Sleepaway Camp II: Unhappy Campers, 1988.
Directed by Michael A. Simpson.
Starring Pamela Springsteen, Renée Estevez, Brian Patrick Clarke, and Valerie Hartman.
SYNOPSIS:
The camp killer is back to ensure everyone has a safe and happy summer – or not.
Unfortunately, it is near impossible to discuss Sleepaway Camp II: Unhappy Campers without revealing the ending of Sleepaway Camp (1983). I strongly advise anyone with even a passing interest in these films to at least watch the first before reading onwards – you have been warned. Set several years after Sleepaway Camp, the events of that film have now passed into legend and the story is retold around campfires. Nearly everyone has heard of Angela Baker – the young gender-confused boy who slaughtered her fellow campmates. There are rumours that Angela Baker is still alive today, having undergone sexual reassignment surgery she is now a girl – although one that is severely psychologically damaged – and she has supposedly changed her name. These rumours are quickly revealed to the audience to be true with the introduction of Angela Johnson (Pamela Springsteen), a camp counsellor at Camp Rolling Hills.
Unlike the majority of slasher movies, where the killer’s identity is deliberately saved for a reveal towards the end, Sleepaway Camp II: Unhappy Campers revels in toying with our expectations. The film doesn’t mistake us for idiots and quite clearly flags the problem kids who will soon be meeting their grisly ends. Angela is intent on providing a safe happy environment for everyone, and any kid who misbehaves is doomed for severe punishment. The film is refreshingly self-aware and openly references other slasher films – particularly The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974), Friday the 13th (1980) and its sequels, and A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984). Whilst Angela could never dream of entering the legendary status that is bestowed upon those horror icons, it’s fair to say she has definitely had an impact upon the slasher subgenre.
I’d like to be able to offer some praise to Sleepaway Camp II: Unhappy Campers, but it’s a fairly average movie peppered with gruesome death scenes – and it’s unfair to expect much more from a slasher sequel. The story makes little sense and is generally used as an excuse to move from one badly behaved kid to the next, giving Angela any excuse to enact a swift and bloody punishment. Pamela Springsteen takes over from Felissa Rose with the character, and although Springsteen does do an admirable job she unfortunately isn’t quite as good as Rose. The character is clearly troubled but no time is wasted attempting to explore the roots of her problems, this is a film that is intent on dispatching kids as quickly as possible in as many imaginative ways the budget would allow.
Sleepaway Camp II: Unhappy Campers provides a stark reminder that mullets were very much once in fashion. The acting is mostly passable and there are a few tits thrown in between the gory death scenes, which is really all you can expect from a movie like this. It is very clearly a product of the 80s, unashamedly so, and this really does add a curious charm to the movie. Although Sleepaway Camp II: Unhappy Campers won’t appeal to everyone, those that enjoy the cheap slashers of the 80s could certainly do worse than a quick getaway with Angela – just make sure you’ve seen Sleepaway Camp first.
Flickering Myth Rating – Film ★ ★ / Movie ★ ★ ★
Originally published May 31, 2012. Updated April 10, 2018.
