This weekend’s films

“Camp Miasma – Adolescence, Sex and Death”, a clever meta-cinematic horror film

Jane Schoenbrun’s new film, which was screened at the last Cannes Film Festival, is coming to cinemas

by Andrea Chimento

21 August 2026

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3' min read

Translated by AI

Versione italiana

3' min read

Translated by AI

Versione italiana

Horror films are still a major draw at the cinemas: following the impressive “Hokum”, which was released in early August, another extremely interesting film in this genre is hitting our cinemas this week. It is *Camp Miasma – Adolescence, Sex and Death* by Jane Schoenbrun, a director who had already impressed with her previous film, *I Saw the TV Glow*, from 2024.

The protagonist of this new project is a director tasked with reviving a horror series entitled “Camp Miasma”.

To achieve her goal, she will visit the lead actress from the first film in the franchise: the latter has been living in isolation from the world for years and is now completely out of touch with the workings of film production, and her meeting with the young director will give rise to some truly unpredictable situations.

Right from the plot, it is clear that *Camp Miasma – Adolescence, Sex and Death* is a highly meta-cinematic work and an explicit homage to early 1980s slasher horror films: ranging from the “Friday the 13th” saga to references to David Cronenberg’s “Videodrome” (though there is also a nod to Billy Wilder’s classic “Sunset Boulevard”), this film constantly winks at fans of the genre, reaching some profoundly visionary heights that come to a head particularly towards the end of the film.

The idea of reinterpreting that kind of cinema through a queer lens is bold, and the messages conveyed never come across as didactic or contrived, thus managing to deliver a film that is both intelligent and entertaining.

“Camp Miasma – Adolescenza, sesso e morte” e gli altri film della settimana
Photogallery4 foto

A thought-provoking film that doesn’t take itself too seriously

Compared with his previous feature films, Schoenbrun takes himself less seriously in his overall tone, yet manages to offer truly profound reflections on the themes of contemporary political correctness and to explore far from trivial ideas relating to the concept of desire – sexual, of course, but also cinematic – leaving the viewer with plenty to ponder once the film has ended.

It is not without its flaws – starting with some overly wordy dialogue – but there are sequences of great visionary scope that really hit the mark, and the overall concept is thoroughly effective.

Also noteworthy is the performance of the two lead actresses, Hannah Einbinder and Gillian Anderson, in this feature film, which may well go on to become a genuine cult classic. It made its debut at this year’s Cannes Film Festival, opening the ‘Un certain regard’ section.

Oceania

From an intelligent film, we move on to a decidedly more frivolous and silly project: ‘Oceania’ is also hitting cinemas, a live-action remake of the 2016 animated feature film of the same name.

The heroine, Moana, answers the call of the ocean and, for the first time, ventures beyond the coral reef of the island of Motunui with the notorious demigod Maui, on an unforgettable journey to restore prosperity to her people.

Following the release of “Oceania 2” in 2024, Disney is attempting to capitalise once again on the success of the animated film from 10 years ago, re-telling the same story and using the same structure, but this time with real-life actors.

The result is a film that lacks any real substance and which we could certainly have done without: most live-action remakes of Disney’s animated classics have little to recommend them, and this film certainly does nothing to reverse that trend – quite the opposite, in fact…