Friday the 13th Part 2

Director - Steve Miner (Warlock, The Wonder Years)

Starring - Amy Steel (April Fool's Day, Tales of Poe), John Furey (Matlock, Baywatch Nights), and Kirsten Baker (Gas Pump Girls, Please Don't Eat the Babies)

Release Date - 1981

Genre - Horror

Tagline - "The body count continues..."

Format - Bluray (Personal Collection)

Rating (out of 5):

     Most of you may be sick of my Friday the 13th reviews by this point but I'm just beginning.  I spent last week and the weekend reviewing a few fan films and several porn flicks that share the Friday the 13th name.  Most of the fan films were fun but the fuck flicks that I took a look at were just cheap porn films that wanted to cash in on the franchise's name.  I've seen some very fun and punny porn parodies but these were not them.  After I wasted some time on these I decided it was time to focus on the actual slasher franchise now.  I reviewed the first Friday the 13th a few months back when I was sent the steelbook for review.  After revisiting it for the umpteenth time it was time to spin the sequel from the new Scream Factory box set.

     The film takes place sometime after the events of the first film.  The film's lone survivor is now living on her own when a man breaks into her home and kills her.  We then move back to Crystal Lake and another camp on the other side of the lake is preparing to open for the summer.  While jokes about Camp Blood run through the counselors they soon discover that Camp Blood is more than just a legend.

     I used to love binge watching the Friday the 13th franchise when I was growing up.  I absolutely loved this series but my ranking of the films often draws controversy from other genre fans.  I like what I like.  The first Friday the 13th is a slasher classic while I feel the sequel is just as good as the first film.  Much like Carpenter's Halloween and Halloween II, I feel that these two are on the same level and work perfectly when played back to back.  The acting in this one is pretty solid but there is room for improvements.  We get some deadpan characters that are very serious while we get others that deliver some much needed laughs.  Aside from Ralph in the first film, the "intentional" laughs are forced.  However, the cast in this one delivers a more genuine comedic performance.  The story for this one is a continuation of the first film while, in a round about way, delivers the same story.  We follow a group of counselors who are preparing to open a summer camp on the same lake murders took place.  Almost all the same characters are rewritten from the head of the camp, his love interest, the horny counselors, and the comedian.  The killer is obviously changed but the regurgitated story still works.  Slasher fans want boobs and blood and the story works both of those in.  Finally, the film has several now iconic death scenes.  The film uses both classic prop and camera tricks to pull off the kill along with some great practical effects.  They are standard slasher kills which has been outdone but this is the beginning of the trend here.  Overall, Friday the 13th Part 2 is just as essential for horror fans as the first film.  It's the first film to launch the iconic slasher Jason while solidifying he groundwork that would become the slasher formula.  I highly suggest giving this one a spin if you are one of five people that have not seen it.  The blu looks absolutely stunning.  The audio and video are spectacular here.