Halloween Scene: Friday the 13th Part VII The New Blood

I don't think there's a movie series out there that I have a harder time keeping track of than Friday the 13th. For whatever reason I always forget which is which. The one thing I do know (or at least think I know) is that I've never seen Friday the 13th Part VII: The New Blood before. The only reason I "know" this is because, aside from Jason Goes To Hell which I definitely haven't seen, this is the only movie not crossed off in my ragged copy of Creature Feature. Last Halloween I got a used copy of the box set that has F13 1-8 in them and reviewed 1 & 2 and 3 & 4 and even teased a review of 5 that never happened here. I'm pretty sure I also watched 6, but after watching the recap at the beginning of 7, I'm not quite sure. I can remember all kinds of comic book nonsense, why can't I keep track of a few (well almost a dozen) movies? Anyway, since I (probably) haven't seen this one before, I figured I'd give it the live blogging treatment. Hit the jump for the full experience!
F13 7

*This is the only numbered F13 I haven't seen before (I've also never seen Jason Goes To Hell)

*Interesting choice to open the movie with a voiceover recap. I'm actually kind of thankful because I don't really remember what happened in 6.

*Jeez, did I watch 6 all the way through? This seems kind of familiar, but not completely. I can never keep these things straight.

*The light-through-the mask holes and eye holes of the mask looks pretty rad. Kind of like that Korn video.

*This seems like a long-ass opening credit sequence, probably thanks to the recap.

*Hey, why didn't they just fill the lake in with cement? Just ignoring the problem isn't going to do anything.

*I like the idea of Jason being set up against someone with powers. If the world can create something like Jason, it should also create something that can offest him.

*Hey, never trust a doctor who thinks it's a good idea for you to return to the place your dad died...and a hundred kids have been murdered. MOVE ANYWHERE ELSE!

*Dr. Crews is an ass.

*Wouldn't someone have seen Jason chained up down there when they got her dad?

*Heh, it looks like Jason farts himself back to life.

*There's Jason's first kill. You can tell where there would have been more blood and gore had the MPAA not gone crazy on this movie.

*"The party hasn't even started yet and this place already looks like the closing of the stock exchange." WTF?

*It's got to be really scary to have a monster like Jason after you and not only doesn't anyone believe you (even though his murders should be well-documented by now), but also you're shrink is telling you you're crazy.

*Ha, Dr. Crews played the time traveling HG Wells on Lois & Clark! He was also in Side Out which I just watched yesterday. And he played Bernie in BOTH Weekend At Bernie's movies. I'm watching them next!

*It's also gotta be really friggin scary to be sitting naked in a tent only to get dragged out in your sleeping bag and smashed to death against a tree. Now I understand how funny that kill in Jason X is.

*I like the weirdo sci-fi kid.

*That was one of the most sluggish POV-camera-moving-to-avoid-the-hero's-gaze shots I've ever seen.

*Hey, they're both screwed up! Awwww.

*Yeah, smoke that weed! It won't have any negative effects.

*That blonde girl with the pearls is a bitch! Why would she make that straight-jacket joke? Oh, yeah, she wants the guy who likes Tina.

*Yes! Throw the TV at that jerkwad doctor! He sucks!

*Yeah! Nudity! Does butt count? Man, that preppy kid is a weenie. A dead weenie.

*Doesn't Jason hate the water? Why would he go in it to kill her?

*Jason's getting sloppy just leaving his victims around.

*It's good to see the mom defending Tina. Though stealing the car will probably sign her mom's death warrant.

*Jason does look awesomely creepy in this movie.

*I wonder if Jason goes into these things with a plan or if he just takes the victims as they come. It would seem rather impossible to plan for something like this, I bet it's like an episode of Curb Your Enthusiasm, he's got an outline, but not a script. "I definitely want to kill someone by the water and I want to use my awesome knife and I'm definitely going to strategically place the bodies, but aside from that, it's all jazz baby. Pure improvisation.

*Haha, what? Jason just killed that girl with a party horn. That's as weird as the corn kill from Sleepwalkers .

*"I have been rejected by some of the finest science fiction magazines in these United States!" - nerd kid. Hahaha

*There sure are a lot of knife kills in this flick. Jason looks like he wants cake as he goes to stab that kid near the refrigerator.

*I like that the nerd kid is just going through the presents. Aw man, he got a lame death. Thanks MPAA and you're lameness.

*Really? A cat scare? Come on now. Someone should do a cat scare montage like the dead cell phone one.

