I didn't pick up the FRIDAY THE 13TH boxset, mainly because I have parts 1-4 already on disc and didn't want to buy them again. Thankfully, a local video store picked up the set and had the extras DVD for rent. What a major disappointment!

The main feature (the 103 minute 'behind the scenes' of the first 8 films) is a mixed bag. The most time (20 min.) is spent on part 1, with interviews with Sean Cunningham, Tom Savini and Adriane King. It is rather disheartening to hear Cunningham talk about how he merely got into the horror game for money. Sadly, Steve Miner is not interviewed at all for discussion on parts 2 & 3 (although Amy Steel from pt. 2 and "Shelly" and the DOP from pt. 3 are). Part 4 features interviews with Joe Zito, Corey Feldman and Savini. Zito is great, stating he wanted to put everything into the series he had not seen yet AND tackle the shower cliche. Part 5 is only mentioned briefly with Corey Feldman talking about shooting his scene for the opening and how he wants to return as Tommy Jarvis a la HALLOWEEN H20 and ignore part 6 (UGH!). I wish they had interviewed Danny Steinman because I want to know more about how the producers thought this SCOOBY DOO plot was a good idea. Part 6 has Tom McLouglin talking about how he went to town with his version, infusing it with as many horror references as possible. No wonder it is my favorite sequel. Also, Jason actor CJ Graham is interviewed. Part 7 has John Carl Buechler (sporting a new head of hair!), Kane Hodder and lead actress Lar Park Lincoln interviewed. Part 8 had director Rob Hedden and Kane Hodder giving a few insights into this sequel (and reminding me how bad part 8 really is).

The rest of the disc is terrible. There are trailers for all 8 films (actually, only JASON LIVES teaser is shown), a cheap 'behind the f/x' report, a FRIDAY 'artifacts and collectibles' featurette (I have more stuff lying around my house than anything featured in this fluff piece), a 'victims tell all' (featuring interviews with the same people in the main feature; this should have been endless but I guess not) and finally the 'Tales from the Cutting Room Floor' segment that apparantly has fans angered (and rightfully so).

The deleted gore scenes are presented in quite possibly the worst fashion one could possibly imagine. The edited and unedited versions are shown simultaneously on screen with the top image being the the edited version and the bottom being the uncut version. Whenever the edited version cuts, that portion of the screen has a big red "X" appear in it. It is so amazingly distracting and doesn't even allow one to see the uncut footage from pts. 1 or 6 in any detail since it is so tiny. The footage from pt. 7 is a horrible workprint that has, get this, a major tracking problem. I have a copy of this footage that looks 100% better than this. Who knows what they were thinking. Extra TV footage from pt. 4 is shown (but they still left stuff out!), but no uncut footage (same goes for pts. 2, 3, 5 and 8). I know it exsists for pts. 3 & 5 because my friend has the PAL tapes.

Sorry to be so negative about this disc, but it is really an example of a work for hire company getting the job and just not "getting it." There is so much more that could have been done to make these extras more appealing. Alas, they aimed low and succeeded.

Hmmm. Sorry to hear about the extras disc. I haven't put it in yet, although I was looking forward to seeing the uncut footage. I usually get a kick out of seeing these many-years-later interviews and featurettes, and if there's enough detail involved, I probably will like it fine. Same with the trailers, which I have seen on poor umpteenth-generation VHS dubs and are pretty effective.

Maybe now is a good time to deliver some thoughts on FRIDAY THE 13TH and FRIDAY THE 13TH PART 2. I watched both films for the first time over the weekend (I had seen portions of them cut on TNT several years ago). What's tricky about F13 is trying to watch it through 1980 eyes. I didn't find the film to be terribly good, and it really plays more like a copy of F13, rather than the massively influential moneymaker that it is. Tom Savini's gore effects are pretty good, although they were obviously cut to appease the MPAA and he has done better work elsewhere (MANIAC, DAWN OF THE DEAD). And Harry Manfredini just might be the series' secret weapon; his score has been parodied and copied to death, but it's really good and keeps one's nerves consistently jangled, even when not much is happening on the screen. F13 does what it sets out to do--kill many young people in relatively shocking fashion (keeping in mind that the formula was still unknown to most audiences back then)--and it does so reasonably well. The ending had long been spoiled for me (by SCREAM, if nothing else), and the very effective final shock was a staple of the period (see PHANTASM, CARRIE...and was reenacted in I KNOW WHAT YOU DID LAST SUMMER).

I think F13PT2 is a better film. God help me for complimenting Steve Miner, but the sequel is better directed and contains more and better shocks. The gore is less, but the murders are more interesting. Amy Steel is a sharper (heh) lead than F13's drippy Adrienne King. And the final half-hour really is a barn-burner, a suspenseful, even scary ride that kept me in suspense, even though my TNT experience clued me in on the film's final shock, which is a good one.

