By Stephen Pytak
If you liked Part II, pick this up. It's more of the
same, and that's not a bad thing. "Angela" returns to "Camp New Horizons," the
same camp she stalked in Part II, to cause more chaos.
Director Michael A. Simpson also returns to make sure
we're laughing every step of the way. The story picks up one year later. Angela is on the
run from the law, but can't resist a summer at camp.
So, she finds an inner city bimbo teen heading to Camp
New Horizons, runs over her with a truck, assumes her
identity, and her hair style, and goes in her place. There she finds new counselors with a new agenda.
They want to bring rich upper class kids together with
youth from the inner city and have them learn to
appreciate each other by playing trust games in the
woods. The film also boasts some other notable cast
members. Michael J. Pollard, who was nominated for the best
supporting actor Oscar for "Bonnie and Clyde (1967),"
plays a pervert counselor who wears a Playboy belt
buckle. Tracy Griffith (actress Melanie Griffith's half sister)
is one of the campers. But the real star, again, is Springsteen, who shines
when she raises her hand and volunteers to sing "I'm a
Happy Camper," and when she rolls over a counselor's
head with a lawn mower. The film, like Part II, is more of a horror comedy.
There's nothing remotely scary about these films and
they're nothing like the original "Sleepaway Camp
(1983)," which had a strange, creepy ending. But Part
II and Part III are more fun to watch. And they've got
topless girls in them. God bless them! There's not much gore or plot either. And the ending
of Part III leaves the door open for Springsteen to return.
But we haven't heard from her "Angela" for over a
decade. The excellent "Sleepaway Camp" DVD box set by
Anchor Bay contains a fourth disc which features scenes
from something called "Sleepaway Camp IV: The
Survivor." Springsteen wasn't in it. And it was never
completed. Maybe that was a good thing, judging by
the footage. Meanwhile, there are rumors that the makers of the
original "Sleepaway Camp (1983)" are thinking about
making their own sequel, but not with Springsteen. That's too bad. While she wasn't in the original, her
"Angela" has become classic in her own right.
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