On Friday the 13th, twenty years after the mysterious murder of two teenaged camp counselors, Camp Cystal Lake, in beautiful New Jersey, is attempting to reopen. As a new group of camp counselors make their way to the camp and prepare to take care of numerous young children, they are made aware that some truly terrifying acts have taken place at the camp since its inception in 1935. Someone is clearly unhappy that camp is being reopened and makes it their duty to take the lives of those involved. As the counselors try to live their lives as simply as possible and have a successful summer, they will find that Camp Crystal lake has a lot more in store for them than they imagined.
The horror genre has changed drastically over the course of the past century or so. Styles have changed and approaches to horror have changed, but the icons have remained the same for years. Freddy Krueger, Michael Meyers Leartherface and Friday the 13th’s Jason Voorhees (if you know, you know, and Jason was born in this 1980 film) have stood strong and survived the test of time as horror icons. Friday the 13th is often regarded as one of the most iconic horror films in history, and, in some ways, that makes sense. In terms of genre, Sean S. Cunningham’s classic film meets every requirement. There is teenage drama, sex, drugs, jump scares, suspense and a perpetual eerie feeling that lingers from beginning to end. All of this together makes for a suspenseful and enjoyable experience for fans of horror.
I can’t say with certainty that Friday the 13th holds up against some of the more modern horror films, but there are, without a doubt, parts of the film that still arouse audiences. The almost laughable sex scenes still intrigue audiences, but they also provide some levity as the film, almost in its entirety, is gut-wrenching and intense. The deaths, while nothing compared to recent films from the minds of Eli Roth and Stephen King, are still incredibly graphic and portray death in a way that, to this day, sit uneasily in the stomachs of viewers. Cunningham and writer Victor Miller should be proud of what they are able to accomplish in the early 80’s in terms of terror and death.
One incredibly interesting aspect of Friday the 13th is the soundtrack. For the most part, the soundtrack consists of frustratingly repetitive noises. The sounds become annoying to the point that they put audiences on edge, which, in the grand scheme of things, is exactly what Cunningham, Miller and music director Harry Manfredini want. They keep audiences agitated throughout Friday the 13th and that leads to them being more susceptible to jump scares and the suspense of the film. I am impressed with the ability of these three and the impact they had on what can be considered trivial to the casual fan.
Through music, jump scares and average (but adequate) acting from a relatively unknown cast, Friday the 13th has made its way into the hearts and minds of some of the more devoted horror fans while still maintaining relevance in the eyes of even the most lackadaisical fans of horror. Every moment of the film is filled with vigor thanks to Miller and Cunningham. This duo brings death to life and shoves it down the throats of the audience without being too overwhelming. They find the perfect balance between teenage drama and teenage slasher, appealing to a wide range of audiences and keeping the love for the film alive for forty years now. I wouldn’t be entirely accurate to say that Friday the 13th lives up to the hype, but it is certainly entertaining.
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