Friday the 13th (1980) Movie Poster/Review

Friday the 13th Poster, hand-drawn and inked, colored in photoshop

Movie Review: Friday the 13th (1980)

(Director: Sean S. Cunningham, Special Effects: Tom Savini, Music: Harry Manfredini, Pamela Voorhees played by Betsy Palmer)

Worn-down, dusty, cobwebbed-cabins, snakes, bunnies, and a serial killer all out in the woods. From the peaceful backwater town of Crystal Lake, to the memorable and neurotic characters like Crazy Ralph, and the takes-himself-too-seriously motorcycle cop— “We ain’t gonna stand for no weirdness out here—” the original Friday is full of creativity and entertainment and everyone involved seems to have had fun making this film. It’s a slow build until the final two counselors begin to realize they have been stranded out in the woods, but by who?

The final reveal and the climax are as bloody and horrifying as they are fun to watch. Mrs. Voorhees’ insane whispering is unforgettable: “kill her mommy, kill her!”

I really loved rewatching this film! If you haven’t seen it in a while, give it a go. You probably know someone who’s never seen the original. Ask around and make them watch it. It’ll be fun, I promise.

Movie Trivia:

• Director Sean Cunningham literally aimed to rip off John Carpenter’s Halloween, and had writer Victor Miller screen the horror classic multiple times to come up with a model for Friday the 13th
• Cunningham had previously worked with another famed director, Wes Craven, on Last House on the Left
• The campground scenes were shot at a still-functioning boy scout camp, Camp No-Be-Bo-Sco, in Hardwick, NJ
• The film, set in the summer, was shot in the fall causing the film’s crew to tie off or shoot around many of the changing trees (orange and yellow leaves can be seen behind the lake in one of the final scenes)
• The final scare ending on the lake was an idea of Tom Savini’s, who also designed the mongoloid look of the young Jason Voorhees