In 1978, John Carpenter's "Halloween" became modern cinema's first "slasher" horror film. Most horror movies before this masterpiece showed evil existing in inner cities, the dregs of society, or in gothic, historical 18th and 19th century settings. "Halloween," in stark contrast to those movies, showed the evil that existed in an innocent boy, in an otherwise innocent suburban town; the message of the film was that evil can exist anywhere. And not only does evil exist, but it is brutal, unforgiving, and cannot be reasoned with.Two years later, slasher cinema shot into the stratosphere with Sean S. Cunningham's "Friday the 13th." Just two years earlier, audiences had called "Halloween" horrifically violent - but you ain't seen nuthin' yet. "Friday the 13th" was gory, raw, savage, and attacked by ideologues on both sides of the political spectrum - the right for its violent content, and the left for its supposed "Christian right" undertones (after all, the only virginal girl in the film is the one who survives, starting a trend that would continue in horror films to the point of becoming an undeserving joke in Wes Craven's "Scream').
From "Friday the 13th" came the wave of ripoffs/tributes/cash-ins throughout that glorious '80s heyday of the slasher film - "Prom Night," "Terror Train," "New Year's Evil," "The Burning," "The Prowler," "Silent Night, Deadly Night," and too many other classics to name. The slasher film was an entirely different type of animal from anything the moviegoing public had seen before. Slasher movies are more than just dumb, occasionally unintentionally hilarious entertainment (which they are, don't get me wrong) - they are vital morality tales for this generation, the modern campfire scary story, and a right of passage for many in my age bracket.
There are some movies that just define the genre that they represent. Action movies have "Die Hard," romantic comedies have "Pretty Woman," and parody flicks have "Airplane!" And when slasher movies became all the rage, sequels weren't an uncommon thing, with "Friday the 13th" taking flight into a series that continues to this very day. The fourth installment, "Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter," is a movie that defines everything that is great, fun, and entertaining about the slasher movie. It's gory, it has a couple name actors in small roles already showing their charisma despite the stupid script, it has slasher's biggest icon himself Jason Voorhees in absolute top form, it has got more than a few genuine laugh-out-loud moments (some intentional, some not so intentional). More than anything else, this movie can just put a smile on your face, and stands today as, in my humble opinion, the definitive '80s slasher film and the definitive Jason flick.
I almost feel stupid even explaining the story of this movie; on paper, it is mind numbingly stupid, which is something I get from almost everyone (you know, the "normals") when I say what a huge fan I am of the "Friday the 13th" movie franchise. The short, short version of the plot is this - Jason Voorhees, hockey-masked serial killer of Crystal Lake, is discovered with an axe embedded in his skull (the result of the previous film's finale), is taken to a hospital, springs to life, makes his way to a small lakeside area for another round of slaughter, gets killed again - this time, supposedly, for good. Of course, one $32 million box office gross later and we've had six more sequels, a remake, and probably another seventeen films forthcoming. I don't know if "The Final Chapter" makes the perfect capper for the series itself, but it is the best movie in the franchise, although the first two movies come close.
A few more notes for those uninitiated to the whole "Friday the 13th" lore, and thus don't know what the fuck I'm talking about: the original movie, which features a very likable bunch of main characters, features Jason's MOTHER as the killer. The idea was that she was avenging the death of her beloved Jason - her retarded (I merely say it because they say it in the movie, dammit) son, who drowned twenty years before the events of the film because the camp counselors in charge of watching Jason were having sex. Thus begins the long-standing tradition of "Friday the 13th" killing off teenage kids having premarital sex. Jason's mother is killed in the thrilling climax of the original film, but the twist is that Jason, in fact, did NOT die all those years ago, but survived, made his way to shore, and lived in the wilderness, presumably nourished by frogs, foliage, and stray cats. Well, he saw his mother die at the conclusion of the first film, and began carrying out his mother's revenge. The character of Jason Voorhees itself would go through more permutations than Madonna and the Undertaker combined over the years, going from a deranged human in these first few films to an undead zombie terminator to some kind of bizarre swamp creature to honest-to-christ body jumping demon, and ultimately wind up somewhere in between. Hey, you really have to see these films to understand it.
