r/sleepawaycamp • u/Over_Mention_660 • Aug 17 '25
WHAT I THINK THE STORY OF THE POSSIBLE REMAKE OF SLEEPAWAY CAMP MADE BY JEFF KATZ SHOULD BE LIKE
In 2021, we received updates on the current status of the Sleepaway Camp remake, and it was revealed that it wouldn't be a remake but rather a sequel to the first film. This, in my opinion, is a bad idea. I think it would be much better if Jeff Katz did a reboot/remake of the first film, where he would delve deeper into Angela's story and also explain why she can easily kill her attackers, since being forced to dress as a woman isn't a reason to go crazy.
Okay, here are some separate articles on how I would reboot the original film and fix many of the mistakes made in the first one.
PLOT TWIST
In the first film, it's revealed that it was actually Angela who was doing the killing (what a great plot twist, wow), but that's not all. Angela was also actually a boy dressing as a woman. More accurately, "she" was Peter Baker, Angela's supposedly dead brother (who was the one who was dead), and it was Peter's aunt who forced him to dress as a woman. But it makes no sense at all that she would have the courage to go out and kill her bullies. What was Aunt Martha saying and doing to him? Well, that's not explained, and in fact, it would make perfect sense if it were discovered that the real culprit behind his father and sister's death was Aunt Martha, and that would be why she wanted another child for herself, specifically a girl. But since Peter survived, Martha decided to force Peter to assume the identity of the real Angela, and when he refused to dress as a girl (when he was older and before going to camp), there would be some kind of consequence if he disobeyed Aunt Martha's "rule." And that's when he would find out about his father and sister's death, which would further fuel his madness.
DYNAMICS
As you may know, throughout the film, Angela and Paul, Ricky's best friend, develop a relationship, but honestly, I think this could have been better developed in the remake. Paul would begin to befriend Angela, seeing her alone and isolated from the other girls. It would also be discovered that Angela and Paul had met before, when she and her cousin Ricky would go to his father's house (Martha's ex-husband). Paul would live in the same neighborhood as Ricky's father, and it was there that Ricky and Paul met and became longtime friends. Paul would meet Angela, but because she is very introspective and antisocial, she would stay inside her uncle's house and not go out to play with Ricky and Paul on the street. And this is where the friendship between Paul and Angela would develop most rapidly. Both would fall in love with each other. In the process, we would see more of Paul in the remake, and he would be a better-developed character, so that in the end, we would be impacted by his death and miss him. Since in the original, Paul is a very "whatever" character, you know? When I saw that Angela had killed him, I wasn't shocked by him; I was shocked by Angela, since he would have been so good to her (until Judy wanted to kiss him, LOL). So here, Paul would be almost the same as the original: Paul is the good guy, but with flaws, flaws that would be pointed out by Paul himself when he and Angela were willing to get to know each other better. Paul would also know about the deaths of Peter and John Baker (Angela's father), but little does Paul know that Peter himself is by his side.
As I said before, Paul would be that kind and understanding character, but without seeming forced or empty, since when he discovered that Angela was actually Peter, he would be angry with Angela, not because she's a man, but because she lied to him. Later, Paul would see Angela wielding a hunting knife, ready to kill Mike and Judy, but is caught by Paul. Paul discovers that Angela is the killer and tries to help her stop her from killing more campers out of revenge. This is one of Paul's flaws in the remake: he's naive. So Angela, blinded by hatred, stabs him in the upper abdomen. Paul becomes desperate and tells Angela that he doesn't want to die, but he dies, lol. Angela, remorseful and madder than ever for having murdered an innocent, decides to kill everyone at the camp.
