When listener John S. commissioned the 1983 cult slasher Sleepaway Camp, Big D had zero expectations. Gene was cautiously optimistic after two disappointing summer camp films. Neither was prepared for what they got.

What starts as Meatballs with murder — beehives, boilings, and drownings — escalates into something far darker, culminating in one of cinema's most shocking twist endings. Gene calls it his favorite slasher finale of all time. Big D says it's up there with The Terminator, Empire Strikes Back, and Back to the Future Part II.

In this episode:

  • How Sleepaway Camp earned its 82% Rotten Tomatoes score despite being dismissed as a Friday the 13th knockoff
  • The legendary practical effects of Ed French (Terminator 2, Star Trek, Buffy) — going way harder than the budget demanded
  • Robert Earl Jones (James Earl Jones' father!) as the camp cook who looks the other way
  • The most authentic New York swearing since your last family gathering
  • A thoughtful debate on whether the film's famous ending is transphobic or a tragic story of a child failed by the adults around him
  • Why both hosts agree: watch this movie before you listen to this episode. The twist is that good.

Sleepaway Camp is available free on multiple streaming platforms including Plex. Go watch it first — seriously — then come back and join the conversation.

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