10 Horror Movie Sequels That Deserve A Second Chance

The original Sleepaway Camp came out in 1983 during the height of the decade’s ravenous slasher craze. Beyond its over-the-top murders and laughably dated aesthetic, it’s become famous – or infamous – for its transgressive representations of gender and sexuality, as well as for its extremely disturbing twist ending.

It’s become so legendary that it’s easy to forget about its follow-ups, and although the latter sequels are probably not worth remembering, 1988’s Sleepaway Camp II: Unhappy Campers absolutely is.

In contrast to Felissa Rose’s portrayal of Angela/Peter Baker as a meek and silent homicidal maniac, Pamela Springsteen’s version is wonderfully snarky, deceptive, and unpredictable. She’s always overjoyed to punish her campers in gleefully perverse ways, and she frequently adds insult to injury by mocking them in the process.

Granted, their drastic change in personality between movies is farfetched and incongruous (to the point that they feel like a completely different person), but that could be seen as a pleasantly self-referential nod to the real change in actress. Their tonal reinvention is also present in the picture as a whole, with Sleepaway Camp II taking shots at the slasher genre as a whole via its lovably tongue-in-cheek satire. It’s truly a great time.