Top Friday the 13th Moments

Well fall is here and Halloween will soon be upon us. 'Tis the season to talk horror movies (actually when isn't it). I'm feeling quite nostalgic and festive during the fright season, so I would like now to share some of my favorite Friday the 13th moments with you all. Now keep in mind that these are mostly funny, iconic, or just plain odd scenes from the series. So this particular blog is not dedicated to the kills, although I do mention some here and there. I'll make a separate list for top kills shortly. So here you go. Enjoy!

Friday the 13th

Who doesn't love the town psycho, loony, drunk etc that nobody listens to in a horror movie? They know it all, yet somehow never die until the teenagers show up. Strange. That brings us to Crazy Ralph!  He just brings that something extra to the film. Maybe it's his permanent look of insanity? He traverses the town on his bicycle, giving words of wisdom and scaring camp counselors. All while raving drunk. Give that man a medal. He does play the same role in Part II, but sadly that's when he finally gets whacked. So sad.

Now of course no top Friday the 13th list is complete without the ending of this first installment. Alice getting pulled into the lake by a decomposed Jason Voorhees scared the crap out of me as a kid, and I'm sure plenty of others. They set it up so well with the nice music at the end and serene setting. Then bam!. A decomposed Jason jumps out of the lake to pull Alice in screaming. Apparently it was all Tom Savini's idea. He had just seen Carrie and he was inspired by the ending. Well played Tom.

Friday the 13th: Part II

The campfire fire scene always stuck with me. It's a bit iconic now in horror movies that either the previous movies deeds are recapped or the legend is told round the campfire. In this case it's a bit of both. It's told with an eerie silence and it's pretty well done.

No campfire tale would be complete without one of your drunken and stoned friends leaping from the darkness to scare the crap out of you. Ted supplies the scares in this particular case with mask and spear. The scene got me pretty good when I first saw it as a child, and has become pretty much a staple of most horror movies these days to have a few jumps in the same vein. How much this scene had to do with that is debatable. In that way it stands out as a pivotal scene for part deux. Just to add to Ted's mythical status, word is he survived the massacre. Possibly due to him getting wasted and passing out somewhere in town. Stuart Charono's, who played Ted had his own theory in "His Name Is Jason." He liked to think Ted got wasted and lucky. It's a nice thought. We may never know.

In an apparent continuation of tradition to chair jumper endings, those crazy bastards do it again to great effect. Hillbilly Jason unmasked and all leaps through the window at Ginny just when you think he's dead. These scenes always stuck out to me as quite fitting. In the back of your head, you sort of want everyone to die and finally have bad guy win. You're never really sure if it will be a dream sequence, or something real.To this day there is much debate to whether or not this scene actually happened due to Paul's absence. Either way it works every time. They actually did film an ending where Ginny's head get's chopped off beofre she wakes up in the ambulance. That would have worked as well.

Friday the 13th: Part III

Move over corpse of Crazy Ralph, there's a new nutcase in town. Abel! Sadly, not quite as entertaining as Ralph (possibly due to less screen time), but surely more inventive in his madness. When Chris and friends are on the way to town, they meet Abel lying in the middle of the road. Abel has found an eyeball, along with body parts, and creates a collage if you will. An omen from God to turn back or else.He insane and an artist. I find these drunk, religious fanatics necessary in such movies, but also quite endearing and necessary to the amusement of avid horror fans.

Ali is the man in this movie. A downright bad ass biker out for some fun. Unfortunately he heads to the wrong place. Camp Blood. He is probably the most entertaining character other than Jason himself. He says some ridiculously so bad its good stuff. Such as screaming into the camera "It's Jason!". He's initially whacked in the head with a monkey wrench by Jason and presumed dead. He then comes back at the end and actually puts up somewhat of a fight against Jason, which says a lot since everyone else gets killed rather quickly. Ultimately like most everyone else, he is dispatched in a pretty funny, yet brutal way. The picture below itself says it all. I bet he's thinking "Hey, man! What the hell?" He's then studiously hacked up. Here's a little tidbit for you. In an alternate ending that was actually filmed he was supposed to survive his first throttling and help Chris fight off and kill Jason. Too bad.

Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter

Alright, so you all know what comes next. The most inexplicable, awesome, over the top random dance scene in horror history. I'm not sure how high Crispin Glover was during this scene, but it doesn't matter, because this will live on forever in the hearts of us horror nerds as pure genius. His convulsive dance routine hypnotizes and stupefies all at once. Thine eyes cannot unsee what has been seen. Unfortunately he gets it shortly after finally getting laid. Poor lad.

This scene is one of my favorite scenes from the whole franchise. Tommy, in an effort to save his sister, decides to shave his head quickly and pretend to be Jason. It's quite a genuine scene and fairly well acted. Although I'm not sure what's more odd, how quickly he manages to shave his head, or the fact that Jason actually bought that shit. Either way it's pretty darn creepy and effective. He tries to hypnotize Jason just long enough to distract him, and then wham! His sister knocks off his mask with a machete. She freaks out when she sees just how much he's been effed up throughout the series. Then Jason promptly gets hacked to pieces by Mr. Feldman in some of the best gore to hit the franchise.

