Sometimes, the Friday the 13th movies can blur together a little bit because there are so many of them and it’s all basically teenagers getting killed. Honestly? I’m glad we rewatched these because some of the stuff I thought happened in the first movie actually happened in this one.
It may sound like I’m slagging the series off, which I’m
not. I love the Friday movies – but they can kind of blur.
And not all of the movies in the franchise were good. The
second one was excellent, though.
I’m glad you brought it up. You gave me a good place to
start. So… why Friday the 13th Part 2 over any of the others?
I think it’s the scariest of the Fridays. Although… that
could be down to the age I was when I first watched it. It’s definitely in
part because of the jump-scare at the end with the dog.
I was expecting that one, but he got me earlier when he
came through a window.
Hah. I know.
It’s kind of funny… we’re two movies in and we still
haven’t seen Jason.
What do you mean?
Well, not the Jason, the one we think of when we
hear “Friday the 13th.” In the first one, you’ve got his mom
killing people. In this one, it’s Jason but he’s wearing that weird bag over
his head. He hasn’t started wearing that mask yet and we’re already two movies
into the series.
No, not until the third movie. It’s probably the most iconic
mask in the history of horror. Now, you see a hockey mask and the first thing
you think of is Jason Vorhees but you’re right, he doesn’t pick up that mask
until the third movie, which might surprise people who haven’t seen the series
before.
Do you think the franchise would have been as successful
if he’d kept the sack, instead of the mask?
I don’t know if it was an accident or not, but when he
picked up the mask in the third one, it started something. It spawned, what,
another ten movies? It was a moment in horror movie history.
Why Part 2 over the first movie?
I like that it starts with Adrienne King's Alice, the
only survivor from the first movie.
Yeah, it was a good way to bring Jason back into the story,
that he’s getting revenge because Alice beheaded his mother. It was a nice
touch. It wrapped up the end of the first one and led into the second one,
finally making it about Jason.
You get the recap and then it carries on and he’s getting
rid of Alice, from the first movie. Because Part 2 did so well – the
sequel was even more successful than the first one – you knew damned well the
series would continue.
I guess this is a good time to ask you about the many
sequels?
The sequels did get silly in parts. Part III was okay.
The fourth one, The Final Chapter, was very good. It was a good
introduction to Corey Feldman as well. It was called The Final Chapter
because it was supposed to be the end but, of course, that’s not how these
things go.
Part 5: A New Beginning, Jason wasn’t even in it. He
comes back in Part VI but that’s where they start to get silly. I
enjoyed the eight one, Jason Takes Manhattan, but wasn’t fussed on the
next one, Jason Goes to Hell, because Jason was a slug that got into
people’s bodies like a slug. Jason X was a very good film, though. It
brought the franchise up to date.
Jason X is my favourite movie of the whole
franchise, but I’ve said that before. It’s futuristic, it’s funny, and you’ve
still got old-school Jason beating the crap out of campers. Win.
What about Freddy vs Jason?
I loved Freddy vs Jason. The fact that you’ve got two horror icons duking it out was perfect. I thought it would be the start of them doing lots of pair-ups, like the old Universal movies. I know it was rumoured, but I don’t know why it never happened. Such a shame…
Then, you’ve got the reboot, which encompasses the first
three films. I enjoyed it and Jared Padalecki was a good choice for the lead.
There are still talks about a sequel, but I think it’s been in development
hell. I’ll check…
Yeah, there is a new film on the way, in 2023. A new reboot.
There hasn’t been a Friday movie in over a decade now, which is a long
time for them.
One of the things that’s pretty consistent through the
series is how dark the Friday the 13th movies are. You can
tell the age of Part 2 because it’s a bit grainy and the film quality is
a little lower. Does that affect the experience?
Not on this one, no. It’s lit enough that you can tell
what’s going on. I’ve seen modern movies that were much worse, like Aliensvs Predator: Requiem. Ugh, with that one, even if you turned the tv
brightness way up, you couldn’t tell what was going on.
Part 2 was well done. There were a lot of fake outs
and it kept you jumping. They weren’t shy of showing Jason – but they didn’t
linger on him, either. And, of course, there’s the fact that he kept his
mother’s head, which was gruesome.
Kind of a creepy homage to Psycho, maybe?
Maybe, but I think it was just for effect – and it’s very effective.
It’s even more effective when you see it in Alice’s freezer than when you see
it in his makeshift cabin.
There are some outstanding death scenes in this one. My
favourite is when he stabs the lovers through with the spear – which you knew
was going to kill somebody the moment you saw it. (It’s one of my favourite
kills in the game too.) Did you have a favourite death?
I dunno, I think maybe Scott deserved it...
Remind me to keep the sharp, pointy things away from you!
My favourite death was definitely Crazy Ralph (Walt Gorney.)
He was in the first one, if you remember. I was surprised they killed him but
glad too because he was annoying.
We have to wrap this up so if you have any other thoughts
about Friday the 13th Part 2…?
As far as cinematography goes, Friday the 13th
Part 2 was very much of its time. I know I say this a lot, but cameras are
a lot more advanced now. Steadicams really started with Halloween. Three
years later, and the photography is quite good. Forty years later, if you want
a sweeping shot, you just use drones. Back then, you would have had to use a
helicopter. Hell, your phone is more advanced than some of the cameras they
were using then.
They probably had a reasonable budget but think about the upcoming movie. I bet you the production cost of an entire scene wouldn’t pay for one actor in the new film. They never really used big celebrities or ones that you’d recognise. Obviously, Kevin Bacon became huge, but he was no one at the time. There’s a charm in that, in just letting actors be their characters instead of bringing this huge Hollywood persona with them into the movie.
