Excellent but underrated film

Blending excellent reporting and strong storytelling, this is a disturbing film truly stranger than fiction

The movie really just wants to entertain people.

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

I think because it's a cult classic and have heard so much hype about it before watching I expected It to be better then what it was. I found it to be kinda predictable but overall I guess u could say the ended was a head of its time if u know what I mean.. lol

I put this on my watchlist, after seeing a bit about "one of the most shocking climaxes in the history of American cinema", expecting to take a long while before watching. I decided to give it a chance, a couple of days later. I'm glad that I didn't wait any longer.At the beginning, I found myself annoyed by Aunt Martha and her repetitiveness. I thought, "Where/why did they find this woman?" I expected that to remain a question, one sadly typical of low budgets, but her apparent craziness is resolved by the end.A warning to those who have not seen it: The characters dive into the depths of sexuality and mental illness. Many elements will be disturbing, especially to one unfamiliar with the horror genre.I don't necessarily recommend it, because it might be too edgy to be appreciated, but it was well-done. The shock reveal reminded me of "Terror Train" (1980), which I had seen a month or two prior.

I really grew to love this movie fast, I enjoyed it a bit more each time I saw it. In a switch that is very rare for a slasher, rather than the kill scenes, what I personally like most about is the characters and how they swear, are frequently mean to each other and just how they interact, I think it comes off as very natural with this movie mostly. It was cool to see a flick like this where a lot of the teens were actually teenagers and not 20 somethings pretending to be. And while they're not super-developed or anything, the characters are characters and aren't totally faceless victims, it at least attempts to give them a little personality and humanity, and that's something that really stood out a lot to me with Sleepaway Camp. I think they brilliantly portrayed the atmosphere of the camp. It's not amazingly original as a whole, but it's definitely one slasher that offers a little more, its creepy underlining elements of insanity and child gender blurring push the envelope and make it stand out somewhat, there's deeper psychological stuff going on beneath the typical stalk and kill surface. I like the slashers that try out different concepts and approaches to the setup, which this certainly does. To me it's deserving of being regarded as more than just a fantastic twist ending. Yeah sure it caps off the whole thing in a brilliant way that you can never unsee, but it deserves a little more credit than only being known for that crazy final scene. Without the rest of the compelling mystery of the story to build up to it that ending, for how shocking it is, just wouldn't be nearly as effective. You may know Angela is the killer but you'll never know she's a guy! You'll never see it coming, and you'll barely see it when it appears, but it's there alright! And for better or worse it sticks with you. But it's not necessarily the uh, the penis that sticks with you, it's the whole notion of it and the bizarre and chilling image of the frozen face with the mouth agape, making those horrible animal sounds. Brr, oh man! I thought Felicia Rose gave a wonderful performance, mostly all with her big dark eyes, she puts a lot of feeling into them, there's something magnetic and eerie about all her stares, you never know what she's thinking... I don't get why poor Paul deserved to die. Apart from one very understandable and forgivable slight, he was nothing but a friend to her. I like the scenes of them together, their chemistry and friendship seemed sweet and genuine. It's funny, as opposed to everyone else she ruthlessly slaughters Paul's murder feels especially cold and unforgivable and finally makes her a monster to the audience after appearing so innocent and harmless all through the movie. I guess sometimes you just don't know what's really looking you right in the face until it's too late. She's probably made a few people turn the movie right off in her day, but I just love that aunt. If overacting was a crime they'd lock her up and throw away the key! Now she is creepy. She's the real monster of the movie, what kind of a demented bitch would inflict such a terrible thing on an innocent child who's just lost his family? I get a big kick out of the actress who plays Judy, an ideal campground mean girl for the ages! I find all of her over the top facial expressions and mannerisms just hysterical, she's kinda terrible, but she puts so much bitchy character into her face that it works and she's such a riot to watch! I love it but something that I found annoying was how the old man kept making excuses to keep the camp running even as people were turning up dead, when in reality they'd all have been sent home after one.. Movie logic! Also it's just gotta be said, some of the guys' wardrobe is seriously ridiculous, it looks like it's taken from a gay porn shoot and really lends the movie a bit of a homoerotic streak that's pretty dang hard to ignore at points! Overall though, they got a lot out of what they had to work with, and you can tell that they weren't working with a big budget. Absolute gem of a slasher that's worth checking out if you like the earlier more weird ones. "Come children, let's be on our way!"

Sleepaway Camp was released in the early heyday of 80's slasher films, sandwiched between Friday the 13th (1980) and A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984). Sleepaway Camp clung to the summer camp motif that began three years prior, as well as a particular camera angle that was first effectively used more than two decades earlier. Clinging even harder to the franchise that first began making teens afraid to attend any summer overnights, the movie opens years before its initial time setting, demonstrating a borrowed need to establish a rhyme and reason for the inevitable blood shedding.After a tragic incident while swimming in a lake (sound familiar yet?), Angela (Felissa Rose) attends a summer camp along side her protective cousin Ricky (Jonathan Tiersten), who despite his small frame is willing to stand up to anyone for his introverted cousin. After being introduced to the crusty ex-gym teacher looking camp owner Mel (Mike Kellin), whose attempts to cover up each murder as accidents, we are quickly thrown into the cruel world that befalls Angela. As the body count rises, so does the bullying, allowing for multiple suspects to open up within the realm of psychopaths; could it be Angela, the one being bullied, or Ricky, the aggressive protector, or possibly Paul (Christopher Collet), Angela's new admirer?Throughout the film we are continually guessing, as director Robert Hiltzik admiringly utilizes the first person camera established back in 1960 with the then controversial film Peeping Tom. After being re-established in John Carpenter's Halloween, and again two years later in Friday the 13th, its use is still as effective as ever, allowing us to bare witness to the slaughter head on, while keeping us guessing until that final shot.What kept the slasher genre running strong in theaters back in the day was its innovative, gory, and clever means of killing off hapless bystanders, attempting to give audiences its moneys worth. While Sleepaway Camp certainly doesn't bore the average gore seeker, it doesn't bring anything new to the table, with the most exciting kill feeling like a tribute to Lucio Fulci's The Beyond. Where the film truly excels is its perverse nature and promiscuity, wrapped around a well structured murder mystery. Even after the final shot is revealed and we're given a twist ending not seen since Norman Bates donned his Grandmother's wig, the suggestive perversion sits with us, seeping into our skin well past the credits.While Sleepaway Camp handles material that had been utilized before in a much sleeker and effective manner, all that doesn't stop it from becoming one of the defining slasher films of its time. It doesn't quiet sit up on the throne with the likes of Halloween, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, or Friday the 13th, but with it use of the first person camera and a twist ending sure to make you tweet everyone you know, Sleepaway Camp has taken its post amongst cult- horror, and it isn't going anywhere.