Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter

I've seen every Friday the 13th movie more than once. I'm a horror completist, what can I say, and Friday the 13th happens to be one of the more campy and fun horror franchises out there. The first three were fine - all had great ideas, great kills, and great atmosphere. Unfortunately, there was at least one thing off in each of those movies. The original's climactic ending hasn't aged well and some shots linger for way too long, and some parts of Part III felt clunky and poorly paced. Part IV isn't perfect either, but it's a step above its predecessors for a number of reasons.

1. The acting - No one watches horror for the acting, I understand that, but when a horror movie has a likable cast and characters you can relate to and root for, it makes the experience all the more enjoyable. Crispin Glover is great as a nerdy, horny white boy and his dancing skills are unmatched. The lead girl and the rest of the supporting cast are all convincing as well, and the boy Tommy Jarvis actually isn't annoying for a child actor. In fact, he's pretty darn good.

2. The nudity - No one watches horror for the- okay, some people watch horror for the nudity, and boy is there nudity in this one. For the "final" chapter the crew went all out, throwing two gorgeous sisters and numerous blondes into the mix and having all of them show their tits and ass. Yeah, both, and although its gratuitous and adds nothing to the plot, it's a nice break from the bloodbaths and I'd take a little eye candy over forced dialogue in a horror movie any day of the week.

3. The pacing - The movie begins with Jason's "dead" body being sent to the morgue, and it isn't long before the body count ensues. The hospital scene is excellent for a few reasons. One, it has two characters that have less than five minutes of screen time but more personality than anyone from the first two F13s, and two, their deaths are awesome. It's a briskly paced movie and surprisingly keeps a large amount of its cast alive for a majority of the film, yet there are enough disposable characters to keep the body count going. It's a great balance.

Everything else comes down to good writing and good directing. I like the addition of a family, I like the group of teenage Jason fodder this time around, and there really aren't many dull moments. The inclusion of a seasoned backpacker was a nice touch, and Jason finally getting the sh*t kicked out of him was no doubt satisfying. Although the whole Tommy arc didn't work out in the next installment, he was a nice addition in this one and actually contributed a lot to the story.

Not only is this the best Friday the 13th film, but it's a damn good slasher in its own right. The characters are likable, the third act is plenty suspenseful, it's an entertaining ride from beginning to end. If you like '80s slashers and want to see some good looking people get terrorized by Jason Voorhees then there's no reason not to check this one out. And check out the others too because, why not?

Savini's death make-up and Jason effects are at their peak. worth watching for tommy's freak out at the end. Crispen Glover is in it, and performs the ultimate BAD 1980's dance scene, worse than anything in footloose. The body count reaches a great height and the nudity and sex is as gratuitous as ever. I personally feel that this is the best of the original 4 Friday movies, coming in a close race with the third Jason. I've seen all the movies more times than i can count and this one holds up surprisingly strong among all eleven films. For those of you who are Friday fans, if you haven't seen this one, you are missing out on a key moment in Jason's history, so go pick this one up today.

Finally the makers of the Friday the 13th movies wanted to end the series, at least untill it made a lot of movie, which it did. if they would've ended it here it would've ended on a high note but we had to endure all the terrible sequels that followed. The final chapter is on par with friday the 13th 3. it's scary, builds proper tension towards the end, and the 2 main characters do have some depth.

This film picks up after the 3rd film. jason is taken to the morgue where he later escapes, not before killing 2 of its workers. Soon Jason is stalking 2 parties. one is a group of kids having some fun in a cabin and the other charactersl live next door. this is trish and tommy jarvis. Tommy has a fascination with making scary mask and he is really smart. trish is sweet and really nice. this is way you want them to live in the end. soon it leads up to a conclusion where jason gets his just desserts.

the 2 leads trish and tommy played by kimberly beck and a young corey feldman are the only people in the film that have some talent. the kids in the cabin aren't that great. they are just there to be killed. The make up effects match that of the original and the last 15 minutes is the best of all the films.

I only wish that they would've stopped here because this is actually pretty good film but they had to make a pretty good series go down the tubes.

Joseph Zito, the director hauled in to oversee this fourth installment, previously directed the wretched "The Prowler", the wooly but entertaining "Invasion USA", and would go on to direct the shot-in-South Africa "Red Scorpion" (with Dolph Lungren). Since "The Prowler" was such a stinker, it's hard to see how Zito got the job. Maybe he was a master romancer and could talk actresses out of clothes because this episode in the "Friday" franchise has more nubile nudity and panty shots than any previous entry. It is also the goriest since the original with Savini returning as the effects adviser.

Jason is resurrected from gory pieces and returns to his old ways after a stint on a slab. He has a grudge for a particular family and must tangle with resourceful horror fan and pint-sized weirdo Tommy (Corey Feldman).

Just as the nudity and short shorts levels are elevated, so is the suspense. Using "The Prowler" as a guide on not what to do in a slasher, Zito creates some genuine unease and keeps things moving at a fast and bloody clip. The Euro version of this film, which is the one I have, is gorier than the US version and sexier, too.

The next installment proved to be one of the worst; so if you're going to subject yourself to one "Friday" sequel, choose this.

Friday the 13th Final Chapter (1984) I recently watched from my personal collection. In this story Jason returns from the morgue to a new group of campers and a family with a unique son. This movie is directed by Joseph Zito (Red Scorpion and The Prowler) and is one of my favorite Friday the 13th movies. It stars legends Corey Feldman (Gremlins), Crispin Glover (Back to the Future), Judie Arson (Weird Science), Peter Barton (Hell Night) and Kimberly Beck (Independence Day. The storyline for this one was so fun. Adding the spooky kid who loved horror films and horror props that could carry the torche was a great direction. Kill scenes, specifically the hacksaw and throw out the window scenes, were awesome kills to add to the slasher museum. Strongly recommend this movie. The rewatch value is tremendous. I'd actually give this a 7/10. The Crispin Glover dance scene is legendary.