The sad truth of the matter is that the Friday the 13th films haven’t done much for the New Jersey summer camp industry.

Seriously, Crystal Lake is such a pretty location.  The lake looks beautiful with the sun rising over it and the water literally beckons you to toss off all your clothes and go for a swim.  The woods feature green trees and are full of animals and mysterious shacks.  The nearby town is home to people like Enos the Truck Driver, Ralph the Prophet, and a countless number of waitresses who will give you directions and gossip if you ask politely.  And then you’ve got Camp Crystal Lake, which has cabins and a generator and an archery range and a lot of outdoor showers.  Seriously, Camp Crystal Lake encompasses the natural beauty that New Jersey was once known for.

Unfortunately, none of that matters.  A few stupid camp counselors managed to get themselves killed by Betsy Palmer and now, no one wants to go to New Jersey anymore.  Before Friday the 13th, New Jersey was a state for the entire family.  After Friday the 13th, it became a state for a different sort of family.  My point is that the Friday the 13th films are directly responsible for the Mafia taking over New Jersey.  I don’t care how much they blame Lucky Luciano.  Jason Voorhees is responsible for organized crime.

Anyway, that’s my long-winded explanation for why no one wants to vacation at Camp Crystal Lake anymore.  It’s now known as Camp Blood and no one wants to hang out at a place where they might get killed or, even worse, get lost in the Pine Barrens.  Instead, people decide to vacation at much safer locations …. like Camp Murder!

2020’s Camp Murder takes place at the camp of the same nickname.  Throughout the film, everyone talks about what a dump Camp Murder is but, from what we see of it, it looks perfectly pleasant.  It might be a little isolated and a little neglected but it hardly seems like the Hellhole that everyone keeps describing.  A group of people are vacationing at Camp Murder, secure in the knowledge that infamous murderer “Terrible” Tommy Heller (Jeff Kirkendall) has been safely locked away from 25 years.  Except — uh oh! — Tommy’s escaped!  Dr. Lewis (Noyes J. Lawton) is searching for him but will he be able to find him before Tommy has wiped out the majority of the cast?

Camp Murder is one of Mark Polonia’s cheerfully low-budget horror films.  Polonia specializes in horror-on-budget.  His films aren’t exactly good but they’re made and often performed with such enthusiasm that it’s easier to forgive their flaws than certain other low-budget entries in the genre.  When it comes to a Polonia film, you know what you’re going to get so I’m going to focus on two positive aspects of the film.

First off, Terrible Tommy is actually a pretty effective villain.  His mask is genuinely disturbing and Jeff Kirkendall is properly menacing and relentless in the role.

Second, there’s a shot of two women walking towards a deserted barn that is actually effectively creepy.

As for the rest of the film, the pace is slow and the acting is often amateurish.  Some of the gore effects work.  It’s a shot-on-video slasher film.  You know what you’re getting into when you starting watching it.  The tourism industry will survive Camp Murder and that’s a good thing.