Line #12 YMMV/SleepawayCamp


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2	* AccidentalAesop: "Personal identity is vital in childhood development and being forced to present yourself as something you don't identify with is damaging." [[spoiler: For the entire movie, Angela was believed to be the surviving twin of a boating accident that killed her father and brother, but she has an identity crisis after kissing Paul, since it reminded her of her father and brother and the tragedy of losing them. However, the twist is that her brother, Peter, was actually the twin who survived the accident, and his aunt forced him to take his better-received and deceased sister's identity because she didn't want another son. This caused gender identification issues for Peter, and since his trauma was never validated, he eventually lost his mind and started killing people who tried to sexually assault and harass him. The twist also recontextualizes the flashback where Peter and Angela see a post-coital moment between their father and Lenny, and a young Peter points at Angela's chest. Since Peter never had the accurate talk about sex and the relationship between Lenny and his father was never properly explained to him, he didn't know how to comprehend Paul's kiss, and it left him deeply confused about who he was.]]
3	* AlternativeCharacterInterpretation:
4	** It's never known if Ricky knows the truth about Angela or not. It could go either way, whether he knew but was coerced into keeping it a secret or was kept in the dark his whole life. Or he once knew but has completely forgotten it.
5	** Is Paul a budding lech who can't understand non-verbal cues Angela gives him to show that she's not into what he's pressuring her to and then goes and kisses another girl when he can't get what he wants immediately? Or is he a somewhat clueless teenager who misread Angela's signals (she did enjoy their first kiss and showed obvious interest in him at first) and made a mistake that he was sorry for? [[TakeAThirdOption Some combination of both?]]
6	** [[spoiler: Angela killing Paul. Did she reveal her true gender to him and kill him when he reacted with shock and horror like the counsellors? She appears to set it up after she catches him kissing Judy, but she knows what an AlphaBitch Judy is - so was Paul killed for his repeated advances on her even after she kept saying no? Or did she preemptively do it out of fear of how he'd react to her secret?]]
7	* CatharsisFactor: Billy and Meg get particularly nasty deaths, but they're both so horrible that it's very satisfying. Meg, who serves as one of Angela's worst bullies, [[spoiler:has her spine carved up slowly]].
8	** While he doesn't die (at least not on-screen), the pedophile cook Artie getting [[spoiler:burned with boiling water]] also qualifies.
9	* CultClassic: Considered an underrated gem from the first wave of slasher films.
10	* EnsembleDarkhorse: ''[[AlphaBitch Judy]]'', one of the most iconic horror bitches of all time, and most of the audience loves her for it! So much that they made a short film spin-off.
11	* FairForItsDay: John and Lenny's relationship is portrayed rather sympathetically, given the era the movie came out in. John is never shown to be anything but a good father and Lenny seems to be genuinely torn up over his death. [[spoiler: Maybe if he had gotten custody of Peter instead of [[{{CloudCuckoolander}} Aunt Martha]], the events of the movie could've been avoided.]]
12	* FirstInstallmentWins: The first film is the most remembered, and the sequels get less fan press.
13	* FridgeLogic: Theoretically, [[spoiler:it should be pretty easy to figure out which twin survived if one went to a cemetary]].
14	* HamAndCheese: Mike Kellin and Desiree Gould stand out in a film that's already quite camp. Mel's MotiveRant about how he's determined to get Ricky is particularly hammy.
15	* HarsherInHindsight: Real life would parallel the movie for Felissa Rose after it came out. She would have to change schools twice because of the bullying she received. However, she has nothing but love for the film itself and its fans.
16	* HilariousInHindsight: [[spoiler:The UnsettlingGenderReveal as you discover Angela is actually Peter predates ''Film/TheCryingGame'' by nearly ten years.]]
17	** This mixed with Irony, but [[spoiler:as a 13-year-old who's biologically a boy (and played by a drunk male college student), Angela/Peter is flat-chested. Creator/FelissaRose grew up to have natural large breasts.]]
18	* HoYay: The jocks. When the girls don't want to go skinny dipping, they strip down to their underwear and go off on their own, and they like to pile on top of someone as a form of punishment. Plus all the tight shorts, crop tops and t-shirts they wear, though that can partially be blamed on TheEighties. Even so, most of them love walking around shirtless with each other.
19	* IAmNotShazam: The name of the camp where the murders happen is ''not'' named "Sleepaway"; it's "Camp Arawak". The title actually refers to the term 'sleepaway camp'; meaning the summer camp is one in which the children stay overnight.
20	* ItWasHisSled: The film is famously remembered as a CultClassic for the TwistEnding alone: [[spoiler:Angela is a boy.]]
21	* KarmicOverkill:
22	** The little kids who threw sand on Angela after Meg and Judy push her into the water [[spoiler:end up slaughtered in their sleep]]. For most viewers, the fact that they're very young children and too underdeveloped to warrant such a comeuppance makes TheReveal feel like overkill. Even the director himself regretted it.
23	** Paul was not a bully like the other kids, genuinely liked Angela and apologized to her for kissing Judy. While he had obvious issues with respecting Angela's boundaries, [[spoiler:being lured into a trap and decapitated]] is a bit of a harsh fate for him.
24	* LGBTFanbase: Thanks to the twist ending, the film has actually proved quite popular with the transgender community, who have interpreted a positive message relating to gender dysphoria in how [[spoiler:Peter was forced to assume his sister's identity]]. The metric tonne of HoYay between all the males, lack of gratuitous female nudity and general {{Camp}} tone also attract a significant queer viewership.
