Ranking The Top 5 Friday The 13th Films To Watch
Top 5 Favorites Of The Friday the 13th Franchise
1. Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter
The definitive Friday movie, period. This film took everything that made the original 1980 film tense and suspenseful as well as how Part 3 introduced Jason as a pure iconic slasher and improved upon those elements 100 percent. Character development in a Friday the 13th film is oft overlooked, but The Final Chapter by far had the most interesting and sympathetic people in all of the series. Tom Savini even improved upon his effects and creativity in the death scenes for the fourth film.
The ending of this film is indeed the most chaotic, suspenseful and non-confusing out of the original five films in the series. Let’s face it, dream sequences were all of the rage in the beginning of the franchise and to have a straightforward conclusion to a story was an endearing proposition.
2. Jason Goes To Hell: The Final Friday
I am sure the pure fact this movie is number two on my list will indeed leave many dumbfounded. No, I am not some poor lost soul who knows nothing about the franchise, I just like a little creativity in my horror films. The opening of this film features the definitive and signature stalk and chase scene in the film series. It incorporates everything we have seen throughout the Friday movies, almost in the form of parody, but executed to awesome perfection.
The rest of the film is an orgy of mixing different sub-genres within the horror realm to expand the mythology of the Voorhees family and the curse on Crystal Lake. K.N.B. effects delivers the gory goodness with the best practical special effects to date. Tom Savini would be proud. If more people could overlook the fact that the physical presence of Jason is absent from most of the film, this Friday the 13th entry would fare better in the minds of the fans as the most original movie of the series since the original 1980 film.
3. Friday the 13th (1980)
The complete opposite end of the spectrum from JGTH, this 30 year old independent gem is indeed the film that started it all. The whodunit aspect of the movie is one of major selling points within the story as well as the great characters and dialogue. The lurking presence of the unseen killer increases the sense of fear and paranoia that is felt by the film viewer and the creative death sequences orchestrated by Tom Savini are the icing on top of the cake.
Time has dated some aspects of the film, but there is no denying that this film ushered in a new era of horror film in the 1980′s and still, in my mind, is the gold standard of the slasher genre from that era.
4. Friday the 13th: A New Beginning
“This guy must be high up on something”. I can imagine that to be the response by some visitors to the website by this point in my list. Why would I have Jason Goes To Hell and A New Beginning ranked higher than Part 2 and Part 3? Well, simply put, I like entertaining characters with my death scenes. The fifth installment goes back to the whodunit aspect of story telling that made the original 1980 such a success. Since the MPAA helped destroy many of the awesome kills in the film, something is needed to make the film stand on it’s feet. What we have in Part 5 is the greatest assembly of 1980′s era stereotypes and new wave personas ever collected in a Friday the 13th film and possibly the slasher genre.
I personally could care less if Jason was not in this film as that’s not what was originally intended by the franchise creators anyways. I enjoy the fact that the producers decided to try a new angle on their film series by incorporating all of the elements of past films as well as a continuing story line and character from a previous film. It is my belief that if the kills were not heavily trimmed down and the ridiculous multiple dream sequence ending was eliminated, that this film would be looked at in a much better light.
5. Friday the 13th Part 7: The New Blood
Yes, I do have Part 5, Part 7 and Jason Goes To Hell in my Top 5. I did do that! Purely and simply, The New Blood would have been ranked higher in my list if the characters in the film were not so annoying and cookie cutter. If the characters were half as enjoyable to watch as the people in Part 5 or The Final Chapter, and if the ending wasn't such a let down, this might be #3 or maybe even #2 on my list. That being said, I enjoyed the recycled The Final Chapter story of the party house next door to the family house. Jason picking off teens at a secluded party is always a big plus!
John Buechler’s Jason design is top notch and his special effects and kill sequences are stellar, even though the viewer did not get to see their unedited glory until recently. The added telekinesis angle to combat a now zombified Jason is welcome and having Dr. Crews as the true villain in the film is a perfect balance to Jason’s destructive habits.
Well, those are just my favorites in the franchise. I would like to hear what some of your top 5 lists are. It interesting to hear where the fans find their favorite Crystal Lake fix.
