Tuesday, October 20, 2015

Movie Review: "Sleepaway Camp II: Unhappy Campers" (1988)

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Movie"Sleepaway Camp II: Unhappy Campers"
Director: Michael A. Simpson
Year: 1988
Rating: R
Running Time: 1 hour, 20 minutes


The campers at Camp Rolling Hills are looking forward to a summer of fun. When some of the female campers are having fun in a less than moral way, the new camp counselor Angela (Pamela Springsteen) is ready to dish out some punishment, but instead of sending the campers home, she is sending them to their graves.

Many years have passed since Angela Baker went on a killing spree at Camp Arawak and her exploits have become a thing of legend to be told around a campfire. Since then, she was institutionalized, she underwent psychiatric therapy, and has also gone through a sexual reassignment surgery. She has now changed her last name and has taken a job as a counselor at Camp Rolling Hills. Unlike the first "Sleepaway Camp," which is a straight low budget B-horror film, "Sleepaway Camp II: Unhappy Campers" is a B-horror comedy. Pamela Springsteen plays Angela, and if you were thinking, "Hey, I recognize that last name!," yes, we mean that Springsteen as she is Bruce Springsteen's sister. Angela seems sweet enough even though she is a little bit of a by-the-book goodie two shoes, but we learn within the first few minutes that she has a harsh way of dealing with the campers who break her rules. When we say harsh, we mean it, since she beats one of the female campers to death with a tree branch within the first few minutes of the film. The first movie in the series was a whodunit with a shocking twist ending, and this sequel is your average, straight forward 80's slasher film, but that doesn't mean it's boring. Here, we get a good variety in the way Angela murders people, and they are always done in a fun, ridiculous, and gory way. The body count is also really high, so even the blood-thirstiest fans of horror films will be satiated if they can stick around long enough to get past the pretty flimsy plot.

Overall, though this is a pretty familiar 80's horror complete with gratuitous nudity and a virgin survivor girl named Molly, played by Renée Estevez, it's still satisfying enough to watch in the spirit of Halloween. Oh, and if you were wondering, yes, she is Charlie Sheen and Emelio Estevez's sister. Despite how cliché this movie is, it is still a good time, albeit a sillier movie than the first installment. For what it's worth, it's still a fun horror watch.

My Rating: 6/10
BigJ's Rating: 6/10
IMDB's Rating: 5.7/10
Rotten Tomatoes Rating: 29%
Do we recommend this movie: Sure, why not?
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Two years ago, we were watching: "Final Destination"

One year ago, we were watching: "I Drink Your Blood"

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