Le châtiment de Jason: Le vendredi infernal

If longtime fans of the "Friday the 13th" saga have anything to say about it, the people behind this film will burn in the same place as its hockey-masked star. "Jason Goes to Hell: The Final Friday" is completely preposterous, out of place and an affront to what had been a dependable horror series.

Admittedly, director and co-writer Adam Marcus deserves credit for his boldness. He seemed inexplicably convinced that the wheel of the "Friday" series needed to be drastically reinvented, even though fans had lined up for basically the same plot eight times prior. But the brainwave of having Jason possessing one body after another alters the very fabric of what made these films good. Suddenly it's like we're watching an "Invasion of the Body Snatchers" rip-off. Throw in Jason's newfound grunting, a far-too-heavy plot and a magical dagger (!) and you have something completely unworthy of the "Friday" moniker.

"Jason goes to Hell" is also incredibly lazy. All "Friday" films, by their very nature, require a leap of faith, but this is really too much. Firstly, this marked the first time that no explanation was given for Mr. Voorhees' reemergence. Were we all dreaming when we watched him get melted down to goo in the sewers of New York City? And what about Jason's rebirth toward the end (the most ridiculous moment of any "Friday" film)? How can a little slimy demon be reborn into a man already wearing ripped clothing and a hockey mask? And what about bounty hunter Creighton Duke? It's never explained how he knows so much about Jason and the mythical circumstances surrounding his life. In each of these instances, there seemingly are no easy answers. So rather than be inventive, the writers just threw all of this at us and hoped we would lap it up like thirsty kittens at a milk dish. This sequel completely ignores the continuity of the Jason legend that had been meticulously built up over the years.

What's equally tragic about "Jason goes to Hell" is its insistence on mocking the series. At one point, John D. LeMay's character sarcastically asks a trio of teens headed for Camp Crystal Lake whether they plan to smoke dope, engage in premarital sex and then get slaughtered. Har har. The transformation of Jason into some kind of media star is just as unnerving. Jason is a legend, a mythical figure whispered about in wildly imaginative campfire stories. Yet this movie turns him into a serial killer so well known he makes the TV tabloids and is targeted by the FBI. This is not the Jason we know, and "Jason goes to Hell" is not the "Friday the 13th" we love. It essentially breaks the fingers of the hand that feeds it.

The failure of "Jason goes to Hell," both in terms of concept and box office revenue, inevitably draws comparisons to the much-panned "Friday the 13th Part V: A New Beginning." That film drew plenty of boos for its Jason-less gimmick, but at least it had the feel of a "Friday" flick. "Jason goes to Hell" is substantially worse than any other entry, mainly because it is completely unrecognizable. Like "Part V," it probably would have worked better as a horror film independent of the Jason saga, rather than dragging Mr. Voorhees into a place he has no business being.

Clearly, Adam Marcus was wrong. The "Friday the 13th" wheel did not need reinventing. The failure of this film (and "Jason X" years later) shows that fans want a return to simpler times when horny teens in cabins were afraid to look out their windows. As the saying goes, if it ain't broke, don't fix it.

Jason Goes to Hell: The Final Friday (1993)

1/2 (out of 4)

For this ninth entry in the long-running series we saw studios changed hands as New Line took over after Paramount had grown tired with the series. New Line's attempt was to bring some new blood into the series but what they ended up doing was delivering the worst film. This time out we start off with Jason (Kane Hodder) chasing a victim through the woods when a SWAT team jumps out and blows him to pieces. The only problem is that his heart is still alive and after a doctor bites into it the soul of Jason enters him. Turns out Jason had a sister so the spirit, jumping from body to body, now tries going after her and her daughter. As you can tell by not having Jason in the movie except for the start and finish, the studio certainly tried doing something new and I can still remember my father taking me to see this with a sold out crowd on opening night. The crowd was certainly pumped up and ready to go but by the twenty-minute mark people were bored out of their minds. At the end of the film people were throwing popcorn at the screen, cussing and everyone walks out mad and cheated. So has time helped this film? Certainly not as it's clearly the worst in the series just because of how stupid the spirit jumping in. Not only does the film have logical plot holes it also has some really bad direction, bad dialogue and, as I said, a really bad story. The only thing that really saves this turkey are some rather good kill scenes as well as the now well-known cameo at the end, which gave fans something to look forward to (even though it didn't happen for over a decade). With this film the characters are all poorly written and for the first time in the series there wasn't a single one I cared for. I found all of them to be very annoying with a leading man who couldn't carry a grocery sack let alone an entire film. The female heroin isn't any more interesting and Hodder really doesn't get to do much with Jason since you see him and then he's gone. Even the ending manages to be the worst in the series. All in all this is just a very bad movie from start to finish.

how can this film get a higher rating than parts 5 and 8, this is incredible, i mean it's gone beyond being funny cos it's crap, and delved into just plain crap crap. Unbelievable. only gave it a 2 because it has Jason and i was able to watch the whole thing with out switching off. The plot of this film is so diabolical, it's not even got anything to do with Jason, it's over the top cheesy Hollywood, but is so bad u can't even laugh at it. They even used Kane Hodder (Jason) to play the part of a security guard, perhaps cos they couldn't be bothered to cast someone else. IF they used him twice to be funny or give the Friday fans something extra, this is equally as bad. There was big gap between part 8 and 9 so you would have expected them to have come up with something better than this. If this is the only Friday you have seen, this film has no reflection on the others in the series. This film should not have been made. But if u want a good example of a poo movie, this is perfect as it is easy to get hold of.

Okay, okay - its not the greatest of the series (I personally like Part 5 and Jason X for its pure unadulterated hamminess), but I think the problem with the film is more than just being bad but it was bizarre - it was so totally off the charts, I enjoyed it more looking at it from the perspective of a stand-alone film rather than part of the series. As part of the series, well, lets just say there is a lot to complain about, but on its own - its not bad. Certainly has a bit more personality than the other films. It felt a bit like Freddy Part 6 but made less sense! Its not that bad - worth a look if you like the series.

Jason Goes to Hell: The Final Friday is (supposedly) the last Friday the 13th chapter... FBI agents hunt down and destroy Jason at Crystal Lake - but Jason has the ability to possess other people's bodies and continues his bloodbath.

I don't think this would be a favourite of the fans - it is quite corny, Jason doesn't feature a lot in the movie... but I think the movie half-way through takes a turn for the better. Instead of being another mindless slasher - the movie goes all John Woo with some cool gun fights and slow motion camera. It was like the director had watched a couple of John Woo films for the first time half-way through shooting the movie and decides... "it would be cool to use this stuff in this movie"!

The "Invasion of the Body Snatcher" plot doesn't work - but I think the stylish gun battles redeem this film somewhat. Sort of recommended!