Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma - 08/21/26

Hannah Einbinder made her acting debut in the smash hit TV series Hacks and is now branching into movies with Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma.

In the psychosexual thriller, written and directed by Jane Schoenbrun, Einbinder plays critically acclaimed indie director Kris Williams, who is looking to make her next feature.

As a longtime fan of the Camp Miasma slasher horror franchise, Kris wants to reboot the series next and is determined to get reclusive actress Billy Presley (Gillian Anderson), who played the original film's final girl, in her project.

She heads to Camp Tivoli - the set of the Camp Miasma films and Billy's home - to pitch her on the idea. She tries to be professional with Billy at first, but the lonely actress soon makes it personal with inappropriate questions and shines the spotlight on Kris' lack of sexual fulfilment.

Fans expecting a straightforward slasher movie - or at least a film about the making of one - may be disappointed, because Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma is actually an unusual and weird psychosexual fever dream.

The story is all about Kris' visit to the camp and her obsession with Billy, who lives there because she believes Little Death (Jack Haven), the air vent-headed serial killer from the franchise, will reappear from the lake. Is she disturbed and delusional, or is she telling the truth? The lines between fantasy and reality blur, and the film takes on a meta quality.

There are still plenty of ridiculously over-the-top retro slasher horror scenes, including a substantial portion of the original Camp Miasma film. It pays homage to these films while also addressing how problematic they've become with time, especially in terms of representation, diversity and stereotyping.

In Hacks, Einbinder is an expert at being funny and awkward as well as emotional and vulnerable, and she brings those qualities to her first lead film performance. She is well matched with Anderson, who is mysterious, alluring and unnerving as the Norma Desmond type.

Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma is probably not what you were expecting, for better or worse, depending on your taste. It is weird, wholly unique and a lot to process, much like Schoenbrun's previous film, I Saw the TV Glow.

In cinemas from Friday 21st August

By Hannah Wales