Out this week in Irish cinemas is slasher Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma starring Hannah Einbender and Gillian Anderson. Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma follows Kris (Einbender), an up-and-coming director, as she/they is given the unenviable job of revitalising an iconic horror IP.
Known as the Camp Miasma franchise, this slasher IP has done what all horrors have done: started strong with a novel and interesting idea and, over the course of several sequels, become a husk of its former self. As a longtime fan of the franchise, Kris hopes to meet with the star of the original film, Billy Presley (Anderson) and figure out what to do with this corpse of an IP.
During this long weekend with the reclusive star, Kris will learn more about the franchise, Billy, and strangely about herself than she was ever expecting. Going into Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma, I wasn’t sure what I was going to get.
I feel there’s gonna be a jump scare
From the opening credits, the film sets the stage well, giving the history of the fictional Camp Miasma slasher franchise in an irreverent montage of clips about its humble beginnings and its inevitable failure. Director Jane Schoenburn is clearly inspired by films like Cape Fear, Nightmare on Elm Street and Friday the 13th. With similar iconography strewn throughout the film, Camp Miasma even has its own mascot, “The Little Death”. A disturbing creature with deep ties beyond the limitations of the fictional film it is born from.
What makes Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma work so well is that it understands the genre it lives in. As I said earlier, I went into this film unsure what the story would be, and I was surprised almost constantly. This was due to the film not falling into the expected traps of the genre and setting of the film. The film, for the majority of its runtime, is a double act, with Einbender and Anderson bouncing off each other in unexpected ways. This was mainly because of the bewitching and beguiling nature of Billy Presley.
Flesh and Fluids
She is ethereal and otherworldly. She has succumbed to the bizarre alternate reality she lives in, and she seems all the better for it. Like Kris, I couldn’t take my eyes off her whenever she entered a scene, usually in an extravagant outfit that draws all eyes to her. Hats off to Anderson, who continues to be a powerhouse whenever she appears, from television to film and theatre.
With regards to her scene partner, Einbender is a character on a journey. A kind of evolution happens to her across the course of the film, and Billy is there to guide her. Einbender is charming, vulnerable, and by the end of the film has become similar to Billy, and she may be all the better for it.
Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma is a hypnotic and dreamlike film with its unusual and surreal visuals, accompanied by an equally quirky score and soundtrack. This creates a distinct and altogether unique film which deals not just with the tropes of the slasher genre but also is in conversation with how audiences view these films and what we take away from them. The film discusses the themes of sexuality and queerness that can be found in many films within this genre, and it is fascinating. Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma was a film I had no expectations for but came away thoroughly impressed.
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