I never went to summer Camp. I just wasn't the type of kid that would have enjoyed it. Yet, looking back, I kind of wish I had been. All these 80's summer Camp Slashers make it all look pretty cool. Minus the obvious, of course. But there's just something about Summer Camp Horror, isn't there? Yeah, it's great. However, there will be no Horror talk, today. Plenty of Summer Camp talk, though. Today, I'm going to talk about a film with one of the most misleading titles in all of cinema. Summer Camp Nightmare was disqualified from the Horror genre a long time ago, regardless of what section I originally rented it from. Yep, it was right there between Slumber Party Massacre III and Terror Train, just waiting to be rented by an unsuspecting Slasher fan. So, yeah. Not a Horror movie. Not at all. It turned out to be more of a summer Camp Thriller. With that said, I can't say I was the least bit disappointed.
Now, we come awfully close to Horror in this story, but ultimately, things never get quite dangerous enough. Summer Camp Nightmare is about one guy's thirst for power and his manipulation of everyone elses thirst for a reasonably fun summer. Let me start from the beginning: Some pushy, religious fanatic (Chuck Connors) has taken over as camp director, practically making this once fun place a "Christian Camp". Not that there's anything wrong with Christian Camps, but if that's closer to what this guy had in mind, a heads up would have been appreciated. Of course, I don't know how that would have gone. Maybe everyone would have headed to Camp Arawak instead, but the point is, Mr. Warren needs to back off because nobody signed up for this shit.
In the fall, Franklin Reilly will be headed to Millitary school, but for now, he's merely a counselor at Camp North Pines. Franklin looks forward to having some fun, getting some fresh air, looking after the younger campers, studying everyone and learning their weaknesses. Franklin isn't like everyone else. He seems like he is, but what Franklin is really after is a little complicated. Franklin wants to take over. Actually, let me rephrase that: Franklin is taking over!
After establishing himself while getting as many people on his side as possible, Franklin makes little remarks about Mr. Warren's rules, riling everyone up. Then, he oh so cleverly convinces them that Mr. Warren molested one of the younger kids. This ensures that no one will side with the Jesus freak once the revolution gets started. Oh, and by the way. There is going to be a Revolution at Camp North Pines. With a gun in hand, Franklin locks up all authority figures while promising his regime in the making that the cops will be called within a day or two ... or three. We'll see how it goes. So, with no (adult) authority figures around, why not do some hardcore, PG-13 partying in the meantime?
Well, Franklin is not fucking around, obviously, because he has already had the authority figures, over at the nearby girls Camp, locked up, as well. And yes, at gunpoint. The girls are, of course, invited over, officially beginning summer for the older kids. Camp North Pines quickly becomes one, big, chaotic party, but chaos is fine with Franklin as long as it's on his watch. Now might be a good time for someone to point out that everyone has pretty much traded one authority figure for another. And the new one seems to be one order away from becoming a cult leader. What's scary is that this is all coming together way too easily for him Things don't get too out of hand until Mr. Warren is accidentally killed, which is kept from everyone. Franklin isn't about to let anything or anybody come in the way of his control over this Camp, and anyone suspected of disloyalty will be dealt with.A bit of a Lord Of The Flies ripoff, isn't it? Not too much, but some elements are borrowed but used wisely. Most notably, everyone's tendency to forget that there are laws outside their new society. Both stories show what isolation can do to a person's mind, but it just doesn't work as well here, because these kids are only about a week or two into their stay. Summer Camp Nightmare has all the makins for a fantastic 80's slasher, but without those Horror elements, ends up being far more story-heavy. There was one intentional murder but it was done off screen and was more or less deserved, so, this movie can never be accused of being anything more than a hard Thriller. The character of Franklin was an interesting one. We never really get to know him or how he ended up that way, but that boy must have had some damn fine parents to end up with such issues. Something tells me Franklin had a session or two with a shrink ahead of him, though. Kids like that need to be fixed before being allowed to enter society. We certainly have more than our share of sociopaths out there as it is. As for Summer Camp Nightmare, any fan of 80's Camp Slashers should be able to easily cut it some slack once it gets going. Personally, I am proud to have this misplaced Thriller in my Horror collection, whether it belongs there or not. 7/10
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