Friday the 13th Part 7 is essentially Jason VS Carrie.
-William DiGiuseppe
With the recent passing of Director John Carl Buecher back in march it is to be expected that this year many horror movie fans will look back upon his works. Such as the 1985 adaptation of H.P Lovecraft’s Re-Animator and the Hatchet Movies. However, one movie sticks out of the rest of his wide collection of 80’s special effects filled thrillers. This is Friday the 13th Part 7: The New Blood, or as some may call it, Jason VS Carrie.
The story of this particular entry to the Friday the 13th franchise in the late 80’s actually takes us to 2003 with the release of Freddy vs Jason. This has been a film that’s been the product of decades of attempts all failing, where two franchises come together to create a connected universe with the Nightmare on Elm Sr. This long trial of fighting copyright laws and budgets actually started with Friday the Thirteenth Part 7. Originally the studio who owned Friday the 13th; Paramount, tried to create a deal with the studio who owned Nightmare on Elm Street, New Line Cinema. The talks were initially positive with the studios almost reaching an agreement but it was shut down fairly quickly after there was a disagreement as to how much of the profits would go to either studio.
So if Freddy Krueger could not duke it out with the Hockey Camper Extraordinaire than there was another 80’s Horror icon that was on the table. 1976’s Carrie, the Stephen King adaptation directed by Brian De Palma was still in audiences mind at the time. Off Paramount went to the production company Red Bank Films. This notably didn’t work. Now Paramount was Freddy and Carrie-less. However determined to get a proper 80’s slasher with a twist they decide to create their own Carrie like character which wound up being the character that is known today as Tina Shepard.
Which begs the question. Why not go back to the original Freddy Krueger like character if you are going to make a completely new character like Carrie anyway.
If you want a movie with lots of eerie scenery with a large use of stunning 80’s practical effects paired with great sound design, it is quite a fascinating movie. If you solely want a movie with believable teenagers and or a film that belongs well at home with scholarly films, you are well out of luck.
The movie excels when it embraces effects arguably the two main characters of the film. Jason Vorhees and Tina Shepard. The two never disappoint while on screen together or alone. Jason himself has built this franchise and is played by the stuntman Kane Hodder, a giant of a man who is 6’4”. An absolute behemoth of a man and with clever camera work by the cinematographers the audience will no doubt feel small and helpless when he is on screen. This is also aided by the special effects makeup and costume design which really makes the character grotesque and well at home in the lineup of the late 80’s slashers.
Tina Shepard played by Lar Park-Lincoln played the character with a lot of professionalism, which is so much more to be said than some of the other actors who admirably culture quite frequently in acting skill. Her character, as has been stated before, shares heavy similarities with Carrie. This has a pro and a con. A pro is that Carrie fans will be really happy to see more amazing effects that bend reality, with a sprinkle of adults making a teenager's life much harder than it needs to be. The con is that his leads to much less originality. While Carrie and Tina are different characters you can definitely come away feeling like you were just given the same thing once more.
Though I assume if you are watching the seventh Friday the 13th film you've come to expect that. Go figure.
This movie was made during the war on drugs and a rise of conservatism. With Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford and Ronald Reagan all being large names in this time there was a push to bring back many views to keep traditional family values. At this time the sexual revolution was at large with the increasing number of birth controls and conservatives saw this as a collapse of the nuclear family idea. Sex and Drugs all open up the secondary characters to danger.
Anyone who loves 80’s horror will love this film but it is important to note that anyone who is not quite so much a fan may come away feeling bored or even offended depending on who is watching the movie.
The film preaches to not use drugs throughout the entire film and even more so teeches young couples to practice abstinence but also embraces the idea of sex at the same time. Really if you wanted a example of how not to teach kids to stay away from sex this is the movie. This is impart due to this film being made by older people but wanting the film marketed towards teenagers and college students. Nuance is not very strong in this film.
Overall Friday the 13th is an amazingly fun movie with fantastic special effects and is a movie that definitely will make your weekend more enjoyable if you choose to watch it. However know this film will not be as fun for an audience member who really wants a fantastically made film. This was a movie purely made to make you get excitement that 80's horror is unmatched in, not to belong in a high class film scholars desk.
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