Friday the 13th: A New Beginning

Oh poor Joey. The poor and somewhat mentally challenged fat guy is the first to be whacked out in 'The New Beginning'.  He is just trying to be nice to the resident maniac Vic, but in reality he just annoying the shit out of the already unstable Vic. You sort of feel bad for Joey, but in the back of your mind you just kind of want Vic to chop him up. And guess what? As soon as Joey turns his back, that’s just what happens. This scene sticks out in my mind because it was setup to make you feel bad for Joey, but also sort of annoyed at the same time. That made the payoff much more effective. You don't actually get to see much in the actual kill, but it’s still a great way to keep things interesting. Also, I believe it’s the first kill of the series not perpetrated by Jason, little Corey, or Mrs. Voorhees.

In the original script, Tommy was supposed to take over as Jason. It would have made sense in a certain way, but I’m not sure it would work with hardcore fans. He pretended to be Jason at the end of part IV, and he was pretty disturbed after hacking him up. So him turning that corner would not have been that surprising. So when he appears behind Pam at the end of the movie with hockey mask and butcher knife I hand, I thought was pretty fitting and pretty shocking for a first time viewer. In the end they went with the scene, but used it instead as a dream sequence. It all worked out in the end because it still wouldn't have been as exciting having Tommy as the killer. Mr. Voorhees is needed indeed.

Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Lives

Now this installment in the series is unusual for its use of comedy on a larger scale. Some fans don’t like it much, but I find it to be quite fantastic. That’s part of the movie’s insidious charm in my opinion.  The first scene that sticks out to me is the whole paintball scenario and Jason. It’s just altogether wacky and somewhat out of place. First, you have these corporate business people out in the woods around Crystal Lake shooting each other up with paintball guns. I guess that’s something business people did in the 80’s to get out that office rage? I just drink like a fish. I guess I would be first on Jason’s list in that case. On the other hand, you have Jason roaming around the woods slashing people up in various and inventive ways. Of course that is his usual MO. Manfredini does a great job here with the music. It sounds like something out of an atypical comedy movie, but it works. Their dialogue is cheesy, but works as a nice change of pace for me. The kills for these paintballers are very unique and dammed funny as well.  Stan, Larry, and Katie get the old Triple Decapitation after pissing Jason off.

My second favorite actor to play Jason is C.J. Graham. First, of course would be Kane Hodder. C.J. does bring a certain swagger and attitude to Jason that’s unique. Just as Kane does, he can brilliantly convey emotions with very little movement. The scene that sticks out in my head often when thinking of this movie is when Nikki and Cort are rocking the RV. Jason strolls up, looks at the RV a rocking, and tilts his head ever so slightly. Kind of like a confused dog. In my opinion he guesses all too quickly what’s going on, and decides to dispatch some camp blood justice. It’s too bad, because Cort and Nikki where kind of funny and quirky characters. Nikki’s face into the wall death is very cool, and it seems as though the budget was ramped up substantially. The RV crash must have cost just a little bit. Jason finally punching his way out of the wrecked RV conveyed accomplishment and anger. He might be thinking, “How dare they inconvenience me in such a way”. This moment brought the intentional comedy to this movie, and to Jason, which at this juncture of the franchise was needed in my opinion.

  

Friday the 13th Part VII: The New Blood

This movie makes it harder for me to find a memorable moment. It’s the tamest in terms of gore due to the MPAA. On the other hand, it’s Kane Hodder’s first appearance in the series. He brings the Jason character to a whole other level in terms of violence, body language, and presence. The film was supposed to be Freddy vs. Jason initially, but that all fell through. Probably a good idea since those crossovers rarely work out. The novelty of “Carrie” vs. Jason kind of wears thin, but there are some pretty cool scenes in the final fight. To that point, the final fight scene has some of the coolest moments. Let me just say before my fellow fans impale me. The sleeping bag death is one of my favorite, and most memorable deaths in the franchise. This list isn’t really about the deaths. I will do a list of those very shortly.  Anyway, the practical effects used in the final fight are very well done. The moment in that fight that I thought was fantastic is when Tina uses her telekinetic ability to squeeze Jason’s head so hard that his mask splits in half, exposing his ugly mug. Simply brilliant. Pretty frightening imagery when first seen and still holds up to this day. This film holds a special place in my heart, but the lack of gore hurts me.

 

Friday the 13th Part VIII: Jason Takes Manhattan 

Now bear in mind this installment also holds a special place in my heart due seeing it at a younger age (10). The memorable moments are few and far between though. The promotional stuff for the movie was pretty cool. Such as the poster with Jason tearing through the "I Love New York" sign. As well as his appearance on Arsenio Hall. Jason somehow managed to do an entire interview without saying one word. That's presence.

One interesting moment that comes to mind is Julius deciding to throw down with Jason and straight up try to box him. Good idea? I think not. It's always fun to watch someone other than the heroine decide to try and fight Jason. It's just a given that you know they will mostly likely die. Julius puts up an effort, but it doesn't faze our boy. He comes back like a champ and literally takes off Julius's head. Aftermath below. It's a comical scene and nice to know Jason had the fore thought to place the head in the cop car. Of course it's always nice to see Jason use his hands to murder someone. Kane has mentioned his favorite kills were sans weapons.