*This movie makes me want to watch Scream again, especially with its huge number of rule breakers: drugs, drinking, sex and "I'll be right backs." Thankfully it's on NetBox so I can watch it after I'm done with the Weekend At Bernie's movies.

*I like the idea of there being an intended surprise party that never happens. it's some cool set design and, in theory, could offer itself to some cool kills (not shoving a party horn into someone's face mind you).

*Woah, that's a cool sharp blade on the end of stick that Jason's got.

*Oh man, the doctor totally used Tina's mom as a human shield.

*The sci-fi kid's eye totally moves when they do his body-reveal.

*I just noticed that our male hero is wearing a Canadian tuxedo. So much denim.

*Haha, I love how Jason just keeps finding more and more awesome things to kill his victims with, with no explanation (or at least I missed the explanation). That thing looks like the weedwacker from hell.

*Jason's tying people up skills need some work. All that time under water has made him rusty.

*She's making a tree fight him? Ah, a tree and electricity.

*It's kind of funny to see Jason flinch away from the porch support posts as they break.

*Oh sweety, you've already electrocuted him and he got up. You think dropping a roof on him will kill him?

*The bitchy girl's about to get what's coming to her! With an axe even. BAM!

*This part feels really familiar. I wonder if I've seen it or I've seen these clips. Going To Pieces did spoil a lot of movies.

*Jason is one ugly mug.

*Why does she insist on just dropping him into holes? It's a house, you can't really fall that far.

*Setting the building on fire while you're still in it might not be the best plan of attack. Just saying.

*How did Jason sneak up on them? Movie BS, that's how!

*I was just thinking that it would be cool if her dad popped out of the water and pulled Jason under and then it happened!

*Haha, aw crap, I got myself all mixed up. I have seen F13 7, 6 is the one I haven't watched before! I should really consult my book before writing this stuff. Grr. Ah well, hope you liked this installment!

Oh, DO go on.

Halloween Scene: Jason On The Arsenio Hall Show

I have no idea how much this has made the rounds, but I stumbled across it today and just had to share it with you guys. Jason went on the Arsenio Hall Show to help promote Friday the 13th Part VIII: Jason Takes Manhattan and here's what happened.



[post does not go on]
Oh, DO go on.

What I'm Thankful For: My Parents (and TV!)

2008-11-20
12:17:57 am

Okay, so one of the reasons that I haven't been posting as much the past five days or so is because my parents came in for a visit on Friday and left Sunday. I had asked my dad to root through the boxes in their basement and bring some of my oldest action figures and he responded in spaces with boxes full of He-Man, Batman, Silverhawks, Star Wars, Ghostbusters and plenty of other random toys from my childhood. So, first of all, a huge thanks for that, Dad's awesome.

But that's not all, for not real reason, Mom and Dad also took Em and I to Best Buy where they treated us to a brand new flat screen TV as well as a new DVD/VCR player (which is great, because, as regular readers know, I've been watching DVDs on my PS2 and our old TV SUCKED). So, again, they're awesome and not just because they bring and buy me/us stuff. This isn't really the forum to get into all the great things they've done, but, according to Rickey, they've got to be in the top 3 sets of parents of all time. I've got to agree.

The TV is freaking mind blowingly awesome. After setting it up we watched Kung Fu Panda and it looked AMAZING. I kept giggling throughout the movie because it looked so good. I was astonished both by the quality and my parents' generosity. Aside from all that, though, the movie is awesome. The voice acting is spot on (Jack Black, Jackie Chan, Seth Rogen, David Cross even Angelina Jolie and more) and the action scenes are SICK. It's great to see filmmakers who realize you can do all kinds of things with CGI and not be shackled down by the physical world that real movies are. It's also just a lot of fun, Jack Black's funny without being TOO Blackian. I recommend everyone check it out.

I ended up staying up late after everyone else went to bed just to watch Friday the 13th 5 (I wanted to see how it looked on the new TV), there will be a Halloween Scene review soon. I wasn't quite tired after that, still, so I popped Star Wars Battlefront II into the PS2 and had some fun with that for a while, but I wasn't quite done so I watched some TV just to see how it looked. I eventually tapped out around 3.