Nonetheless, Jason Voorhees is a badass - that much I can assure you. And while Kane Hodder would play the role a bit better in some of the later movies in the series, Ted White does a fantastic job in this movie making Jason not only menacing, but even honestly scary. Very unlike the later movies in the series, Jason does not kill strictly with brute strength in these early films. He sneaks up on victims, utilizes lethal cunning, and sometimes even RUNS. Yes, Jason ran in the early "Human" Jason flicks (as they are known to fans). Of course, Ted has become famous in these last few years for trashing this movie. It's something weird I've noticed about guys who play all-silent, behind-a-mask roles - they either completely embrace everything about the lore or completely trash it. And while I should hate Ted for shitting all over the character that gave him fifteen minutes of fame, I can't. He just does a really, really good job with a thankless role.
It also doesn't hurt that some of the usual batch of "Friday the 13th" campers, teenage kids, premarital sex havers, heroes and heroines are recognizable. First of all, you've got Corey Feldman as the hero of the movie - a 12-year-old kid named Tommy Jarvis who has a somewhat creepy interest in cool horror-related merchandise, mainly masks and makeup. It was actually very unheard-of at the time to feature a young child as the lead character in a slasher film, as one of the normal genre taboos was not to include children in mortal danger in horror films. Gutsy move, but Feldman definitely has the acting chops to pull it off; even at the early age, he's a fantastic actor.
You've also got Crispin Glover as the single goofiest, most batshit hilarious horny teenager in ANY "Friday the 13th" movie. Every F13 flick features a small, tightly-knit stable of teenage characters, more often than not at some sort of "weekend getaway" party where lots of pot smoking and sex is to be had, and one by one, the teens get hacked up by our hockey-masked hero. That's the F13 way. But what is so different about THIS particular film is that EVERYONE in this film's cast was totally willing to go above and beyond and attempt to make this movie much more than the sum of its script, most notably Crispin. One of the most unsung actors in the history of film with loads of charisma, Glover's performance in this movie is nothing short of utterly hilarious. Seriously, the "Crispin Glover Dancing" scene has become an internet meme for a reason. Even more impressive is that almost all of his lines and scenes in this film were improvised.
Of course, every slasher film needs memorable kills, and "F13: The Final Chapter" has the best kills in the entire series. Director Joseph Zito established a good relationship with horror makeup effects maestro Tom Savini from his earlier film "The Prowler," and invited Savini back to do the makeup on this film (he also did the makeup and gore effects for the original "Friday the 13th"). Taking on the challenge with great aplomb, Savini tops himself in every way with the kills in this movie, most of which look like they really friggin' hurt. There's a head twist, a saw to the neck, more than a few stabbings, a harpoon shot to the dick (ouch), an axe to the chest, a super-powered bone-crushing thumb to the nose, and, impressively enough, several more. On a visceral level, "Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter" is dynamite.
More than anything else, this is just a terrifically fun movie to watch - and yeah, it's stupid, but I don't care. At times, this is one of the FUNNIEST movies ever (not mentioned above is Crispin Glover and his friend, the woefully underrated Lawrence Monoson, having repeated debates about Crispin's sexual prowess, along with supposed Jason-Slayer Rob's ineffectualness when he finally meets Jason), in addition to having more than a few cringe-worthy deaths, superior direction from Joey Zito and outstanding makeup effects from horror legend Savini - and of course that ambiguous ending that would have led to Feldman's character becoming the next killer in the series. I would go more into detail about THAT little plot twist, but I don't get paid by the word for these things, and I'd really need to be if you expect details on stuff like that. Tell you what - send me fifty bucks and I'll write you an email telling you all about it.
And anyone who tells you, as a horror fan, that you shouldn't like "Friday the 13th"...they just don't get it. "Crash" and "Fahrenheit 9/11" are already dated movies, but people STILL talk about the "Friday the 13th" series all these years later for a reason.
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