Breakout director Jane Schoenbrun returns to Cannes with their queer love letter to slasher filmmaking. Festival correspondent Shannon Cotter pitches up for her review of Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma.
Jane Schoenbrun is truly on the rise. Their sophomore feature I Saw The TV Glow netted a legion of fans with its trans allegory and its time-transcending soundtrack by Alex G. Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma continues to channel these same nostalgic traits with equal finesse.
Fledgling director Kris (Hannah Einbinder) is hired to helm the reboot of Camp Miasma - a much-loved 80s slasher series vaguely reminiscent of Friday the 13th - for a modern audience. To maintain accuracy, Kris seeks out the series’ original Final Girl, Billy Presley (Gillian Anderson), who left the industry at the height of her stardom and disappeared into solitude. Little has been heard of her doings over the past three decades.
One of Schoenbrun’s greatest strengths is their understanding of internet culture. Paying homage to the eerie comforts of 90s supernatural dramas in I Saw The TV Glow, Schoenbrun recreates a similar meta obsession for Kris with Camp Miasma. As a protagonist, Kris is determined to get her vision right. The 80s slasher was lauded more for its gory kills and horny hook-ups than its cinematic prowess, yet Kris finds a deep artistic connection to the series that she’s hoping to unravel. Like the film's real-life auteur, she's a queer filmmaker, and her directorial debut centred around Psycho, but from the perspective of the shower curtain.
At one point, Kris admits nonchalantly she feels she’s been given the keys to the kingdom specifically due to her sexuality - what better way to comb over the problems of a historically problematic series by making sure its new director represents the very demographic that franchise marginalised? Yet Kris has a real love for its sleaziness, the paint-by-numbers nature of the ridiculous kills, and the oversexualisation of its female characters. Most of all, she is fixated on the look in Billy’s eye upon witnessing her first murder. Kris is willing to do anything to recapture it, even slumming it with Billy in the freezing, old, abandoned set of Camp Miasma for the weekend.
Instantly, Kris is hooked in by the magnetic Billy. Bona fide sci-fi queen Gillian Anderson layers Billy with a seductive, welcoming quality. This leaves viewers uncertain whether she has a genuine interest in Kris or if she’ll be the one wielding the knife. Despite Billy's tumultuous relationship with the series, she readily commits to supporting Kris in her endeavours. However, as Kris hears strange conversations around the house, she begins to wonder: is Camp Miasma and its titular killer Little Death (Jack Haven) real?
Camp Miasma rarely gets scary - and that’s not an oversight on Schoenbrun’s part - they can create a real sense of dread when they choose to. However, this is instead a compelling delve into identity, explored as Kris grapples with her fascination as to why this slasher gore-fest has brought her so much recognition and pleasure.
Tonally, there is a consistent touch of surrealism, elevated by the set's beautifully painted backdrops. This is grounded by Hannah Einbinder, who plays it sincerely real with what is an incredibly rich performance. That being said, Schoenbrun still deploys their expertise in the genre with one long continuous shot that effectively transports us into Camp Miasma. We are caught - just like Kris - in the bright colours and hokey dialogue: an aesthetic pleasure against a backdrop of zany kills.
Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma was the opening film of Un Certain Regard at the Cannes Film Festival on 13th May 2026.