25	* LoveToHate: Karen Fields is having a blast playing the AlphaBitch Judy, and she's beloved by horror fans.
26	* MemeticMutation:
27	** "Any chips?" "Why of course! I believe there's a ''whole bag!''"
28	** "Eat shit and die, Ricky!” “Eat shit and live, Bill!"
29	** "You're a real scumbag, Judy."
30	** "She's a real carpenter's dream: flat as a board and needs a screw!"
31	* MoneyMakingShot: [[spoiler: Peter standing up, revealing all of his [[{{Squick}} naked body]] to the viewer, holding a knife and hissing like an animal]]. That image will be forever burned into the darkest corners of your mind.
32	* MoralEventHorizon:
33	** Aunt Martha crossed it when she [[spoiler:forced Peter to pretend to be a girl]] just to fulfill her own desire to have a daughter.
34	** Arguably, Angela herself crossed it when she [[spoiler:[[DisproportionateRetribution killed the little kids who threw sand at her]].]]
35	* {{Narm}}:
36	** More often than not, due to poor acting and writing, plenty of implausible scenes, and the ridiculously over-the-top ending.
37	** Aunt Martha is either creepy as hell or this trope. Desiree Gould's campy performance has to be [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hhc9ZDRm38E seen]] to be believed.
38	** Doubles as NarmCharm but three words: "NOT YOU, MEG." Mel's face only makes it more hilarious.
39	* NarmCharm: Pretty much the entire movie. When it isn't being incredibly gory, ''something'' over-the-top and ridiculous is happening.
40	* NightmareRetardant: The ending isn't as scary if you know [[spoiler:Angela's face is just a mask, worn by a guy who had to get shitfaced to do the scene]], and if you think [[spoiler:[[NakedPeopleAreFunny her being naked]] is more silly than anything]]. Though on the other hand, it does help with the uncanny feeling of the whole thing. Also the fact that the counsellors are more concerned with [[spoiler:Angela being a boy]] than the reveal that she's [[spoiler:decapitated Paul]]. You may find [[spoiler:Angela's bizarre facial expression and the breathing noises she makes]] hard to take seriously as well.
41	* OneSceneWonder: Well, one full scene and a brief flashback, but despite relatively little screen time, Aunt Martha is pretty memorable, to say the least.
42	* ReplacementScrappy: Pamela Springsteen's performance as Angela in the sequels is not as popular as her original actress Felissa Rose.
43	* RetroactiveRecognition: Paul's actor Christopher Collet would later be better known for starring in ''Film/TheManhattanProject''.
44	* RootingForTheEmpire: With victims like these, it's not really that hard to find their deaths satisfying. The exceptions are the little kids who threw sand on Angela and possibly [[spoiler:Paul]].
45	* SignatureScene: The reveal, as noted many times above.
46	* SpecialEffectsFailure: Sometimes Blu-Ray/[=4k=] isn't what it's cracked up to be, as the lighting for the [=4k=] version of the scene where [[spoiler:Judy is killed]] quite obviously shows [[spoiler:Jonathan Tiersten (Ricky's actor) wearing a wig]] where the character is meant to be a shadowy silhouette.
47	* UnintentionallySympathetic: The director had this reaction to [[spoiler:the children who got killed for throwing sand on Angela]], feeling that was going a bit too far.
48	* ValuesDissonance:
49	** Meg, a teenage counsellor (although her actress was nineteen, so she could be that age too) freely has a relationship with Mel, her boss, who is over fifty at least. Not one person seems to find this unusual.
50	** The frequent use of homophobic obscenities, while much more acceptable in TheEighties, would make viewers today cringe.
51	** Some of the pranks used would be classified as sexual harassment these days, especially the 'mind over matter' trick.
52	** The counsellors' casual attitude towards bullying is horrifying these days, but it was released back when bullying wasn’t seen as destructive as it is today. That said, this is largely for the bullying among the boys (which in general has always been seen as more "normal" than with girls), and when Angela is picked on the counsellors do take steps to stop it and make it clear it's unacceptable behavior.
53	** Paul kissing Angela by surprise after he saw just how uncomfortable she was could be interpreted nowadays as a gross violation of her lack of consent. It's possible this is the IntendedAudienceReaction, since Paul then goes and makes out with Judy, and [[spoiler: Angela lures him to be killed in the end]].
54	** [[spoiler: The reveal of Angela's body in the final scene is considered more than a bit uncomfortable and unintentionally harmful by many trans people, as it helped to perpetuate a narrative that trans and genderfluid people are sinister by default.]]
55	* ValuesResonance: [[spoiler: On the other hand, the reveal can also serve to demonstrate that gender identity is something that is chosen and should not be forced. Angela never chose to identify as a woman, but rather her adoptive aunt forced it upon her.]]
56	* SugarWiki/VisualEffectsOfAwesome: [[spoiler:Mel]]'s death by bow and arrow to the neck. For a very long time, the director would not say how the effect was achieved. It's that good. Eventually, though, it ''was'' revealed that the back of his neck had an arrowhead spring loaded that popped up when the first part hit his throat. Careful observation shows that his neck does become much greyer in the shot, clearly indicating it was done with some kind of neck appliance.
57	* TheWoobie: Poor [[spoiler:Angela/Peter.]] Also a WoobieDestroyerOfWorlds.
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Context YMMV / SleepawayCamp