It's always really hard to review a classic. Part of the reason is because there is such a fan base for these films that — as part of a review's job to pick out flaws — the reviewer will feel a backlash if they insult the film. Another is that there are already so many reviews published that it is hard not to be biased by another review, and it makes it difficult to say things that haven't been talked about before. Yet another reason is that one has seen the movie so many times, since it has been deemed a classic, that it is hard to look at it with a fresh perspective.
With this in mind, I will attempt to review Friday the 13th the best I can, and if I touch on points already analyzed, or if I judge harshly, don't blame me — blame the cult that F13 has garnered. (And yes, that is really just an excuse to get the heat off my back.)
Friday the 13th is a film directed by Sean S. Cunningham, in which teens are recruited to work at Camp Crystal Lake, a summer camp that is re-opening after having been closed down after murders had been committed there in the past. A little boy drowned in the lake, some counselors were found dead, and now the townspeople believe there is some sort of curse on the place.
Obviously, none of the teenagers take heed of the warnings, because they're teens and they pretty much know everything there is to know - or maybe they're just too stoned since this is a slasher film - but they start working in the camp and mysterious disappearances start to happen, along with some sex and nudity, including Mr. Kevin "Footloose" Bacon. And yes, we all know the twist, but if you haven't been living and don't know, I won't spoil it. But the film's eventual only protagonist, butch counselor Alice (Adrienne King), becomes final girl and has a girl-on-girl duke-out when a Mrs. Voorhees (Betsy Palmer) shows up.
Looking back, there are tons of things that happen in F13 where I have to call out, "Who really does that!?" or "What was the point of doing that?" The good part about Friday the 13th, though, is that on first viewing, one kind of puts these questions to the back of one's mind, using suspension of disbelief to heighten the viewing pleasure. In this case, the film succeeds in entertaining enough to distract from some of the more unbelievable elements. I mean, I don't really think that teens are so oblivious to their surroundings when horny to blatantly disregard a dead body lying on a top bunk while clearly in sight when standing up. Or that the killer took the time to foresee all possible escape paths of Alice and then position the dead bodies accordingly so that it creates a sort of haunted house as she runs. The list goes on and on.
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