On Saturday Dad and I watched college football, bouncing between the Notre Dame game (my team) and his team, Ohio State. But we weren't just sitting there as Dad and I (but mostly him) built these frames with shrink wrap on them to place in our windows to help keep the cold out this winter. Meanwhile Mom and Em made Christmas cookies all day. And mind you, they got in around 5 on Friday and took of Sunday morning. I think Rickey's right (though I've known this for a while), they're the best. Thanks a lot Mom and Dad!

Oh, DO go on.

Halloween Scene: Friday the 13th Part III (1982) & The Final Chapter (1984)

2008-11-04
7:56:28 pm

As I mentioned before F13 is a weird series. Not until Part 3 do we get the world famous hockey mask, picked off the body of a dead jokester, no less! Three also doesn't take place on a camp (nor does 4, but they're all around Crystal Lake still).

As many of you probably know, part 3 was originally shown in 3-D, which makes me totally jealous that I haven't gotten to see a horror movie in 3-D (I can't wait for My Bloody Valentine 3-D!). I also wish they would have released the DVD in 3-D because it's very clearly shot with the 3-D audience in mind (the yo-yo dropping down towards the camera, TWO eye balls jumping out at you and countless ends of farming tools sticking out at the audience). The shots just look kind of strange without being in 3-D.

The basic idea is that a group of friends go to a cabin the day after the events of F13 Part 2. They run afoul of a trio of bikers and Jason and start getting killed off one by one. There's a few interesting characters. One of which is the main girl who had a run in with Jason in the woods a few years ago when she and her parents still lived in the house. She ran away from home and fell asleep in the woods only to be dragged away by Jason and end up in her own bed (?). Not sure what that's supposed to mean, but it was kinda cool to see Jason post Part 1 and pre 2. There's also the fat kid with low self esteem who keeps playing tricks on people to get a scare and (hopefully) a laugh. He's really freaking annoying. We've all known people like this in real life. And not only is his character annoying, but his antics and the fake-out scares that come along with them get real old real quick. And why the heck does he have a working harpoon gun? Or a hockey mask? Oh well, his one positive contribution is that hockey mask. So I guess that's cool.

The kills are fun, and the creative team really had fun with the kills, especially everything that happened in the barn. There's a scene towards the end where the main girl gets the upper hand and actually hangs Jason. She thinks everything is cool and opens the door to see Jason hanging just inches off the ground. He seems dead at first, but then he pulls himself up (and shows off his mutilated face) and continues to attack her. Great stuff.

It even looks like Jason might be done for as he's lying there at the end and the beginning of Part 4. Of course that doesn't last as he wakes up in the morgue as a dude's trying to make out with a girl. Creepy. From there we move to another group of kids renting a house, but with this flick we also get a mother and her two kids (one of which is horror mask and computer obsessed Corey Feldman) AND a hunter/woodsman who turns out to be avenging his sister who died in Part 2. Oh and a pair of twins who just happen to show up in the woods.

One of the soon-to-be-murdered kids is a young Crispen Glover! I love playing spot the future star in horror movies. And you get TWO in this one, which kind of makes up for the lack of big names in 2 and 3. Instead of the low self esteem guy you get the over confident smooth guy who never gets the girl. In this flick he ends up watching a stag film for the last 20 minutes of the movie while his friends get killed throughout the house. Until, of course, he dies.

What I like about this one is that you're not really sure who's going to survive. There's about three candidates towards the end and one of the potential survivors doesn't make which kind of surprised me (even though this is the F13 flick I remember most clearly, probably because it was the last one that Rickey and I watched when we lived together). The actual ending's pretty crazy as Corey Feldman's sister keeps running back and forth between her house the other one while Corey's up in his bathroom shaving his head (which he must have done at super speed) all in an attempt to distract Jason by dressing up like a young Jason. Make sense? I guess the inhuman killing machine is actually pretty dumb (he got tricked by a girl who put on his dead mother's sweater and pushed her hair behind her ears in 2). Anyway, it works for just enough time so that sis can stab Jason in his maskless (and gross) face with a machete which he then falls forward on and we see it carve through his face. Whew, glad that's over. BUT WAIT, his finger twitches and Corey goes bizonkers smashing him in the head with the machete. Awesome, thanks again to Tom Savini.

As you can probably tell from the title this was supposed to be the last flick in the Jason storyline, but they do end it with a weird freeze frame focusing on Corey as he looks creepily at the camera. I'm not sure what the plan was supposed to be for him, but I do remember the character comes back in a later flick. Oh, also, sidenote, no more kids in horror movies named Tommy please. I'm psyched to watch the rest of this box set. Yeah!

Oh, DO go on.

