Friday The 13th (1980)
FRIDAY THE 13TH (1980)
Dir: Sean Cunningham
“You’re an American original.”
A boy drowned in 1957, two camp counselors were murdered in 1958, fires and bad water ruined the opening of the camp in 1962, and the camp laid dormant for 17 years. Against the wishes of the town, a descendant of the original owner shows up and decides to fix up Camp Crystal Lake. He hires a few counselors to come out and assist in the rebuild, prep, and eventually take care of the kids. But some camps should remain closed.
What do you get when you mix Halloween (1978) with Meatballs (1979)? One of the most successful slasher franchises of all time. Just like the other slasher heavyweights such as Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974), Halloween, and A Nightmare On Elm Street (1984) they were byproducts of a perfect combination of creative artists. Each of the directors (Tobe Hooper, John Carpenter, Sean Cunningham, and Wes Craven) of these landmarks found their equally creative special effects artists, actors and actresses, and writers. These four films spawned – as of this writing – a total of 42 films over the course of 6 decades. There are camps who swear their horror devotion to each of these films. And they will defend their decision for singling out one of the four. If I were forced to choose, I’d be team Halloween, but that’s mainly because without exaggeration I’ve seen it at least 175 times in my life and it continues to scare me. However, one major caveat to that choice is that when I’m feeling depressed Friday The 13th is my go-to cheer-me-up. The nostalgia I’ve tied to the series makes me return again and again. But whatever camp you find yourself in, you’re in good company. That is unless you try to come over to our table and talk about how Child’s Play (1988) and Chucky are better than the other titans of terror. If that’s your stance, I don’t know what to tell you bud, you’re on your own.
So, it’s actually Friday the 13th and you’re starting your marathon with the first film. I remember marathons in my teen years when I would actually skip the first film to get straight to Jason. I’d watch the MonsterVision marathon or the USA Up All Night marathons, but I remember one marathon the best. It was a homemade marathon cobbled together from VHS tapes. I skipped to Jason so I started with part 2 and I also skipped part 5. I was going the strictly Jason route. As a ten-year-old, Jason Takes Manhattan was the end of the Voorhees saga. I began the marathon around eight at night after school, homework, and dinner. I sat through final girls: Ginny, Chris, Trish and Tommy Jarvis, Tommy Jarvis, and Tina. My eyes began to close as a group of students went on a class cruise to New York. The sun was rising, and I was sleeping. But when I finally woke up, I felt a sense of accomplishment. And I’ve been marathoning the Friday The 13th films ever since. Traditions should be made from things that make you happy.
