The latest Friday the 13th movie is not part of the series, but yet
another reboot of classic a horror movie. This one, however, is worth
watching because some of the killings are inventive and brutal. And with
Jason modernized, he's faster and more vicious. We get to see him run
and move around, unlike the 80's depiction where he stalked and tromped
and still managed to catch up to his victims. He's also good with the
bow and a throwing axe, making him the perfect hunter.
Somehow, I get the feeling that the film makers, Michael Bay and his
crew, who likely saw the 80's series are not able to bridge in their
mind the difference in movements between hunter and prey, so they
changed the formula a bit and created a faster, nastier Jason.
The storyline stays true with the 80's. But the entire first movie,
is done away with in the first segment. Jason's mom is beheaded and
young Jason later discovers her body in the woods. By adding this
segment, the rest of the movie is able to focus on Jason as the killer
and not his mother. Hence, in that respect, this film is a combination
of Friday the 13th 1 & 2.
And as a Friday the 13th movie, most of the horror pieces are there.
Teenagers camping in the woods. Check. Hot teenage girls showing their
breasts. Teenagers getting high on weeds. Check. Sacrificial authority
figure getting killed. Check. Jason hacking away with a machete. Check.
Jason and his hockey mask. Check. Jason as an invincible killer. Check.
Creepy and dark surroundings. Check.
For good or bad, other elements are also added as this movie feature
at least two actors with star power, namely Jared Padalecki and Amanda
Righetti, as the brother-sister duo who seemingly survived Jason's
nightmare. In the original movies, the actors are practically unknown.
Even Kevin Bacon dies early in the first Friday the 13th movie.
Also, I like the play on with pot. We know that wild teenagers and
pot are a mixture ripe for hilarity in the movies. But Jason and pot? In
some of the scenes, you can't help but think and smirk...what if Jason
is a pothead who is only defending his grove.
There are two things that are missing. First, the play on Friday the
13th as a date is not mentioned. I don't recall momma Jason saying
anything to indicate that day Friday the 13th is important at all.
More importantly, the eerie sound of "kill kill kill" is not used.
More than anything this theme song defined the movie series. Instead, we
get loud thunderous bangs that are startling, but not scary. Perhaps
that's how Michael Bay like his movies.
All in all, the new Friday the 13th is worth a watch at least once.
But if you and your friends are in the mood for watching Friday the 13th
on a boring night, and haven't seen any of the series for awhile, you
should watch the first two of the original movies instead. You'll see
why they're a classic.