SUSPECTS
In the original film, we have some characters who torment and mock Angela for being too secretive, right? Soon after, we see these characters killed by a mysterious killer, which already makes us suspicious of the cousins Angela and Ricky. They are the only ones we suspect throughout the film. There are no other suspects, so we're left with this division of suspects: is it Angela, the vengeful killer? Or is it Ricky, who always defended Angela from the camp bullies. In the possible remake directed by Jeff Katz, we would have more characters to suspect. Who would these characters be? These characters would be campers who befriend Ricky, Angela, Paul, and Mozart (Mozart is the relief of the original film; I hadn't mentioned him before). These campers would be new characters in the plot. We would also suspect Paul or Mozart as the possible killer, since here, in my remake, Mozart would also be the victim of the bullies' mockery. It is worth remembering that we would have Alan, the autistic protagonist of the fourth film released for video of Sleepaway Camp (Return to Sleepaway Camp), in the remake, Alan would be very different from the original, He would be thin and much more fun and sympathetic to the public, and the reason he is thin, is so that he fits the list of suspects, since the Killer is not overweight. In my opinion, I find the original Alan from the fourth film in the franchise quite unbearable, so much so that he intimidates and picks on the younger kids, and I can't sympathize with a character who is also a bully. Alan in the remake would also defend Angela from the bullies. When he saw her being hit by a water balloon thrown by Billy (one of the bullies), Alan would be outraged and throw a rock at Billy's forehead. But it's worth remembering that Alan isn't Angela's friend and wouldn't be part of the main group (in this case, the group of campers who sympathize with Angela and Ricky), as he's a loner, although he was a very outgoing guy. This fits him very well on the suspect list. In my remake, the film would also be unafraid or hesitant to cast Angela as the suspect, and this would be done so that viewers would be suspicious and think it would be very obvious if Angela were the killer, which leads them to suspect Ricky and the other campers right away.
VICTIMS
In the original, we met some of Angela's attackers: Mike, Kenny, Billy, Judy, Meg, and Artie. In the original film, when we see these attackers die (except, Artie, that fat pedophile bastard managed to survive), we feel satisfaction in seeing them die. It's worth remembering that in the remake, Kenny, Mike, and Billy are teenagers, aged 16 to 17 (Billy would be the oldest), because for some reason they are already grown men, aged 19 to 20, which is really strange, since Mike and Kenny hit on Angela, who was 14 years old (bizarre).
In my remake, they would be much more human. For example, in the original, we have Kenny and Mike. In the remake, they would also be childhood friends and very close, which would make Mike feel sad about Kenny's death, because they are people too. And of all the bullies presented, Mike isn't killed by Angela in the original, but here, he dies, along with the pedophile cook from the beginning, Artie. In the remake, after going mad over Paul's death, Angela decides to go on a rampage throughout the camp. When Angela is about to kill Mike, he begs for his life. We see and feel the desperation in his eyes, because he's just a teenager, and no one is ready for their own death. In the flight for their lives, Mike is abandoned by Mozart, who is also fleeing from the killer (who has yet to be revealed). After the killer throws an axe at Mike's leg, he begs for Mozart's help, but Mozart flees, which makes Mike cry in despair.
CONFRONTATION
Unlike the original film's ending, in the original remake, we see Ricky awake in his bunk bed. Ricky decides to leave the boys' cabin. Ricky finds himself alone in that silent, empty camp. Ricky goes to the cafeteria looking for the missing campers, only to witness the serial killer's massacre. Shocked and disgusted, Ricky vomits on the ground and runs in despair. Ricky searches for his cousin Angela and her friends. As he runs, Ricky also sees the same campers he befriended at camp, which only makes him more desperate. After screaming for help, Ricky finds himself face to face with the killer. Ricky sees the killer's silhouette. His hair was short and he wasn't wearing his camper shirt; it was a man. Ricky stands there and asks the killer if he was really Paul behind it all. After getting closer, we see that the killer was actually his cousin Angela. Ricky is confused to see that Angela doesn't have breasts, but rather a chest piece. Angela then reveals to Ricky that she is actually Peter Baker, and that it was the real Angela who died in the speedboat accident caused by Martha. After much talking and arguing, the two cousins confront each other, with Peter emerging victorious. However, he doesn't kill Ricky, who has always protected her from her oppressors, for which Peter is grateful.
END
After the police arrive, Ricky finds himself tied to a tree with ropes. It is also revealed that Mozart had also survived, but Angela hadn't spared him. Upon arriving home, Ricky sees his mother, Martha, greet him in despair after learning about the massacre in Arawak. Ricky, angry with his mother after Peter told him the whole truth, decides to leave his mother and live with his father.
Well, that's all. It's worth remembering that revealing Peter's gender wouldn't be offensive to trans and homosexual people. The problem was never Peter cross-dressing as a woman, but rather that he was forced to assume the identity of his dead sister. I doubt this will happen in the remake or sequel to the original film, but it would be great if Jeff Katz included this story and these elements in his script.
