Jason (Derek Mears) and a blonde girl look at each other in the remake of Friday the 13th.
As Printed in The Lumberjack on Feb. 26, 2009
by Gary Sundt
I like horror movies. While most critics want to shoot them dead and put them out of their blood-soaked, nudity-ridden misery, I revel in the opportunity to see an impressive kill or the occasional gratuitous sexual deviancy. I actually enjoy watching these films, and because Flagstaff’s sole movie theater received none of this week’s new releases, I took the opportunity to review the Friday the 13th remake, which has the distinction of having the most successful box office opening weekend for a horror film.
Friday the 13th is a film series that has hit some bumps on the road to its status of mediocrity. The series has featured ideas ranging from Jason vs. Carrie, to Jason’s soul jumping from body to body, to Jason in space. Whether this series needs to continue is up for debate, but it definitely needed a reboot if it is to continue making money for the movie studios. So, the three questions to be considered are: “Is this a ‘good’ horror movie?” “Is this the best Friday film?” and “Is this the Friday film the fans are probably looking for?”
Friday the 13th begins at the infamous Camp Crystal Lake, quickly wrapping up the entire first movie with the decapitation of Mrs. Voorhees (Nana Visitor) after she killed a bunch of camp counselors in the wake of her son’s apparent drowning. But see, Jason didn’t drown, and instead watched his mom get her head chopped off.
Cut to today, where some kids are camping and searching for pot to sell. Enter Jason (Derek Mears), who does his thing, and all the kids are listed as missing. Six weeks later, Clay (Jared Padalecki) is searching for his missing sister while another group of kids are heading to a cabin across the way from Camp Crystal Lake. Why would anyone purchase a cabin in a location where people go missing frequently? Perhaps the costs are low when your neighbors are getting killed all the time.
The plot is primarily just a stage for a hockey-mask clad fellow to kill, yet I couldn’t help but be disappointed in the lack of originality presented by director Marcus Nispel. This is the guy who directed the remake of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, an exercise in shock cinema that several critics trashed, but I actually enjoyed. Nispel switched it up slightly for Friday the 13th, his second horror remake, by adding some comedy and light-hearted sex, but his plot structure for a Jason film is nearly the same as his Leatherface film. He even reused shots from his Texas Chainsaw remake, albeit in a different way, which came off more lazy than trademark style.
In other news, the performances are mostly standard horror fare. Anyone who says there is a personality to the man behind the mask is fooling themselves. The kills are effective enough, reflecting the same sort of blatant violence horror movies had back in the ‘80s. Fans of the series will probably enjoy this entry, as the film is a welcomed return to form after the aforementioned indignities the character has had to endure.
So, let’s run down the list. Is Friday the 13th a good horror movie? I’d say it’s good enough. Is this the best Friday film? Definitely not, particularly when considering the quality of the first, second and fourth installments, as well as the sheer fun of Freddy vs. Jason. And finally, is this the film fans want and deserve? Absolutely.
