‘Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma’ – A New Masterpiece from Jane Schoenbrun [Fantasia Review]

Ask any horror fan, and they’ll tell you that they first fell in love with the genre after watching a film they weren’t supposed to as a kid. They had rummaged through their older brother’s DVD collection, stayed up late to watch something on TV without their parents knowing, or accidentally stumbled upon a movie while searching for something else, mindlessly clicking through the blue-and-white TV guide until they saw a title that caught their attention. Jane Schoenbrun’s sexy slasher satire Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma captures the thrill of discovering yourself through what frightens and excites you, combining the dreamy experimentation of We’re All Going to the World’s Fair and the confidence of I Saw the TV Glow to deliver the boldest, most joyful—and arguably most personal—film in their “screen trilogy.” 

Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma follows Kris (Hacks star Hannah Einbinder), a young, queer filmmaker who’s been given the opportunity to direct a “woke” reboot of the now defunct “Camp Miasma” franchise after her film—which we later discover is essentially Psycho told from the shower curtain’s perspective—made her a breakout star at Sundance. Determined to bring the original film’s final girl back in the new installment, she travels from New York City to the frozen Pacific Northwest to convince Billy Presley (Gillian Anderson, whose incredible performance can only be described as Dolly Parton meets Norma Desmond) to revive her role. 

Though Billy lives on Camp Tivoli, where the original film was shot, she’s stayed far away from the franchise, declining to star in the progressively crappy sequels until Hollywood stopped calling altogether. She’s found happiness and fulfillment creating Mark Rothko-esque paintings of the film’s killer, “Little Death” (), from the comfort of her cabin, where she invites Kris to stay the night. When Kris reminds Billy that this is a work meeting, Billy purrs, “We’re already working.”