CAMP Puts Us Under a Spell

This Pride Month is brimming with newly-released queer films, from Hayley Kiyoko’s highly anticipated Girls Like Girls (2026) to Adrian Chiarella’s Sundance breakout Leviticus (2026). Marrying the summer vibes of the former with the horror of the latter, CAMP (2025) written and directed by Canadian filmmaker Avalon Fast is a fitting addition to June’s roster of LGBTQ+ gems.

This genre-bending fantasy/horror Bildungsroman follows Emily (Zola Grimmer), a college student who becomes a counselor at a summer camp for troubled youth after experiencing an unexpected tragedy. Here, she befriends a group of young women who accept her for who she is, but not without a price. CAMP premiered at Fantastic Fest 2025 and is set for a limited U.S. theatrical release from Dark Sky Films on June 26.

A group of young women kneel in the woods. They are outside and it is nighttime. — L-R: Cherry Moore, Zola Grimmer, Lea Rose Sebastianis, and Ella Reece in *CAMP*. Photo courtesy of Dark Sky Films.

Despite this film beginning at a college party—far from its central nature-filled setting—its mastery over soft lighting, dreamy editing, and aesthetically-pleasing cinematography is immediately on full display. Indeed, the passionate work of cinematographer Eily Sprungman and co-editors Fast and Taylor Nodrick define CAMP’s style: colorful and unapologetically surreal, reminiscent of Jane Schoenbrun’s I Saw the TV Glow (2024) and Charlie Kaufman’s I’m Thinking of Ending Things (2020).

As tragedy strikes what should have been Emily’s fun night out and she is encouraged by her supportive father (Mike Tan) to find solace at a Christian camp for troubled youth, the dreamlike quality of the film becomes more and more pronounced. Emily finding herself further and further away from home. Truly, CAMP excels at its most atmospheric, even as the story insists on adding more and more layers to an already packed premise.

A woman in a black lace dress stands in the woods. She is outside and it is nighttime. — Zola Grimmer as Emily in *CAMP*. Photo courtesy of Dark Sky Films.

“Maybe it’s time to go home.” This eerily-delivered idea is presented to Emily in the third act of the film, after she has become too embedded in the haunting inner workings of the camp to even think of escaping. After everything Emily goes through during the film—from substance abuse-fueled grief to traumatic attempts at counseling to faith-turned-magic—viewers start to sympathize with the young protagonist, falling further and further under CAMP’s spell.

There are a few too many elements, however, that break this illusion. First and foremost, the film juggles way too many characters, plot points, and themes for its under-2-hour runtime. Because of this, the audience barely gets to know the friends that so capture Emily, from her outgoing cabin mate Rosie (Cherry Moore) to her alluring love interest Clara (Alice Wordsworth). Much needed character development is sidelined for shoehorned-in Christian iconography and fantasy that buckles under the weight of poor worldbuilding.

Instead of Emily directly opening up to the group about her grief, guilt, and trauma over the disasters that have marred her young life—thus revealing an avenue for exploitation on the part of her magical new friends—the film’s second act is weighed down by small talk, quiet strolls through the woods, and shots that (while undeniably lovely) barely scratch the surface of the horror that roils beneath the surface. This odd pacing causes CAMP to unfortunately rely on telling rather than showing, doing its talented, yet still novice stars absolutely no favors.

A young woman whispers in another young woman's ear as they look longingly at one another. They are outside and it is nighttime. — L-R: Alice Wordsworth as Clara and Zola Grimmer as Emily in *CAMP*. Photo courtesy of Dark Sky Films.

In the end, it’s clear this film could benefit from leaning further into the freaky, the horrific, the queer. While Emily suffers from hallucinations throughout the narrative, they are never weird enough to capture the audience’s attention for very long (save for a third-act telephone call in the woods that is absolutely sublime). Similarly, Emily and Clara’s relationship—while the closest of the group—is never explicitly sapphic until the film’s very last moments, a disappointing choice given a sun-soaked, witchy premise aching for romance.

With all of this said, CAMP is an undoubtedly bold, original vision from Fast featuring debut performances from stars Grimmer, Wordsworth, and Moore and scenes that only grow more beautiful as they discuss universal themes of loss, mental health, and friendship. Magic at its core, CAMP is an ideal midnight feature for queer horror fans this Summer.