Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma

The films of director Jane Schoenbrun are singularly unique and queer in a way that is all-encompassing. Not only do they feature queer characters, Schoenbrun's films are "queer" in every sense of the word: the plots walk twisty, sometimes dark paths that stray off the straight, narrow, and comfortable. They explore ambiguity and confusion in a way that is off-putting to some viewers. 

This is Schoenbrun's third feature-length film. Their first film, We're All Going to the World's Fair, wasn't my jam. I was intrigued by the premise but found the movie to be too slow and boring (I'll have to revisit it some day to see if my opinion has changed). However, Schoenbrun's second film, I Saw the TV Glow, was a revelation. Schoenbrun captured the agony of not being able to transition and denying one's truth with devastating clarity (I'm not trans myself, but I can still, ya know, empathize with these themes on some level). Justice Smith's performance as Owen, a person who denies themselves so thoroughly they metaphorically and literally become unable to breathe, was heartbreaking.

Now, Schoenbrun returns with a very different vibe: Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma is a film about what happens when you let go and give in to all that you desire. What happens when you honor your truth. Camp Miasma is just as queer, but more uplifting and hopeful than I Saw the TV Glow (this is not a strike against TV Glow, which is an excellent film).

Hannah Einbinder plays Kris Williams, an up-and-coming film director in her late-20s hired to reboot the "Camp Miasma" horror franchise (think: Sleepaway Camp). Kris is a horror nerd who jumps at the chance to make a meaningful film that honors her love of the franchise while addressing the homophobic and transphobic aspects of the original films. 

She is invited to stay with Billy Presley (Gillian Anderson), the reclusive actress who played the "final girl" in the first Camp Miasma film and never returned to the series. Billy lives at the abandoned camp where the first movie was shot (in a pretty damn cozy cabin, I might add). While Kris is just honored to be in this woman's presence, she also has a bit of an agenda: to convince Billy to star in the reboot.

The premise of the Camp Miasma films is that there is a killer named "Little Death" (played by Jack Haven) who wears an air vent on their head and carries a rusty spear they murder people with. We get to watch the first Camp Miasma film, which starred a young Billy Presley as "Squeak", a virginal camp counselor spending her first summer at Miasma surrounded by older, more experienced counselors. One night, counselor Will (Zach Cherry in a hilarious role) regales everyone around a campfire with the tale of Little Death.

Little Death was a camper years ago at Camp Miasma. They were nonbinary/genderfluid, choosing to sometimes present as a boy and sometimes present as a girl. Of course, Will tells the story in the most transphobic way possible, calling the camper a "total freakhouse" (this scene is played for laughs, making fun of the over-the-top transphobia of the camp counselors). When the camper shows up at the lake in a bikini one day, the others campers drown them and the camp covers up the murder. But the camper--now known as "Little Death"--returns to take revenge on their tormentors.

If you're thinking to yourself, "Hey, isn't "little death" a euphemism for an orgasm?"...well you've now figured out one of the major themes of Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma! Kris confesses to Billy that she is "bad at sex" and can't climax with another person without being far away in her own mind. Billy asks where she goes and Kris explains that she imagines herself as a camper at Camp Miasma. In a tender scene, Billy and Kris snuggle by the fire and Kris confesses to Billy that she imagines herself as "a victim" and "a slut" whose tits bounce as she runs away from a killer. Kris is embarrassed that these fantasies are silly and misogynistic. But Billy says "You can be that with me". 

The final act of the film is an extended sexual fantasy that mixes reality and fiction in which Kris lives out her dream. At one point, after being confronted by Little Death, she says "what do I do now" before stripping off her clothes and running through the woods, boobs bouncing and nipples perky, becoming the bimbo-victim of a horror film. Camp Miasma is a celebration of how films, including "problematic" films, help us build our identities and discover our desires--usually at a young age. I Saw the TV Glow had similar themes. In fact, all of Schoenbrun's work explores the importance of seeing oneself represented in media, especially at a young age.

The connection between horror film and sexual fantasy is one I totally get. Horror movies are scary and thrilling--they raise your heart rate and make you sweat and grab on to your sweetheart and hold them close. Orgasm is an act of surrender, as is death--the ultimate letting go and giving in. In the climactic moment, the camera stays on Kris's face as she reaches her little death...and let's just say that Meg Ryan's fake orgasm in When Harry Met Sally is a pathetic pantomime of the real thing compared to Hannah Einbinder's. 

There are so many other themes that are explored in Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma. I've just focused on the one I understood the best. The film is not only about embracing one's sexual desires, but about intimacy, surrender, reclamation, anxiety, overthinking, "problematic" media, watching and being watched, and so much more. It's a fantastically meta film done in a way that, as long as you give yourself over to it, feels seamless. I love that when Kris walks through the abandoned camp, the trees transition from real to CGI to painted and back again. 

Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma is a must-watch for anyone who can relate to being stuck in their own heads and struggling to embrace a fully bodied experience. Whether you're trans, cis, or somewhere in between, there's something for you in this film. Between this movie and I Saw the TV Glow, I've seen a lot of people say things to the effect of "I respect it, but it's clearly not made for me." I call bullshit. Yes, Schoenbrun's films are by and for trans people, but, believe it or not, cis people can relate to trans people and even...learn things from them about their own bodies! *Gasp* For example, gender-affirming care is something cis people do all the time! To be crystal clear: this is not me trying to take something away from trans people by saying I relate to Schoenbrun's films. It's me acknowledging the shared human experience of bodies, gender, sex, and self. 

I'm so happy a film like Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma exists and that it celebrates what life looks like on the other side of self-acceptance. May we all embrace our inner Little Death.

Grade: A

Stuff I watched in...the second half of July, 2026

His Girl Friday

Howard Hawks' His Girl Friday is one of the greatest screwball comedies in existence. I highly recommend you watch the film with subtitles if you can, because that way you'll catch maybe 70% of the jokes, versus catching only about 50% of the jokes if you just listen with your ears. Catching 100% of the jokes? In your dreams! Maybe if you rewatch it enough times you'll eventually catch them all, but the dialogue in this film is so fast, so snappy, so overlapping that's it's going to take some work.

Walter Burns (Cary Grant), a newspaper editor, discovers that his ex-wife, Hildy Johnson (Rosalind Russell), is about to get married to Bruce Baldwin (Ralph Bellamy) and quit her job as a reporter. Burns, you see, is a feminist, so he knows that Hildy won't be happy as a housewife! So he ropes her into reporting on the pending execution of Earl Williams (John Qualen), a man who killed a Black police officer. Burns believes that Williams was insane at the time of the murder and that his life can be spared if Hildy reports on the fragile state of Williams' mind. Hildy can't resist the opportunity to save a man's life, so she allows herself to be pulled into what becomes a night of increasingly wild hijinks and shenanigans...on the eve of her wedding to Baldwin!

His Girl Friday is a lot to take in, but it is SO worth it to get off your damn phone and actually watch the movie! It's so funny that I was vibrating with laughter, and Rosalind Russell is a GODDESS. She just has a vibe that feels really different from other screwball comedy actresses. This film is a classic and is worth watching...again and again and again. 

Grade: A

***

Jaws

I saw Jaws for the first time probably decades ago (really concerning that I can measure my life in decades at this point) and was...not too impressed with it. I found it boring and not scary at the time. Well, like a lot of movies I watched "decades" ago, I'm glad I gave this one a second chance because I really, really enjoyed it this time around! 

I'm not going to describe the plot because if you're reading my blog, there's probably a 95% chance you've seen Jaws, one of the most famous films of all time (if you haven't, then this is your sign to go watch it). I'll just say that I really appreciated the chemistry between the three leads: Roy Scheider as Chief of Police Martin Brody, Richard Dreyfuss as oceanographer Matt Hooper, and Robert Shaw as Quint, the seasoned shark hunter. These men--both the actors and the characters--work so well together, playing off of each others' personalities and eccentricities. 

While Jaws isn't *that* scary to me (I don't have a lot of fear about sharks or the ocean), the film is consistently tense and thrilling. It's also really funny! It's an incredibly well-crafted story (based on Peter Benchley's novel) and it's not surprising that it represents a turning point in Steven Spielberg's career from up-and-comer to "one of the greatest American directors of all time" 

Grade: A+

***

To Be or Not to Be

A comedy that takes place in Poland in 1939 as the Nazis take over and adultery is one of the main plot points? I'm in! 

To Be or Not to Be should not work as a comedy, given how dark its themes are, but of course dark themes often make for particularly insightful and skewering comedy. Carole Lombard and Jack Benny play Maria and Joseph Tura, a married pair of famous and beloved stage actors in Warsaw. Robert Stack plays Lt. Stanislav Sobinski, a pilot who begins an affair with Maria (the title of the film comes from their agreement that he will meet her in her dressing room when Joseph, as Hamlet, begins his "To be or not to be" soliloquy). 

But when the Nazis invade, Sobinski joins the Royal Air Force and ends up on a mission to warn the Polish resistance leadership of a rat amongst them. A professor, Siletsky (Stanley Ridges), is a double-crosser working for the Nazis. He has a list of Polish resistance members he plans to give to his superiors...unless Sobinski, Maria, Joseph, and the entire theatre company can put on the show of their lives pretending to be Nazis and get Siletsky to give them the list! How wacky!

You know, they don't make comedies like they used to. Between To Be or Not to Be and His Girl Friday, I really had to use my brain to keep up with what was happening. Both films leave you feeling satisfied that you actually watched a good movie that made you laugh and think and you didn't just half-watch some slop while looking at a second screen. 

Grade: B+ 

***

Forbidden Fruits

Forbidden Fruits, a satirical horror film directed by Meredith Alloway and based on the play by Lily Houghton, really surprised me. I feel like it was both better and worse than I expected. Worse in the sense that I felt it was a bit muddled in its ostensible message about sisterhood and women supporting women, and also the tone just felt a bit all over the place. There was also some bad editing in certain scenes. 

