The Slumber Party Massacre – Cold Pizza, Hot Takes & One Very Beige Killer

So there we were, peacefully doomscrolling through Letterboxd lists like the productive adults we are, when we stumbled upon one called “Feminist Horror Starter Pack.” We’d only ticked off a third, so clearly this was now our entire personality for the evening. Enter: The Slumber Party Massacre – a film with a title so aggressively not feminist it circles back around and becomes suspiciously intriguing.

A bunch of high school girls throw a slumber party. An escaped maniac with a power drill shows up uninvited. People die. Pizza gets cold. Priorities are questioned. Denim crimes are committed.

We clicked play expecting trash.
We got cold pizza, killer drills, and more girl power than most modern horror flicks can muster.

Reader… we were not ready.

🎥 What’s The Slumber Party Massacre About?

High school senior Trish decides to throw a slumber party while her parents are away (classic mistake), inviting her girlfriends over for a night of gossip, snacks, and aggressively 80s fashion. Meanwhile, an escaped killer – armed with a power drill and zero charisma – hijacks a phone van and starts making his way through the neighborhood.

Across the street, the new girl Valerie isn’t invited, but she’s got a machete and a vibe, so don’t count her out. What follows is a lo-fi, blood-splattered showdown between killer and teens – with more girl power than you’d expect and one of the greatest pizza-related one-liners in horror history.

🍿 TL;DR

The Slumber Party Massacre (1982) is way smarter – and funnier – than its title lets on. Made by women, it plays with slasher tropes while still serving up a solid body count and one of the least charismatic killers ever committed to film. A fun, flawed feminist horror that’s earned its cult status.

🎬 The Hook

“He’s dead all right… so cold.”
“Is the pizza?”

🎞️ The Big Picture

What lingers after the credits isn’t the killer – it’s the women. Their bonds, their agency, and the sense that for once, a slasher film saw them as people before prey. It’s not perfect, but it punches way above its grindhouse-looking title.

🎥 What’s It About?

Teen girls throw a slumber party. An escaped killer with a power drill crashes the night. Chaos, carnage, and cold pizza ensue.

🚪 Beyond the Trailer

Yes, it sounds like another disposable 80s slasher, but The Slumber Party Massacre was written as a parody and directed with a serious hand – resulting in a strange but fascinating fusion of satire and sincerity. It’s self-aware without being smug, feminist without preaching, and occasionally exploitative while maybe also critiquing exploitation?

🔍 Under the Surface (No Spoilers)

There’s a quiet rebellion running under the blood spray. Women are in charge on both sides of the camera, and you can feel it – not in the kills, but in the framing, the friendships, the throwaway jokes that land harder than the gore. The camera sometimes leers, but not for titillation – more to show how the characters are being looked at, especially by the voyeuristic male teens.

It’s also filled with little background moments that subvert expectations: a female telephone repairwoman, a woman coach, girls fixing things and taking the lead. The men, by contrast, are either creepy, useless, or dead within seconds.

🍬 Inside the Box (Spoiler-Free Highlights)

Acting: Surprisingly solid for a low-budget slasher. The girls feel like actual friends.
Cinematography: Simple and functional, with moments of mood.
Score: Synthy weirdness from a Casio MT-40 – and somehow it works.
Pacing: Moves fast and doesn’t outstay its welcome.
Standouts: Valerie with a machete. That pizza line. The sheer lack of charisma from the killer (honestly, iconic in its own way).

🌟 Slumber Party Massacre Review by Emma

★ ★ ★ ☆ ☆

Despite the fact that I was around in the 80s, The Slumber Party Massacre somehow managed to completely fly under my radar – which feels rude, honestly. I hadn’t even heard of it until me and Jasmine stumbled across it on a Letterboxd list called “Feminist Horror Starter Pack” (yes, we’re those people now). The title screamed sleaze, so our expectations were… underground.

But surprise! This thing has layers. Sharp, funny, oddly empowering layers – and yeah, a bit of blood, boobs, and brutal drilling in between.

It’s definitely a slasher. People get murdered. People get undressed. A pizza guy gets offed mid-delivery (RIP). But unlike so many of its genre siblings, this one doesn’t feel like it’s punishing women for existing. The girls are allowed to just be – silly, smart, supportive, stoned, whatever. The power isn’t in their cleavage, it’s in their comebacks, their final-girl energy, and their weirdly practical decision-making.

Knowing it was written by Rita Mae Brown (yes, that Rita Mae Brown) and directed by Amy Holden Jones makes so much sense. There’s this quiet feminist heartbeat under all the chaos. Even the side characters – like a female telephone repairwoman – are flipping genre tropes without making a big deal out of it. They just exist, competently, in spaces men usually dominate. It’s kind of revolutionary in its casualness.

