Friday the 13th

Okay, it is not a Friday nor is it the 13th but as I looked back at all the horror movies I have reviewed so far, one of the most famous slasher series has yet to be tackled, so I present my review for...

“Friday the 13th”

Now there is so much one can talk about when you have a series that spans 23 years on screen and 525 years in the storyline. Let’s just start from the beginning shall we?

In 1980, director Sean Cunningham brought a now classic tale of the teenage murders to the big screen. “Friday the 13th” written by Victor Miller (who also wrote some story and characters for all the sequels except for part 2 and part 9 “Jason Goes to Hell”) would join A Nightmare on Elm Street and Halloween as THE ‘80s movies that launched a horror craze!

The premise (for those of you who have never seen it); A group of eager (and horny) teenagers decide to re-open Camp Crystal Lake, which 20 years earlier was closed after the shocking and mysterious murders of two amorous camp counselors. You can take it from there, as the teens get picked off one by one, during a dark and stormy night; of course, their car won't start and there's no phone. Simple enough, but a great story brought to life by the master of horror special effects Tom Savini.

Look for a young Kevin Bacon (his first leading role in a feature film after making his feature film debut in "National Lampoon's Animal House" in 1978) as the requisite stud, you can tell that's what he is supposed to be because when the cast appears in swimsuits, he's wearing a Speedo.

The film has some pretty gruesome death scenes, knife to the stomach, throat slit with knife, arrow through neck and a few more. In the end one character, Alice (Adrienne King) is left as the sole survivor of this massacre and a conversation that leaves the door open for the sequels. Speaking of which, some of those sequels should never have been made, but it gives die-hard horror fans more to watch and builds a legacy that is known throughout the entertainment world by one name…Jason.

Side note: The movie series spawned "Friday the 13th: The Series" for television which ran for 3 years from 1987-1990. It was pretty good even though it had nothing to do with the movies.

So, if you have never seen it, it is worth watching as a classic at this point. If you know it well, go out and buy the DVD and add it to your collection, October 31st is not all that far away and it makes a great Halloween flick.

•  Today's Cure song is "High" from the Wish CD-(1990)  This is a song about happiness! Okay I know that there are some Cure songs that do not go with my whole horror theme, but hey I am Cure fan whole hearted and whatever song enters my head is the one I showcase.

"When I see you sky as a kite
As high as I might
I can't get that high
And how you move
The way you burst the clouds
It makes me want to try "

 

 CJ