This next scene is just plain funny. Jason traverses the streets of Manhattan looking for Rennie, only to be accosted by some punks. Now you really want to see him get some more murder in, but hee decides to just to gently lift his mask and show them who they're messing with. The looks on their faces are priceless. They promptly and smartly take the hell off. Sometimes less is more and this scene always stuck out to me.

Jason Goes to Hell: The Final Friday

Let me just say a little on this movie first before we get into scenes. This is considered by many to be one of the worst installments of the franchise. While that may true it's on the lower tier, it really picks up and get's going once Jason finally shows up. There are some funny scenes before hand, such as Duke breaking Steven's fingers one by one for information. Good way to make friends right? Don't know why he does it, but don't care. It's funny. There are some other decent characters. The whole crew of the Diner for one. Plus, this movie has the highest body count of any of the movies. Again, I saw this at a younger age, so it still holds a special nostalgia. Ok, maybe it was the tits.

This next scene was mentioned quite comically by a few in "His Name is Jason" DVD (which was awesome by the way). To be honest I didn't think much of it at the time, but now it does seem pretty strange, yet hilarious. Two words. Homoerotic Shaving. Now possessed by Jason, Coroner Phil kidnaps police officer Josh. He takes him to the Voorhees house, strips him naked, and straps him down. This is starting to sounds like a porno I don't want to see. Anyway, Coroner Phil proceeds to shave Josh with a lustful look in his eyes. All this so he can transfer the demon, baby, Jason thingy......himself. Yeah. I'm now not sure why he had to shave the naked cop just to transfer himself. Either way, it lives on forever for Friday the 13th fans as one of the oddest and most homoerotic scenes of the franchise. Enjoy.

Speaking of some T & A. The sex scene in the tent with young lovers Deborah and Luke is among the best of the franchise. Also, Deborah's death is quite brutal and graphic.The look on poor Luke's face is a treat. Actually the whole film seems like cannibal holocaust compared to the MPAA's raping of part seven. They just don't make 'em like they used to. Horror movies that is.

Last and not least from this installment is the final screen shot which we salivated over for years. This was to setup the Freddy vs. Jason showdown which most fans of both wanted desperately. This picture became an iconic image for fans and a calling cry to get the film made. It only took 10 years and it ended up being pretty disappointing unfortunately.

Jason X
Well this one ranks right up there with the worst unfortunately. When you go to space with the monster, that usually means you've jumped the shark. Can't say much about the movie. Some hot girls (not much t&a unfortunately). Some pretty awful dialogue and acting. The CGI was not much better. However, I did like the holodeck scene with Jason near the end..The homage to the sleeping bag death scene in part VII gave me a smile. Of course, there were a couple of key scenes that were pretty cool and stick out in my mind.

The scene that comes to mind first is Adrienne's inventive death scene. The cinematographer used the camera in an inventive way here. The point of view shot for her death is from the inside of the liquid nitrogen container. Seeing her face as it freezes up in liquid nitrogen is top notch. To top it off, her face is basically smashed off against the counter top. Sweet! Gotta love it.

The next interesting moment in Jason X is when we finally get to see Uber Jason in action. If you thought he was unstoppable before, well your in for a rude awakening. He's now 100 times more deadly. The suit and mask design are really cool. It's pretty much what you would imagine Robocop and Jason's love child would look like. So for fans of sci-fi and horror it's a nice treat.

Freddy vs. Jason
Unfortunately I can't say really anything great about this one either. The film just took so long to make it just didn't work for me. Maybe I'll have to re-visit it again soon and see if I can find some gems there. Some of the kills are nice (surfer dude getting his twisted on backwards). Not really any tits and ass which sucks. Pretty cheesy dialogue. It too seemed forced for my liking. I love Freddy as well, don't get me wrong. I just think it would be a draw between these two. They kind of live in separate realities anyways, so it's hard to judge. Spoiler: I am glad Jason won in the end. The only thing that worked for me in some way was the end fight scene. It seemed pretty well choreographed. Other than that, I'm taxed. Sorry.

Friday the 13th (2009)
This remake is just so-so for me, so it's hard to pick memorable scenes once again. I like what they did to an extent, but I'm not big on remakes. Hollywood just needs to leave classics alone. I will say that there is some incredible tits and ass in this version provided by Amanda, Chelsea, and Bree. Nice.I also like the way Derek Mears played Jason. A smart, hillbilly, survivalist Jason, who kills those who steal his pot. Just kidding, he was guarding it for me. Overall the rest of the movie is alright. Most of the deaths are a little underwhelming. The story is decent and the dialogue is alright (mostly thanks to Chewie). I shall leave you with the last kill before the opening credits. This was really the only thing that stuck out to me other than the nice skin provided by the ladies. Please feel free to let me know what you think, and add your own moments. Thank you.

Please feel free to let me know what you think, and add your own moments. Thanks for reading.