Now, about Russ. Our killer. Our denim-clad disaster. I’m sorry but… this man is giving nothing. No flair. No Freddy one-liners. No tragic backstory. Just pure “man who refuses to ask for directions” energy. He is the beige wallpaper of horror villains. The girls could’ve run circles around him with a broken chair leg and a bottle of Diet Coke.

But maybe that’s the point? He’s not meant to be a mythic boogeyman – just another mediocre man with power (drill) issues.

Also, let’s not forget the true highlight of the film – that line:

“He’s dead all right… so cold.”
“Is the pizza?”

Iconic. Immortal. Unreasonably hilarious.

Unless you’re Jasmine, who thinks cold pizza is somehow better than hot pizza. I live with this chaos. Pray for me.

🎭 Mood & Movie Matchmaker

Genre: Slasher / Feminist Horror / Campy Classic
Mood: Fun but stabby
Watch it when: You want 80s nostalgia with a feminist bite

📺 Vibe Check

🎨 Visual Style: Lo-fi, sun-bleached suburbia
🔪 Intensity: Medium – it’s got kills but nothing too harrowing
🌈 Queer Rep: Subtext only (written by a lesbian icon though!)
🧠 Thought Level: Smarter than it looks
🎢 Emotional Range: Cheeky, a little tense, but mostly fun

📽️ If You Liked…

Jennifer’s Body (for the girls-fight-back vibe)
But I’m A Cheerleader (doesn’t sound good on paper but is actually really good)
Scream (meta slasher energy)
Death Proof (grindhouse meets female revenge)
Until Dawn (for a slasher-game feel)

🧃 Emotional Map

😱 Scary moments — 5/10
😂 Laughs — 7/10
💔 Feels — 3/10
🧠 Thought-provoking — 7/10
🤩 Style / aesthetics — 6/10

🎯 Best For Viewers Who…

Want a low-budget slasher with more brains than you’d expect, female-driven horror, or a cult classic that actually deserves the hype.

📦 Who Will Love This Movie?

80s horror fans
Feminist film nerds
People who like their killers forgettable and their pizza hot
Anyone working through a Letterboxd list called “Feminist Horror Starter Pack”

📍Where to Watch

Currently streaming FREE on Tubi (with ads), or available on DVD/Blu-ray via Scream Factory.

💡 Fun Extras

Originally written as a parody, but shot straight – that explains a lot
Director Amy Holden Jones turned down editing Spielberg’s E.T. to make this
The score was done on a Casio MT-40, aka the same keyboard The Slits used
The UK had to rename it The Slumber Party Murders because “massacre” was too much

The Slumber Party Massacre Cast Roll Call

(Or: Who’s Who in Double Denim and Drills)

Michelle Michaels (aka Michele Michaels, because even credits gotta keep you guessing) as Trish Devereaux – Our girl trying to keep it together while chaos drills on.
Robin Stille as Valerie Bates – Slumber party MVP with sass for days.
Michael Villella as Russ Thorn – The least charismatic killer you’ll ever love to ignore (and yes, double denim included).
Debra Deliso as Kim Clarke – Because every party needs a Kim.
Andree Honore as Jackie Cassidy – Bringing side-eye and survival skills.
Gina Mari as Diane – The girl next door who’s not here for your nonsense.
Jennifer Meyers as Courtney Bates – Sister act or just more slumber chaos?
Joseph Alan Johnson as Neil – The guy who probably should’ve stayed home.
David Millbern as Jeff – Ditto, but with less luck.
Jim Reid Boyce as John Raden Minor – Officially minor, unofficially mysterious.
Pamela Roylance as Coach Rachel Jana – The woman trying to keep teenage anarchy in check.
Brinke Stevens as Linda Dawn Grant – Slasher royalty cameo alert!
Rigg Kennedy as David Contant – Because every movie needs a guy named Rigg.
Jean Vargas as Mary (Telephone Repairwoman) – The unexpected hero in overalls.
Howard Purgason as Mr. Devereaux – Dad vibes, worried but clueless.
Anna Patton as Mrs. Annette Devereaux – Mom energy in full effect.

🎤 Final Thoughts

This one surprised me. Is it messy? Absolutely. But it’s also bold, weirdly smart, and sneakily subversive – and it deserves more love than its drill-happy killer ever will.

Hungry for More Movie Madness?

If you enjoyed this wild ride through The Slumber Party Massacre, why not stick around? Dive into more of our quirky, chaotic movie reviews that don’t take themselves too seriously – because life’s too short for boring film chat.

And hey, if you’re on Letterboxd, come find our full review there too. Let’s swap hot takes, cold pizza preferences, and maybe even some killer double-denim fashion critiques.

Stay spooky, stay sassy, and keep those slumber parties weird!