THE FOLLOWING REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS OF THE DISCUSSED FILM. READERS DISCRETION IS ADVISED.
The 1980s was the era for the slashers when Michael Myers re emerged from the 70s to continue leaving behind a trail of blood. Before Freddy Krueger debuted to make a similar impact, Jason Voorhees was making his mark in the sub genre of horror. By Friday the 13th Part 3, we knew this character was here to stay with its own franchise.
PLOT
The film picks up moments after the events of Part 2 left off. Voorhees is able to hide from authorities as he steals clothes from a lakefront store and kills the couple that owns the said store. By morning, Chris Higgins plans to spend the weekend at her old home near Crystal Lake, Higgins Haven, with a group of friends. The group includes: Debbie Klein (Tracie Savage), Andy Beltrami (Jeffrey Rogers), Shelly Finkelstein, Vera Sanchez (Catherine Parks), Chuck Garth (David Katims) & Chili Jachson (Rachel Howard). Upon arrival, they meet up with Chris’ boyfriend Rick Bombay. However on the way, they ignore the warning of a hitchhiker Abel who is aware that the area is dangerous. After they settle in, Shelly and Vera go out to a convenience store, leading to a confrontation involving a trio of bikers: Ali (Nick Savage), Fox (Gloria Charles) and Loco (Kevin O'Brien). It gets worse when Shelly runs over their motorcycles as he and Vera leave. The bikers would follow them to Higgins Haven with the intent to burn down the barn. That plan gets foiled when Jason arrives to kill both Fox and Loco with pitchforks. He would then knock Ali unconscious when he goes to check on them. By night, Chris shares with Rick how two years prior, she encountered a deformed man that attacked her. Not remembering what happened when she blacked out, she chose to leave Crystal Lake and her reason to come back is an attempt to confront her fears. Outside the cabin, Shelly would scare Vera underwater with a hockey mask, which leads to her reminding him that she doesn’t like his ongoing pranks. His comedy tour would come to an end when he enters the barn, only to have his throat sliced by Jason. Voorhees would take the hockey mask to conceal his face and kill Vera from afar with a speargun. He would then enter the cabin to continue his murder spree by stabbing Debbie from behind with a knife and slicing Andy in half with a machete, in the middle of a handstand. He would then kill Chuck by hurling him into the generator’s fuse box, which electrocutes him. He would then kill Chili by impaling her with a hot fire poker. Just when Chris and Rick return to the house, the latter gets his head crushed by the slasher. On her own, Chris becomes frightened of all the carnage surrounding the property. She is able to escape the house by stabbing Voorhees in the leg with a knife and hit him with a log. She tries to drive away, but the van is out of gas. She ends up trying to hide in the barn, in which Jason traps her until he finds her. She would briefly get the upper hand by hanging him, but he would survive once he removes himself from the noose. This would frighten Chris even more as she would recognize him as the one who attacked her when briefly removing the mask. When Ali wakes up and tries to intervene, Jason would finish him off by slashing him down with a machete. Chris appears to end the conflict by striking his head with an axe. Exhausted, she pushes out a canoe into the lake and falls asleep. She would have a nightmare of being attacked by a decomposed Pamela (Marilyn Poucher), leading to her waking up traumatized as she is escorted away from Higgins Haven by the police. The film ends with a final look of Jason's body still at the barn as his reign of terror is halted.
THOUGHTS
With Steve Miner returning to direct a second entry for this franchise, you would think this would be the best sign, but respectfully speaking, it isn't so yet it isn't the thing that demolishes the quality. Michael Zager's funky score has nothing on Harry Manfredini, but it's catchy as hell and I dig it so much I'll put that on loop when working out. While this film is not exactly refreshing, its still hella fun to watch which is the whole point by the time you make it to this one. I wasn't so crazy of the overuse of 3D effects used throughout since I can live without a yo yo and juggling apples zooming into my face. However, they are at their most effective when the violence ensues. Seeing an eye pop out of one's socket was not what I expected and I respect them going that far no matter how outdated it looks. The makeup effects by Doug White were definitely at their best when it came to Andy being chopped in half because I'm still disturbed on what the insights of one's legs can look like. Of course this wouldn't be realistic with the star that is stacking up the bodies. Richard Brooker steps in and definitely makes Jason feel just as menacing as before. Seeing him patient go for the kill was what makes him bone chilling here. Despite being patient, he remains relentless throughout because the creativity gets higher from here. Even before Andy, I was already trembling when that speargun went through Vera's face. With respect to the pillow case, the hockey mask is better because it makes him more distinguishable from other known slashers. Whenever I see an actual hockey game and see those masks, I'm gonna be thinking about Jason. And that proves exactly how iconic it is in this franchise, so I thank this film for making its legacy here. Knowing how formidable this villain is, there must always be a protagonist willing to take the stand. Dana Kimmell made a standout final girl out of Chris for showing her as one who felt compelled to confront the past. I think seeing her stand up to Jason in the climax arguably feels empowering because for anyone and everyone, there will be a point in time where the past must be confronted no matter how troubling it can be. If you spend the whole time avoiding it, then you can never move on. While it doesn't pay off like she wished, I like to believe she'll still eventually overcome all of the trauma she experienced as a whole. And again, at least she gets to live because not everyone is this lucky. Without exaggeration, I generally didn't mind Rick at all during his screen time. He seemed to be a good boyfriend to Chris overall whenever he chose to listen and take consideration how she was feeling. That scenario always matters in a working relationship. With that being said, it became a shame for him to be killed so fast because I think if he had the chance, he would've put up a good fight. I wasn't so nuts about Shelly, but I totally saw where the guy was coming from. Larry Zerner expressed the guy as an outcast who just didn't know how to come out of his own shell, hence sticking to what he knew rather than trying new things. His over the top pranks were meant with some form of sincerity, but he just couldn't accept that not everyone was into it. I don't know how Andy found a liking to him, but I'm sure it was all meaning well. As I feel bad seeing everyone die, I'm still surprised that Shelly had the hockey mask first. While I've given my fair share of likable aspects of this sequel, there were so many things I just couldn't stand when re watching. Like for instance, why didn't Chuck give a heads up that he would hot box the van? If it's illegal and you still wanna have fun, at least be cautious about it man. And how the hell does Rick think it's funny to grab someone by the neck? That is dumber than everything Shelly does. Also, how did Andy not see Jason at the window? It's not like the guy was trying too hard at hiding. Lastly, I thought it was so out of character for Jason to try to assault Chris rather than kill her. I understand a full circle thread would make things interested, but there should've been better use of it. Other than that, you're still in for a ride. To wrap up, Friday the 13th Part 3 is worth watching for horror fans as it knows what it is: a 3D blood fest that is somehow hella fun.
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