Movie review of Friday the 13th

Horrorphile

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Horrorphile - April 2007

Friday the 13th

April 13th 2007 04:58

I watched the original Friday the 13th (1980) last night. First time I’d seen it in many a moon. In a recent post I wrote about girls who dig horror flicks, and Sean Cunningham’s hugely successful low-budget shocker was one of the movies that had had a primal effect on my girlfriend, so I knew I’d have to follow up with my own review soon after.

The freakyspooky thing is I hadn’t paid any attention to the real date (calendar that is), and here I am this morning typing up this review and I realize what the actual date is: Friday May 13. Well, blow me down, how’s that for horror synchronicity?! The demons must be grinning up at me.

However, I don’t have a lot of good things to say about this highly cringe-inducing flick. The intention and aptitude is there for sure, but the delivery and execution has dated something chronic! To be honest, it’s a real hack job (pun intended). In a making of featurette on the DVD producer/director Sean Cunningham admits he blatantly fashioned the horror after seeing how massively successful Halloween (1978) had been at the box office. He had a provocative title (during production, however, it was known as the more lurid A Long Night at Camp Blood) and he sold the idea of a stalk’n’slasher to all who’d indulge him. Screenwriter Victor Miller also openly admits he borrowed everything he could from every horror movie he’d seen.

The result spawned more sequels than any other movie in history. To date there are 11 movies in the Friday the 13th series. Do they get better or worse? That is debatable. Fans of the series all have their own personal favourites, some diehards lament when the series “jumped the shark”, while others state emphatically that Jason Voorhees is the ultimate horror villain.

There are some things going for Friday the 13th. Hmmm. Oh yes, Tom Savini’s special effects work, although most of the murders happen off screen. Unfortunately Cunningham was forced to trim the effects work in order to receive the R rating (and not an X). Cunningham and Wes Craven had made Last House on the Left (1972), which was slapped with an X rating after several submissions (notoriously Craven wrangled an MPAA friend of his to give him an illegitimate R rating seal of approval and released it uncut), but Cunningham knew that the board of censors had become savvier with the amount of onscreen violence being depicted in horror movies. He needed the official R to ensue a wide release.

After bonking Jack, Marci (Jeannine Taylor) heads for the showers

In an unprecedented move Paramount Pictures picked up the national distribution, while Warner Brothers handled foreign distribution. The movie racked in the millions, and had teenagers running screaming down the aisles in the droves, despite highbrow critics panning the film (it’s taken me a long time to actually wake up and smell the coffee on this one).

Here's the original trailer:

The other element which lifts the movie’s game is Harry Manfredini’s inventive score with the now legendary “Ki Ki Ki … Ma Ma Ma” vocal echo effect. Has a similar effect to John William's Jaws theme ... creeps up on ya!

In a cheap peanut plot shell; Camp Crystal Lake is jinxed, there was a drowning in 1957, and a couple of horny counselors were murdered there the following year. Jump to present day and the camp has been reopened. A group of young adult counselors have gathered for a working bee leading up to the arrival of the kids. But evil lurks.

WARNING! CONTAINS SPOILERS!

One by one the counselors are picked off in brutal fashion leaving final girl Alice (Adrienne King) and Mrs Voorhees (Betsy Palmer), mother of mongoloid Jason, the boy who drowned in the lake. Mrs Voorhees only wants to protect the memory of her son by preventing Camp Crystal Lake from operating and to punish all these sinful teenagers who never looked after her son.

Yes, Friday the 13th is the only movie in the entire series not to feature Jason Voorhees as the killer. He begins his reign of carnage in Friday the 13th - Part 2 (1981).

Jack (Kevin Bacon) finds something stuck in his throat

Kevin Bacon is the only actor in this movie who doesn’t shamefully overact (some, like Adrienne King, can’t even act at all. Of special note, King was stalked and terrorized after the movie came out and apart from her small role in the first sequel she has never acted again … whew). I’m sure Bacon has a guilty grin when he mentions this as part of his resume. Arguably his death is one of the best and most effective of the whole series (harpoon penetrates the bed he’s lying on and pierces up through his throat, with Tom Savini’s genuine pig’s blood jetting everywhere).

