THE PLOT THUS FAR
After a terrible boating accident killed her family, shy Angela Baker (Felissa Rose, Return To Sleepaway Camp) went to live with her eccentric Aunt Martha and her cousin Ricky. This summer, Martha decides to send them both to Camp Arawak, a place to enjoy the great outdoors. Shortly after their arrival, a series of bizarre and violent accidents begin to claim the lives of various campers. Has a dark secret returned from the camp’s past…or will an unspeakable horror end the Summer season for all?
From its grisly makeup effects to the truly shocking, and unforgettable, climax, Sleepaway Camp is no ordinary slasher film…it’s a cult classic!
WHAT WE THOUGHT
“Sleepaway Camp” lives and dies by the flashback sequences. So many other horror films were milking the nature based summer camp thing to death. But, it feels real. The campers are mean and they swear like sailors. The gross camp owner is trying to get into the pants of a much younger coed. Everything feels so grimy and close to the vest, that you never know who is a hair away from hatcheting people to death.
The ending of this film has created such a legacy that I’m not sure if it will ever escape it. That being said, I always believe that the movie was right to turn into that skid. The gender politics and identity issues tied into the reveal of the killer take this movie away from being a “Friday the 13th” clone and makes it something else. In a time where “The Burning” and others were defining the subgenre, this is a nice and unexpected entry.
The Blu-Ray comes with commentaries, featurettes, a DVD copy, documentaries and a short film as the special features. The DTS-HD mono track has amazing design and keeps everything upfront in line with the original mix. The 1080p transfer is smooth and showcases that 2K restoration. What’s funny is that one of the featurettes shows HD clips that haven’t been restored and they look awful. I wonder what the timeline on production was for that. Still, it’s an amazing release and one that’s well worth a purchase.
RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW!