Friday the 13th (1980)

Dir: Sean S. Cunningham (A Stranger is Watching, DeepStar Six)
Cast: Adrienne King, Jeannie Taylor, Robbi Morgan, Kevin Bacon, Harry Crosby, Laurie Bartram, Mark Nelson, Peter Brouwer, Betsy Palmer
USA, 1980

Seen: Sometime in the 80's, recently revisited January 3, 2009

Reason to see: In anticipation of the upcoming Friday the 13th to be released in February 2009

It was wild to go back and revisit this film, after not seeing it for over 20 years. Spawning a plethora of sequels, remakes and tie ins with other horror films we start with a very classic horror story. A bunch of camp councillors are prepping a camp, with a mysterious history for a re-opening. So, you have a setting of the great outdoors and a set of late teens with the opportunity of getting into mischief and things go awry. A simple enough premise, no? Simple and effective, which is why it's been used over and over again not only in the sequels, but in countless other horror films. It is a gem of a horror film and even breaks some new ground and included very effective use of 1st person camera work. The effects, for the most part, have held up extremely well over times and it certainly has a fair share of scares but also goofiness. Overall, I impressed. And.. it had Kevin Bacon in it!

Shannon's Overall View:
I was entertained
I'd watch it again
I'd recommend it as a fun horror flick

Return to Film Reviews

© Shannon Ridler, 2009