For the gorehounds, here's the actual death scene (unfortunately I could only find a low-res clip):

Friday the 13th spearheaded the 80s slasher flick with the emphasis on graphic violence, but it was by no means the first horror movie to do so. Bob Clark’s Black Christmas (1974) had already been there, while Mario Bava’s Twitch of the Death Nerve (1971) holds the bloodied body count crown high. Halloween oozes style, Friday the 13th simple oozes. My fave of the series is actually Friday the 13th - The Final Chapter (1984), where Tom Savini pulled out all the stops, Crispin Glover plays a brokenhearted Romeo, and Jason Voorhees has become one nasty demonic butcher indeed.

This lake smells real bad! Evil, even! ... No its your acting Adrienne!

If you’re curious about where it all began … throw a few grains of salt in the popcorn and amuse yourself. They don’t make ‘em this bad anymore … Or do they? Yeah they do, but with bigger budgets.

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Comments

12 Comments. [ Add A Comment ]

Comment by Damo

April 13th 2007 05:17

For the Sake of Argument
My Apologetics

Friday the 13th on Friday the 13th.
Better lock the doors and put the knives away.

Comment by Bryn

April 13th 2007 05:46

Horrorphile

yeah, I missed doing Black Chrismas last Xmas, then forgot to do My Bloody Valentine on Valentine's Day ... and was weekending so missed doing April Fool's Day on April Fools ... so here you go!

Comment by Anonymous

April 13th 2007 05:52

Have you missed a month Bryn? Last I checked, it's still April. Right mate?

Comment by KylieW

April 13th 2007 06:20

Celebrity Obsession

Bryn,

You know, I'm not sure I ever saw the original Friday 13th. I'm pretty sure I only ever saw Part 2 and onwards. Hmmm....not sure how I missed that one.

Also - it was great catching up while you and your girl were in Melb. Shame about Lotus. To be honest, their music isn't my cup of tea. But hard to know what people will like. Pleased to see that Revolver held more luck for you!

Hey, if you get a chance, can you email me a copy of the pic that Vanessa took of us.

We'll definitely have to catch up for another serious drinking session when we're next in the same state!

Kylie

Comment by Bryn

April 13th 2007 06:37

Horrorphile

Anon .... um, yeah, tis April that's right ... And May is next month ... I probably should've saved my review of May until then ... lol

Comment by Bryn

April 13th 2007 06:43

Horrorphile

I was just shy of teenagehood when Friday the 13th came out ... too young to lie about my age (it was an R16 in NZ) ... but I remember the ad campaign and the poster and even the cinema it played at! Part 2 was butchered of its effects even more so than the first movie ... by Part 3 (in 3-D) the director had to start implying graphic voilence rather than outwardly showing it. I remember everyone in the cinema reaching out to grab the joint as it was passed around the teenagers in the back of the van (in 3-D) ... HA!

Comment by Nickoftime's Sanity Corner

April 13th 2007 20:27

Bryn, I enjoyed the original movie, and of course sequels are never as good as the first...I tend to get annoyed when several sequels are made one right after the other, by the time you finally get to Friday The 13th Goes To College and Gets Married, it's pretty much a wash from there on lol...Great blog, I enjoyed reading it...

Take care,

Nick

Comment by JohnDoe

April 14th 2007 01:52

Film & TV on DVD

Im with you I actually think the Friday the 13th are pretty lame ducks as slashers.

The first one isn't bad, (But that mainly because of kiddie Bacon), the second is my personal fave and the rest just slip into oblivion....

Still a fun and honest review, good one.

Comment by Bryn

April 16th 2007 07:08

Horrorphile

Nick ... cheers for stopping by ... I agree, by default sequels suck big time ... but there are the odd exception to the rule

JD ... I'd love to see an uncut of Part 2 (just as I'd die to see an uncut of My Bloody Valentine - which is one of my fave slashers, even in butchered form) ... Bacon has such precious little screen time ...

Comment by MelissaA

April 16th 2007 07:31

Fun Facts

Well I'm glad you did do a post on this - I was trying to link it into mine on that day, but thought "bugger it - Bryn's bound to do one." ; )

Comment by Cibbuano

April 17th 2007 00:19

20/20 Filmsight
Science News
Hunt Famous
Orble Post of the Day
Fat Cult
Techbreak

I don't think I've seen any of these movies... I was pretty easily scared as a little kid of horror movies.

Comment by Bryn

April 17th 2007 04:44

Horrorphile

Cibby ... not a single Friday the 13th?? What potato sack have you been hiding under?

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