I'm looking forward to the 3D effects in PART 3. Director Joseph Zito and Savini made #4 sound pretty fun in their THE PROWLER commentary, and which one has the 007-style opening? I can't wait to see that!

That is part 6, the best of the bunch in my opinion. It has a great sense of humor (wait until you see who the first victim is!).

Yay! Mobius is back!
Anyway, I was never a huge F13 fan, as I'd only seen bits and pieces of the first 2, saw Part 3 on HBO many years ago, and Part 4 at the theater when it was released. That's it. However, I was drawn to buy the boxset when I saw the years the films were released...1980-89, giving Jason's misadventures sort of a timeline-of-the-80s quality I was interested in. Buying the F13 Box for the progression of fashion changes may sound stupid, but I did end up enjoying most of the films, as I just finished Part 8 yesterday. Quick thoughts:

Pt.1- Decent, low-budget film that spawned a million copycats. Much less polished than any of the remakes, as it's budget was probably miniscule. Surprisingly not that bloody, and not really any nudity. I remember my 10th grade class going nuts over this when it first came out. Very 70s fashions and hairstyles.

Pt.2- Much more "professional"-looking, with a mostly better-looking cast, crisper visuals, better dialogue, and a semblance of character development. Not as gritty as the first, but entertaining. The 80s starts to creep in, as the hottest counselor dresses like "Physical"-era Olivia Newton-John, except with Catherine Bach-style denim shorts. She also gets naked, which doesn't hurt.

Pt.3- The first F13 I ever saw, and I still like leading lady Dana Kimmell more than most of the heroines. The dialogue takes a step back, as the "formula" really kicks in at this point. This one is fun because of all the objects that get thrust in the camera due to the "3-D" process, which isn't replicated on DVD, unfortunately. Probably the most enjoyable death scenes due to the spears and pitchforks and eyeballs jumping out at the viewer. Loved the disco theme.

Pt.4- The only F13 I saw at the theater, and probably my favorite of the series. The nudity is upped a bit, the cast is attractive, the dialogue is sharper than most of the sequels, plus it's got Corey Feldman and Crispin Glover. Tom Savini does the effects for the only other time beside the original, and while not as over-the-top as you would think, there are some nice effects sequences. Subtitled 'The Final Chapter', this does seem to sum up the first 4 films in a way. The F13 concept tends to meander for the remaining sequels. Oh, and at this point, fashion and hair are Totally 80s.

Pt.5- The quality drops a lot in this one. The lead male (Corey Feldman's character from Pt.4 as a teen) is unappealing, as is most of the cast. There is more nudity in this one, and it seems to have a lower budget, giving this more of a sleazy vibe than most.

Pt.6- My second favorite after Pt.4, and I would say easily the "best" of the series. Funny, beautifully atmospheric in spots, well-directed, more of a 'monster' movie than a 'slasher', if you will. No nudity, not as much blood, but an overall better production than any other F13. Whoever plays Jason does a nice job. Enjoyably nostalgic, dopey 80s moments, like the soundtrack song during the "sex" scene add to the fun, along with a cameo by Ron Palillo.

Pt.7- Well, they tried to do something a tiny bit different. The lead actress has telekinetic powers, so Jason has his hands full. She's an unappealing actress, though. The nudity is back, which is a good thing. Some imaginative scenes are interspersed with some misfired ideas, making this one spotty. And all those who think Kane Hodder IS Jason should look again, as his 'interpretation' really grated on me. His walk is more bored than menacing, his body is too stocky, and his "heavy chest breathing" really annoyed me. I liked the Pt.6 guy.

Pt.8- Beautiful-looking film, with lots of Bava-esque gels. TERRIBLE dialogue and script, easily the worst of the series. Subtitle is 'Jason Takes Manhattan', but most of the film takes place on a boat. Lazy, uncreative death scenes; silly, faux-noir-ish sax on the soundtrack, and an even worse heavy-breathing Kane Hodder turn as Jason.

I haven't watched the extras yet, but I would rank the films in this order: 4, 6, 3, 2, 1, 7, 5, 8.

:: Extra TV footage from pt. 4 is shown (but they still left stuff out!), but no uncut footage (same goes for pts. 2, 3, 5 and 8). I know it exsists for pts. 3 & 5 because my friend has the PAL tapes.

William:

Do you mean your friend has gorier versions of PARTs 3 and 5 that are 'official' releases, or would these be workprints like the ones used to source the "uncut footage" on Paramount's incredibly lazy DVD box-set? In either case, I'd love to hear what this footage consists of and see it. You should have your friend burn it to a DVD-R, then you could easily watch it on a multistandard DVD player like the Cyberhomes :-)

Vincent