Yes, folks, it's another week on the 2015 35th anniversary Friday the 13th Countdown of Countdowns. So far, we've looked at the best anciliary characters, trailers, locales, and hot girls of the legendary horror franchise. I saved that last option for last, because this time we're looking at something that the series is known for not-quite inventing but definitely perfecting - the art of the "Final Girl" surviving heroine who comes face-to-face with the big bad and emerges triumphant. And no, you won't find any of the women who were on that list on this one, and it's fairly safe to say that this isn't coincidence. The Final Girl is about resourcefulness, and while a few of them definitely qualified as good to look at, generally, their sexuality was downplayed.
The "Final Girl" is one of the defining qualities of the franchise, and, I think, a lot more important than people give it credit for. When I was a kid watching these movies, they were a big part of why I enjoyed them so much. And keep in mind that I was 10 years old, and thus way too young to be getting a funny feeling looking at hot women up on the screen. Nope, I was into these characters because I was genuinely INTO their characters. A majority of the Final Girls seemed to be like people I wouldn't mind having as a camp counselor if I was ever able to accomplish my lifelong dream of being like the people on Salute Your Shorts and attending a summer camp. It's a sentiment that still holds true to this day. Sometimes quirky, sometimes deadly serious but always fun to watch - that's the mantra of the Friday the 13th Final Girl.
Of course, the absolute BEST ones were the ones who could also hold their own during each flick's respective money sequence - the third act chase, with Jason (well, 93% of the time it's Jason) doing everything he can to catch up with the remaining survivor while the heroine uses wits and resourcefulness to survive. This is where the best Friday the 13th movies truly shined. Believability is a big factor in horror, or at least as believable as a movie about an undead guy in a hockey mask with supernatural powers can be. I suppose that's enough pseudo-philosophical jibber jabber. On with the countdown.
Oh, and lastly, whoever made that poster up above, 10,000 likes.
5. Chris Higgins from Friday the 12th Part III
This is a character that I have really come around on in recent years. As a kid, she was the one that I actually hoped Jason would catch. Now, as a slightly smarter adult, I've come to appreciate Dana Kimmell's portrayal of a fragile, mentally unbalanced heroine, definitely an interesting contrast to the normal horror movie heroine tropes that populated the landscape at this time when slashers ruled the Earth. I also like that this was one of the very rare movies in the series where our heroine had a history with the monster, as evidenced by that legendary "kinda flashback" backstory monologue.
4. Tina Shepherd from Friday the 13th Part VII: The New Blood
Everyone knows the story by now. This movie was originally supposed to be Freddy vs. Jason. Money got in the way, and instead we got Jason vs. Carrie. They definitely could have done worse than the character of Tina Shepherd, a girl with a tragic back story and that oh-so-convenient power of telekinesis. Lar Park Lincoln was definitely up to the task of making her part in the flick work, and that final showdown - with Kane Hodder taking perhaps his best licks ever as a stuntman as Tina throws everything she can at the unstoppable attacker - is truly a sight to behold.
3. Megan Garris from Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Lives
A quirky heroine for a very quirky movie. Boring Jon Lickness trivia fact for the day: this was the last movie in the classic 8 franchise that I saw, and thus, I've only been an adult with the character of Megan Garris. Jennifer Cooke takes on the role of Megan, the town sheriff's daughter who is part rebel, part sexy blonde, and has plenty of good, sarcastic lines to throw back at leading man/love interest Tommy Jarvis. The thing I dig about Megan the most is that she holds her own with Tommy, an iconic character with Friday fans, and that we're just as invested in her survival as his.
2. Alice Hardesty from Friday the 13th
It's hard to top the original. Now, screenwriter Victor Miller says that he shamelessly aped Halloween when it came to the scripting of that film, but I think Adrienne King gives out an entirely different vibe from Jamie Lee. She's a bit less bookish and has just the slightest amount of edge underneath her mousy exterior. Alice is a character with some quirks, an aspiring artist who may or may not be romantically linked with swarthy camp owner Steve Christy and has some survival skills. Skills, mind you, that are so epic that she creates the best door barricade in the history of film.
1. Ginny Field from Friday the 13th Part II
Here we go. Not only the best Final Girl in the Friday franchise, Ginny is one of the Top 3 horror movie heroines EVER, period. The casting was perfect with Amy Steele, and she was more than game for this role that called for long shoots, performing her own stunts, and talking down a raging maniac while wearing his mother's sweater. I love the character's feistiness and sense of humor, in addition to her personal background in child psychology that makes her the ideal foe for the ultimate homicidal Momma's boy. In short, utter perfection, and Ginny Field is a character that pops.
You know the drill. No closing paragraph necessary, and we'll see you shortly for another list in the Countdown of Countdowns.
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