Sleepaway Camp is a 1983 American slasher film written and directed by Robert Hiltzik and staring Mike Kellin, Katherine Kamhi, Paul DeAngelo, Jonathan Tiersten, Felissa Rose, Christopher Collet and Karen Fields. The film focuses on serial killings which occur at a summer camp for teenagers. Sleepaway Camp is a trans film. The film criticises being forced into a gender or sexuality you are not and to ultimately embrace your true self. The film criticises being forced into this as it results in a violent rage against people who put forced perception of you onto yourself.
The film starts in 1975 were John Baker and his boyfriend Lenny take John’s children Angela and Peter on a boating trip. After the boat capsizes John and the children try and get ashore, but they swim into the path of a reckless motorboat and a struck John and seemingly Peter are killed however it was Angela that was killed, and Peter now dresses like Angela who is now forcibly transgender. This shows the dangers of being forced into and gender or sexuality by people’s perception of you resulting in a violent rage. 8 years later Angela who is actually Peter lives with their aunt as well as their cousin Ricky as they are sent away for summer camp. Angela is now forced into a gender that is into their self due to her aunt’s perception of them. As the aunt has a Freudian desire in the sense of a mother wanting a daughter to be her symbolic object. As a result of this forced gender and sexuality Angela has become shy and forced to be a girl who contrasts with the fellow camper Judy who bullies her. This showcases the female as a dominating force destroying their masculinity as her and the camp council Meg are dominating female forces as by contrast Angela is a shy girl show doesn’t speak or eat. Judy says “if she was any quieter, she’d by dead” showcases how Angela’s true self has been destroyed so much her true self is symbolically dead. The head cook Artie attempts go assault her until Ricky intervenes. Angela then grabs the stool form underneath Artie covering him in boiling water and severely burning him. This shows the fears of people forcing a female sexuality onto Angela resulting in a volent rage against those wanting her to conform to their version of her. Angela is seen to be weird by the boys as they talk about skinny dipping and asks her as she wants to go with them. she doesn’t respond to this and as a result they bully her this results in a bunch of boys fighting each other as Ricky defends her and Paul befriend Angela. This shows her begin forced into a sexuality she isn’t as this destruction of traditional gender results in violence. This violence is shown with Kenny dying and Angela kills him by drowning him when his canoe capsizes as again there is a violent rage that is a result of her being forced into a gender there not. Angela talks to Paul who invites her to the movies as the girls bully her but some of the girls are ok with her as Paul then walks with Angela who kisses her. This demonstrates issues of being forced into a gender identity you are not be others. Paul and Angela meet again and are bullied by Judy as Meg confronts Angela and shakes her. Judy further scolds Angela talks about. How she never takes showers with the rest of them as they think she’s ether gay or hasn’t got her period yet. This showcases the fears of being forced into a non-traditional gender or sexuality and how this oppression results in violence.
Angela walks towards the boys as campers Billy and Jimmy throw water balloons at her as Ricky defends her as well as Paul. Billy is then killed when Angela locks him in a toilet cubical and throws a beehive through an open window exploiting his allergy. This again shows Angela primal rage because of people hating her for being the other due to her forced into a gender role she doesn’t want to conform to be a girl as they are resulting her true self in a backwards violent way. Angela and Paul run around the beach and fall atop of each other in a romantic moment. Paul starts to kiss her, and she gets scared as she has flash back of her and her brother witnessing their father with his secret gay lover Lennie as she breaks out and runs away. This shows the fears of being forced into a gender and equality you don’t want to be a part of resulting in violence. This ultimately is further shown by her and her brother witnessing their father with his secret gay lover Lennie. This show’s the fears in conforming to roles forced upon others. The films show how others forced an identity onto people as their father being gay most likely confused them sexuality resulting in their mother’s rage transforming them into a girl. Paul then applies to Angela who accepts it but doesn’t like Paul touching her which annoys him. This again shows Angela as being forced into a gender she doesn’t want to conform to peoples expected gender roles of you. Ricky talks to Angela as they capture the flag and in doing so Angela sees Judy and Paulk kissing with her somewhat forcing him to do so as Ricky then runs of to talk to her. Paul then apologies to Angela again confusion about sexuality due to forced gender conformity as Judy calls her a prude as people in their life has confused them sexually so much it results in psychosexual violence.
Judy and Meg throw Angela into the water as six small children then throw sand at Angela as Ricky confronts them swearing revenge. This shows how Angela’s trauma results in her murders as further highlighted when she stabs meg to death with a knife in the shower. Paul apologies to Angela who asks him were Ricky is and tells him to meet her at the waterfront after the show as Angela kills the four kids who threw sand in her face. This shows how Angela being forced to confront to a gender role prescribed by a domineering presence result in her being phycology warped leading to devastating resulting in her taking violent revenge against those who have seemingly wronged them. Mel discovers Megs body as Angela kills Judy by vaginally penetrating her with a hot electric curling iron. This demonstrates Angela is symbolically destroying the gender that was forced upon her and wishing to embrace their own identity symbolically though violence. Mel beats Ricky unconscious believing he is the killer however Angela then shoots him dead with a bow and arrow. This shows how Angela’s rage at individuals for trying to force a perceived sexuality not her creates a rage culminating in violence. Paul meets Angela by the beach as they go swimming as the camp councillors discover Angela naked holding Pauls severed head. Thins shows Angela’s gender and sexual rage resulting in violence and death. It is revealed that Angela is Peter. Angela died in the boat accident and his mother always wanted a girl, but her husband left her a son. She changes his name to Angela meaning angel Angela is symbolically an avenging angel that wants to destroy this gender and sexuality that has been thrusted upon them which started as they were mentally affected witnessing their father with Lenny. Peter drops Pauls head naked covered in blood, animalistic and full of rage they are hissing and growling and Susie and Ronnie who are horrified to discover she is a boy. This highlights the themes of transgenderism ion the film. This shows the fear of being forced not a sexuality and gender you are not by a dominating other. This film shows it is imperative to embrace one’s true self as being forced to conform to another’s perception of you will ultimately result in a violent rage against the people who promote those wrong perceptions against you.
Sleepaway Camp in a film about transgenderism. The film highlights the danger of being forced into a specific gender or sexuality which you are not. The film highlights the importance of embracing your true self as being forced into a specific identity by another will ultimately result in a violent rage and the death of those who projected their perceptions of you onto yourself and the destruction of their perception will only result in the destruction of the lives.