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Friday the 13th (1980)


Friday the 13th (1980)


2/10


Starring
Betsy Palmer
Adrienne King
Harry Crosby
Laurie Bartram


Directed by Sean S. Cunningham


Friday the 13th feels like a minimalist take on Halloween (1978). Directed by Sean S. Cunningham, it’s essentially a rip-off of John Carpenter’s classic, copying its slasher formula but leaving out what made the original great and elaborating on its weaker elements.

This film is overloaded with body counts and drawn-out pauses—mainly to let the stereotypical "horny teenagers" have their moments. The lack of proper pacing makes it boring. Honestly, if I hadn’t been eating breakfast while watching, I probably would have fallen asleep before finishing it.

The movie suffers from weak characterization and a shallow plot, showing no interest in giving the characters any meaningful depth. It runs for about ninety minutes, but it feels much longer. However, it does have two redeeming qualities: first, the cinematography occasionally shines, especially when the camera mimics the killer’s point of view. Second, the twist about the villain’s identity was unexpected. Unfortunately, even the twist was ruined by a dreadful, overly long monologue explaining the killer’s motives—it was so bad it felt like someone blasting an air horn right next to me.

The plot follows a group of teenage camp counsellors attempting to reopen an abandoned summer camp. The camp has a history of bad luck, and despite the locals’ warnings, the owner insists on going through with the reopening. As preparations progress, the counsellors are picked off one by one by an unknown killer.


While the acting in general wasn’t terrible, the performances during some death scenes were overly dramatic and unconvincing. It just didn’t work for me.

Surprisingly, this movie became a massive financial success, grossing over 100 times its production budget at the box office. This success spawned numerous sequels over the decades, as well as a reboot. I hadn’t seen this first instalment until now, though I’d watched some of the sequels and the reboot—and none of them impressed me enough to make me want to go back to the beginning.

Thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic, I’ve been filling gaps in my movie list, but this is one film I wish I’d left unseen. How it turned into such a money-maker and even crossed over with A Nightmare on Elm Street, is beyond me. I guess everyone has their own taste.

As for the Jason Voorhees franchise? It’s one I’ve never been able to get into or enjoy, which is odd to me that there is a form of cult following.


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