror sequels that leaves you wondering if you should laugh, cringe, or both. It’s enjoyable enough to watch that I’d give it 2½ stars—borderline thumbs up—but not quite all the way there. The premise is bizarre even by ’80s slasher standards. Peter, the killer from the first film, has undergone a sex change, now living as Angela, and has gone from murdering kids at one summer camp to murdering counselors at another. Pamela Springsteen (yes, Bruce Springsteen’s sister) takes on the role of Angela here, playing her with an over-the-top, cheerful menace that’s as strange as it is oddly entertaining. The kills are creative but undeniably cheesy—then again, it is 1988, so the low-budget gore effects and campy execution feel like part of the charm. Still, some of the deaths are so absurdly staged that you can’t help but laugh, even when the movie doesn’t necessarily intend for you to. Where it loses points for me is in the acting. The performances often feel stiff or unnatural, which keeps the film from ever truly being scary or immersive. Instead, it leans heavily into a weird mix of dark humor and absurdity, which makes it a “so bad it’s good” watch for the right kind of viewer. Ultimately, it’s one of those cult slasher flicks that’s self-aware in some ways but still drenched in unintentional awkwardness. I’d rewatch it for the novelty and sheer weirdness factor, but it’s definitely not top-tier horror. Think of it as a trashy little time capsule of late ’80s slasher excess—stupid enough to watch, and just strange enough to remember. See more Erik B May 26 Terrible film. No real story - just a bunch of "teenagers" running around in the forest naked. Love the T&A - it's first class - but the movie isn't worth it. See more Nick O May 25 Turn off your brain, turn up your stereo and get ripped on this 80's teen slasher trash heap sequel! See more Tyler B Jan 10 Compared to the first one, it's only purpose of existence is to spawn unwanted sequels. Rinse, lather, and repeat. See more Allan C 11/30/2024 SPOILER ALERT if you haven’t seen the first film. The gender-swap slasher Angela returns as a camp counselor and is now played by Bruce Springsteen’s little sister. The first film had a fantastic zinger reveal at the end, long before THE CRYING GAME, where the killer, Angela, turned out to be the boy from the flashback earlier in the film. This sequel can’t repeat that same surprise ending, so the filmmakers wisely acknowledge the truth about “Angela” from the start and, this time, lean much more into comedy. The main plot line is that Angela is enforcing her Puritanical expectations on all the other counselors, so anyone smoking dope or having sex is going to get violently killed. The slasher film kills are creative and mostly done for laughs. The promiscuous Ally has the grosses kill involving an outhouse, and I loved it! The actress who played Ally, Valeria Harman, gives the standout performance of the film, but when I looked her up, she only ever did this film, an episode of CHEERS episode, and a small part in some erotic thriller I’d never heard of, so that was kind of disappointing. The film’s light tone is really its strength. Also, all of the gratuitous nudity (and I mean gratuitous with a capital G!) certainly helped hold my interest as well. The film also has a funny nod to other teen films of this era by naming all the campers after 80s Brat Pack actors (Molly, Ally, Rob, Demi, Lea, Brooke, Charlie, Emilio, etc.). Overall, SLEEPAWAY CAMP II has no pretensions that it’s a serious horror film and delivers solid kills and comedy.  See more Read all reviews

Sleepaway Camp 2: Unhappy Campers

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