Friday the 13th Part III

Though made in poorly-done 3D and introducing the famous hockey mask, “Friday the 13^th Part 3,” released in 1982, is about as unoriginal and repetitive as the previous films. Martin Liebman said in his review, “Amped-up gore, various objects that seem to poke straight out of the screen, and a hip new soundtrack that bookends the film can't save the picture from its primary problem, its sale of an almost identical bill of goods as the previous two outings.” Combined with the typical teenage characters are a few new victims of different ages and backgrounds, and the main theme of a giant, deformed man running through an old lakeside forest campground stays the same. Like the last two films, “Friday the 13^th Part 3” offers slim-to-none saving qualities. I agree with Liebman when he said, “Nevertheless, despite its pointlessness and repetitiveness, it's still rather fun to watch even through a prism that never obscures who will die and who will remain to give Jason his due at the end of the picture.”

Beginning almost right after “Friday the 13^th Part 2,” “Friday the 13^th Part 3” has Jason (Richard Brooker) back for more murders. Despite going past where the murders at Camp Crystal Lake were and seeing the amount of ambulance, police cars and body bags that surround the area, a new group of teenagers who will fall victim to Jason’s machete ahead and prepare camp near Crystal Lake. As they are driving there the meet a duo of drug-addict 1960s hippies (David Katims and Rachel Howard) and, later on, a trio of motorcyclists (Nick Savage, Gloria Charles and Kevin O’Brien). Among the group is Shelly (Larry Zerner), a special effects person and prankster, his blind date Vera (Catherine Parks), Chris (Dana Kimmell), a girl who survived an attack by a man said to be Jason two years prior, her boyfriend, Rick (Paul Kratka), Debbie (Tracie Savage), a pregnant girl, and her boyfriend, Andy (Jeffrey Rogers). As the day becomes night, a day which has been fun, romance and danger turns bad as Jason sneaks on the teens, once again adding to the legend of “Camp Blood.”

No surprise that “Friday the 13^th Part 3” recaps the last two films in just about every scene. Like “Part 2,” this one starts with a long flashback scene to the end of the last film. Liebman said, “Moments later, a televised newscast also, albeit more briefly, retells the same story, just to make sure anyone who walked into the theater a few minutes late has the opportunity to play catch-up and not become lost under the deluge of deep philosophical undertones and countless metaphors that define the series, allowing such poor souls to glean the crucial background needed to fully appreciate the artistry of Friday the 13th Part 3.” After killing two people (Steve Susskind and Cheri Maugans), Jason goes on to kill, once again, some kids, this time along with two hippies and a motorcycle gang, in just about the same style as the previous two films. The film goes on, and on, and on, with so many lousy scares and loud musical numbers inserted in the film until the real deal starts. Adding more to damage, “Part 3” ends with a part that is basically similar to the first film, with only a few small different changes to make it look like it is original.

Basically, “Friday the 13^th Part 3” is nice with its 3D effects. The film regularly gives impressive power and filming, most of the scenes give the look of a realistic place. Liebman noted, “Several of the key effects -- whether the more mundane, such as an old-style antenna rabbit ear poking into the theater, or the more graphic, such as an eyeball popping out of its socket or a pitch fork to the gut -- work very well and punctuate the experience.” Despite the look suffering from the usual problems that come with 3D, it’s done well enough here to make the entire film worth seeing from a purely technical look. The characters in the film are a bit more original here as well. Shelly, a special effects prankster, gives some weight to the movie and makes for, maybe, the most sympathetic character of the entire movie. However, the script does practically nothing to differentiate the group from any of the others that were in the first two films. Liebman noted, “The acting in Part 3 is the worst of the series, the film featuring a collection of wooden performances that add a bit of unintentional comic relief to the film.” Finally, most fans will remember this movie not for its kills or 3D presentation but for its introduction of the famous hockey mask. That has become the face of the Horror genre and recognized all over the planet, and the mask and the giant, heartless murderer behind it maybe more than anything else making “Friday the 13^th” the famous Horror franchise.

Liebman credited, “Friday the 13th accomplishes its task of recreating the previous two films in 3-D, but as far as any sort of novelty outside the actual presentation, forget about it.” “Part 3” does have the same old tired – but nevertheless still sort of effective and, most importantly, fun – story, and for every film sets out to complete, in this case seeing Jason killing a bunch of people in 3D, it works just fine. Liebman ended his review by saying, “Though parts of the film are laughably yet unintentionally goofy, particularly the clichéd "damsel in distress" final act, Friday the 13th Part 3 makes for a great party movie and a fair all-around Blu-ray presentation. It's just too bad Paramount only included two pair of glasses with it.”

I don’t like this one as much as the first movie, but it’s better than the second one, in my opinion. I know that people may not like this film because of the 3D that looks like it has aged, but it’s still a good movie to check out. It’s different from the last two movies, but it’s still one that you should check out. Definitely see it if you have seen the first two movies, this is one that should not be skipped.

Happy Friday the 13th everyone! Look out tomorrow when we look at an actual good entry in “Friday the 13^th-a-thon” in this year’s “Halloween Month.”