Friday The 13th [VHS]

Ok, I might be biased towards liking this film as I've been a huge fan of the whole franchise since I saw the original 30 years ago, which has lived with me ever since because of one of the most scariest and unexpected endings in cinematic history. This is the first film I've bought on Blu-Ray and although on my TV the picture looks the same as my upscaling DVD player, the sound quality is slightly superior.Friday the 13th has always been a slasher flick, the plot lines have always been poor to average, and as with the other films in the franchise, you tend to just fast forward to the killings as a lot of the film is taken up with getting to know the characters and plot, but if they're all going to die anyhow, then why bother.What I like about this version is the fact that the opening 20 minutes are arguably better than the final 20 minutes. You have to settle down and catch your breath before witnessing Jasons rampage all over again.And as stated in the title, no other film has captured a death sequence with such chilling accuracy as this. I squirm every time I see it. I kid you not it could have been actual footage. It's the one on the water walkway.The extras are what you'd expect, yet I've just bought "His name Was Jason", which should satisfy every die hard fan.I also have this film on DVD. As this is the extended cut, there is more footage, yet, for me this gives the film a diservice as it just extends the dialogue and the film suffers for it. They could easily have put this extra footage in the extras and kept the film tight as in its original form.My only gripe about the film is the ending. It was sold as being a compilation of parts 1-3, and without spoiling the ending all I would say is " Why the mask?". That was a missed opportunity to have real impact like the original version.Although the original in todays world might not be as shocking to view as back then, I still recommend it to see how slasher flick horror film franchises began 30 years ago.

Having now seen the first three "Friday" films on Blu, I have to say that this is darn close to being the best. Part II maybe just edges it for picture quality, but the original is surprisingly sharp, with night-time scenes very well managed and no objectionable grain levels, for my money. Colours are occasionally a little overcooked, as in the late diner scene, but then the seventies were just ending and perhaps they really were wearing those colours? That aside, colours and contrasts are generally good, with fairly solid black levels. This film really puts Part III to shame in terms of picture quality.The soundtrack is also quite impressive for the age. Forceful and sinister, particularly in the last half hour. Dialogue is maybe occasionally a bit light-sounding, but on the whole the True HD 5.1 soundtrack does a terrific job, with respectable surround and subwoofer effects. To compare it with its great rival "Halloween" of which this film was something of an imitation: the sound quality is comfortably better, the colours are richer, and sharpness is also somewhat better. I must say that I disagree with the reviewer who states that this is not a worthwhile upgrade from the DVD. This seems to me unfair as picture quality and sound quality are markedly superior.It's hard to say how well the film has aged as it leaves such mixed impressions. Much of the acting seems much weaker now than I had remembered. The plot remains the great ace in the sleeve, with a magnificent twist and a truly shocking ending. It is true that the effects are no longer very convincing, especially in HD, and double especially for anyone who has also seen the recent remake! Yet the film has not lost its power to generate suspense and make you jump; it's just that most horror fans are so desensitised these days that it is no longer truly shocking.Nevertheless, a really great transfer of a much loved classic, albeit a classic indebted to "Halloween" and, in an inverted way, "Psycho". Worth comparing with the Van Nispel remake, or for a truly great horror weekend, take those two plus the original and remade "Halloween" flicks.