In honor of the spookiest month of the year, I am going to be following Hannah’s theme of reviewing a horror movie. Many people don’t like the thrills and gore of horror movies; as Jervey once said, “Horror is like the hot sauce of movie genres, not everyone likes it.”  Because of this I have decided to write my first movie review of the month about a “horror” movie that is as mild and satisfying as a light splash of Franks on your morning eggs. This week’s movie is Sleepaway Camp, a low-budget 1980s flick that mixes the nostalgia of summer camp with the thrills of a classic slasher movie.

Sleepaway Camp came out in 1983 and was filmed on a budget of only $350,000.  This was around the same amount used to make Halloween – the grandfather of slasher movies – six years earlier, but much lower than many of its 1980s peers like Nightmare on Elm Street, which had a budget of $1.8 million in 1984. Despite its low budget, Sleepaway Camp remains a hidden gem among horror movies. The plot of the movie is relatively simple: two 15 year olds, Ricky (Jonathan Tiersten) and his cousin Angela (Felissa Rose), are sent off to Ricky’s yearly sleepaway camp by Ricky’s looney mother.  Angela is a painfully shy kid who drowns under the social pressure to fit in from the other girls at the camp. Ricky is more outgoing, and creates a rivalry with the older kids at the camp. 

The movie captures the atmosphere that anyone who went to sleepaway camp would recognize instantly. The only difference between this sleepaway camp and the sleepaway camp you went to as a kid is a series of murders that is killing off both counselors and campers. While Angela deals with the mean girls at the camp, and Ricky tries to put one over on his teenage rivals, a nameless slasher secretly threatens the entire camp.In this way, the movie not only acts as a fairly tame slasher, but also as a social commentary on the environment of sleepaway camps and gender issues as a whole. I think the movie is a perfect starter for people that either hate horror, or are afraid to watch a horror movie, because Sleepaway Camp is really easy to watch. Comparing this movie to the horror genre as a whole, would be like comparing a mild hot sauce to a ghost pepper: there are kills, but each one is seemingly lighthearted compared to what you’d see in other slasher movies. But the movie does take a dark turn toward the end, making this film a satisfying slow burn, with a nice twist to top it all off. 

Overall I think this movie is very well made not only for the time it was released, but the small budget they had to work with. Good child actors are hard to come by – not every director can cast a Macually Culkin – but the talent in this young cast is undeniable. The plot is solid, the atmosphere is captivating, and the kills are satisfying and not overly gory. I would give this movie an 8/10, not only for what they made with the little they had, but for how it has stood the test of time and remains an enjoyable watch to date. I highly recommend the movie for people who want to watch horror but are squeamish about the genre. This is the first drop of hot sauce you need to train your tastebuds to acquire a taste for spice.