Camp Miasma Review: Jane Schoenbrun's Meta Slasher Is Gory, Funny, and Queer

Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma review, spoilers included, straight off its Canadian premiere at Fantasia. Jane Schoenbrun made a queer slasher that loves slashers, and we did not see it coming. Hannah Einbinder plays Kris, a director handed a dead franchise (a "zombie IP," in her words) to reboot; Gillian Anderson plays Billy, the original final girl who vanished into a reclusive Hollywood mystery. The two of them meet at the abandoned camp where the first film was shot, and things get bloody, horny, and genuinely strange from there. JANE SCHOENBRUN'S QUEER SLASHER LANDS AT FANTASIA - Camp Miasma had its Canadian premiere at Fantasia Festival, with Jane Schoenbrun on hand for the post-screening Q&A. - It's Schoenbrun's third feature after We're All Going to the World's Fair and I Saw the TV Glow, and easily their funniest and brightest. - The film goes wide in theaters August 7 via Mubi; it opened Un Certain Regard at Cannes and won the Queer Palm.   THE CAST IS FANTASTIC - Hannah Einbinder (Hacks) plays Kris, the director handed the reboot; Gillian Anderson plays Billy, the reclusive original final girl. - Jack Haven plays the killer, Little Death, reuniting with Schoenbrun after playing Maddy in I Saw the TV Glow. - Jasmin Savoy Brown (Yellowjackets, Scream) plays Mari, with Sarah Sherman, Patrick Fischler, and Montreal's own Kevin McDonald rounding it out.   A HOMAGE THAT LOVES THE SUBGENRE - The opening credits sequence tears through the whole life cycle of a slasher franchise (sequels, space, arcade games, a reboot) and it's brilliant. - There's a fully playable Camp Miasma board game the production team built, rulebook and all, that surprised even Schoenbrun. - Little Death's design is the standout: a box-within-a-box head, a hazmat suit, and a spear that flings victims around like a flag.   SEX, DEATH, AND LITTLE DEATH - The killer's name translates straight from la petite mort, the French phrase for an orgasm, and the film weaves sex and death together on purpose. - It sits with the problematic history of older slashers (the transphobia of [LINK: Sleepaway Camp], the homophobia stitched into the genre) without losing its love for them. - We kept spoilers light since the film isn't out until August 7. Watch it, then come back and yell at us. Follow us & Subscribe:SpotifyApple PodcastTikTokInstagramThreadsGrave Tone Horror Podcast Website Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.