But better in the sense that it was a super fun, funny, and compelling film despite the overall messiness...and the acting is INCREDIBLE. Like, way better than what you'd usually expect from a campy horror movie. Whoever did the casting for Forbidden Fruits deserves high praise!

The movie, which has been compared to The Craft, Mean Girls, and Jawbreaker, focuses on three women who work at a store called "Free Eden" (based on Free People). They are: Apple (Lili Reinhart), Fig (Alexandra Shipp), and Cherry (Victoria Pedretti). Apple is the head bitch--or head witch, I should say--who bosses the other Fruits around and also leads them in the occasional ritual (or hex) after hours in the store. 

Fig, who is a bit more of a freethinker than Cherry, starts making the acquaintance of Pumpkin (Lola Tung), who works at the food court. Despite Apple's disdain for food court girls, Fig convinces Apple to give Pumpkin a job at Free Eden and let her join their coven. After all, you need four fruits to cover the entire retail seasonal cycle, right?

Pumpkin is even more of a freethinker than Fig and isn't scared of Apple's wrath, so she begins questioning some of Apple's decisions and learning more about the previous fourth Fruit--Pickle (Emma Chamberlain)--a girl who apparently went crazy after the coven put a hex on her boyfriend. Boyfriends aren't allowed amongst the coven members, by the way, because the coven is women supporting women!!

The more Pumpkin delves into the secrets of the Fruits, the more dangerous things become. Will Pumpkin become the next Pickle? Or can she find true sisterhood with the devious Apple?

Forbidden Fruits is campy and hilarious. As I said, the entire cast is excellent, but Lili Reinhart really blew me away with her mix of aggression and vulnerability. Victoria Pedretti, a bona fide "Scream Queen", disappears into her role as a doe-eyed sexpot who follows Apple around like a puppy, waiting to be given orders or to be given a smack. 

I was initially annoyed at this film for leaning into negative stereotypes about women, but upon reflection I don't think Forbidden Fruits is about the failure of feminism (because women be two-faced bitches, am I right?) but rather the failures of performative feminism. These ladies love their rituals and their rules in the coven, but when push comes to shove, they (or, specifically, Apple) don't want to support their friends as they are, but rather as they think they should be. Many of us have experienced friend groups where the jockeying of big personalities gets in the way of genuine belonging and connection. Forbidden Fruits just ups the ante with hexes and potions. 

Grade: B+

***

Cat People (1942)

I don't have a ton to say about this supernatural horror film where a man marries a woman who comes from a long line of, well, women who turn into (large) cats. It's a really interesting film, especially how it approaches gender and sexuality. It feels very of the 1940s, with some really sexist shit, but also--as horror films tend to be--subversive in its approach to gender as well. The main character, Irena Dubrova (Simone Simon), is terrified of her family history and lore. She marries a man, Oliver (Kent Smith), but then refuses to have sex with him--even after marriage--because according to the tales she was told growing up, passion leads to the transformation from woman to panther. 

Irena's fear of her own sexuality drives Oliver into the arms of another woman, but it also allows her to defend herself from a lecherous psychiatrist. Of course, it's the 1940s, so a woman who becomes a panther and mauls lecherous psychiatrists cannot be allowed to survive the movie...but Cat People feels a lot like a proto-"Good for Her" film. If you like older films, this is a really good one. It also features one of the earliest examples of a "jump scare"!

Grade: B

***

Touch Me

Touch Me is a bizarre horror-comedy about a pair of friends, Joey (Olivia Taylor Dudley) and Craig (Jordan Gavaris), who are immature, codependent, reliant on booze, and broke as fuck. They move in with Brian (Lou Taylor Pucci), the rich man Joey is fucking. There's only one problem: Brian isn't a man. He's an alien. Well, there's two problems: he's also a narcissist who dresses exclusively in tracksuits and talks like a cult leader. Ok, there's three problems: when he touches you, all your anxiety disappears...but then you become addicted to his touch.

So...there's a lot of problems. 

The film, written and directed by Addison Heimann, is quite obviously about drug addiction and how trauma intertwines with substance abuse. But instead of being a ham-fisted or cheesy, Touch Me is really fucking funny. Joey and Craig have this straight girl/gay man repartee that's like, loving and mean at the same time. Lou Taylor Pucci is equal parts disturbing and hilarious as Brian the break-dancing alien who uses his intense powers of pleasure to control and manipulate people. If you're into tentacle porn, you will probably really like this movie because HOO BOY...there's a lot of tentacle sex (or "cross-species intercourse", as Brian would call it). 

It's interesting that a movie that touches (heh) on so many serious themes, from drug addiction to childhood sexual abuse to domestic violence, could also be so silly and weird. Touch Me is not going to be everyone's cup of tea, but I really enjoyed it. If you like absurd, psycho-sexual horror comedies (or if you like tentacle porn), give it a watch!

Grade: B