Halloween Scene: Friday the 13th 1 (1980) and 2 (1981)

2008-11-02
6:26:01 am

I know, I know, Halloween was yesterday (or two days ago, technically, I guess by now), but I'm not done with my favorite holiday. In fact, I'll probably keep the Halloween Scene reviews coming all year. I'm also thinking about giving November a "What I'm Thankful For" theme, but we'll get there when we get there.

For now, I'm gonna talk about the first two Friday the 13th movies, which I've been watching over the past few days. I've found that I'm able to stay up less late every night, so it actually took me three freaking days to watch Part 2. It's embarrassing. Anyway, F13 is, I think Rickey's favorite slasher series partly because of his love of camp movies. Halloween's still my personal favorite but that doesn't mean I don't love me some Jason. In fact, this year I picked up the F13 box set used on Amazon on a lark. So let's get into it.

As Scream should have taught those of you who didn't already know, Jason's mom Pamela Voorhees is the killer. What really blows me away about the F13 series is that the creators really just set out to make one kind of movie and then it morphed into this completely different thing. The original has a mom killing slutty camp instructors because her son died due to irresponsible counselors years before. It's not a good reason by any means, but it makes sense. There's not even any mystical stuff until the very end when Jason comes leaping out of the water looking like a too-cooked hot dog. And from there they ran with it. Two's got a Jason who still seems like a regular dude, just a real angry one. Heck, he doesn't even have the hockey mask until 3. How crazy is that? Think about it, it'd be like Michael Myers not getting the Shatner mask until part 3...er 4 I guess.

So, again, Part 1 features a young dude trying to restart Camp Crystal Lake, or Camp Blood as some people refer to it. As usual, we're not dealing with camps full of kids, but only older counselors getting things ready ahead of time (cause it would just be weird of those Voorhees folks were killing under agers). Mrs. V is killing people at the very camp that her son Jason died at many years ago because...um...she's not a fan of forgiving and forgetting. Anyway, the only counselor of note is one Kevin Bacon who dies a pretty rad death thanks to Dawn of the Dead effects master Tom Savini (a personal favorite of mine). Tom's deft hand offers up good looking death scenes all around.

What really gets me about F13 is the idea of this old broad being the killer. Who'd think of that now? I mean, it's fairly implausible as she takes down a number of young, nubile teenagers. Good show Ms. Voorhees.

Part 2 doesn't have any famous faces (outside of the horror world at least), but it does feature Jason as an adult. It's interesting because this one takes place five years after the original which really came out one year apart. I'm guessing they did it that way so that Jason could be a teenager by now and ready to kill people on his own. And how does he start out? By hunting down the one that got away from the original and icing her in her house. But, like I mentioned above, this isn't the Jason you've come to know and love as he sports a pair of overalls, a blue checkered shirt and a bag over his head with only one eyehole cut out. Come on Jason, I bet you'd be able to aim that pitchfork a little better if you cut yourself a second.

This time around the story revolves around a guy setting up a camp on Crystal Lake, but not in the exact same spot as the infamous Camp Blood. But, hey, that's Jason's hood (no pun intended), so he's not too happy about it and starts killing teenagers. This time, instead of the campers sneaking off to go make out and what not (which still happens), they get split up as half go into town to a bar and the other half stay the camp. The ones at the camp buy it first and then the ones who come home. It's a nice way to split things up and at least it doesn't completely mimic the first one. The kills are pretty good in this one too.

Man, I really do love these old school horror franchises. As you know I had a problem with the first Texas Chainsaw Massacre remakeTexas Chainsaw Massacre remake, but kind of liked it's sequel. But what really bugs me about the remakes is that they cut off the possibilities for future sequels. I'm actually excited about the F13 remake or reboot or whatever they're calling it, but I'm bummed that I won't get a F13 part 11 in the same old continuity. Sure, some of the movies start to suck, but there's something cool about being in a long line of movies. It's probably the comic book fan in me that just loves continuity and all that. Ah well, I'm still excited about the remake rolling the first three movies into one and making Jason more of a fast outdoorsman. And, let's be adult about this, I can always go back and watch the originals. I'm not one of these people who considers my childhood movies sacred. Get over yourselves. Just because they made a Lost Boys 2 or an Indiana Jones sequel you didn't like, doesn't do anything to the other movies you love. You can always go back and enjoy the originals no matter what anyone does to the franchises down the road, that's why we've got DVD players folks.

Oh, DO go on.