Paramount was ecstatic. The low-budget slasher flick Friday the 13th had been a surprise hit and its sequel had done solid business as well. However, the tide seemed to be turning against them. The MPAA was cracking down on horror films and the public was becoming more concerned about what effect violence in the movies might have on America’s impressionable youth. Sensing it might be time to wrap up the Friday saga, the third film was intended to end the series. And just to make things a little more interesting, the film was released theatrically in 3-D.
It’s just a few hours after Ginny was carted off in an ambulance. All of her counselor friends have been hacked to death and Jason Voorhees is still on the loose. Since I watched the first three Friday the 13th films in a short space of time, the first thing I noticed in part 3 was how much Jason had changed. How has this once average-sized guy bulked up so much, lost his hair and grown a foot taller?
Anyway, Chris Higgins (Dana Kimmell) has cloudy memories of a close escape from a maniacal killer two years earlier but comes back to Crystal Lake with a group of her friends confident that there’s safety in numbers. Besides, there not going to the site of the campground but rather an area called Higgins Haven. They are headed to a cabin that belongs to Chris’ parents. Chris’ old boyfriend Rick (Paul Kratka), who promises he’ll stay close, is waiting for her at the cabin. Joining Chris on the trip are her friends Debbie (Tracie Savage), Andy (Jeffrey Rogers), Shelly (Larry Zerner), Vera (Catherine Parks), Chuck (David Katims) and Chili (Rachel Howard). On the road they meet Abel (David Wiley), a drunken religious fanatic who found an eyeball (and other body parts) and kept it as proof of God. Slightly spooked, the group drives on to their destination.
Friday the 13th, Part 3 is the first film where Jason dons the hockey mask we know today. He takes it from practical joker Shelly, who used it earlier in the film to scare one of his friends. Sadly for the crew at the cabin, Jason has a score to settle with Chris and since their all there, they’ll all have to pay the price. Director Steve Miner (the only person to direct more than one film in the Friday the 13th franchise), provides the series with some of its best kills. One character gets cut in half from groin to torso, while another takes a long distance spear gunshot to the eyeball. Miner also manages to create a good deal of build up and tension between each death.
Despite those positives, Friday the 13th, Part 3 is mired in the similarities of its two predecessors. Many of the characters are similar to ones that appeared in the previous films and the 3-D gimmick is just that, a gimmick. The filmmakers throw a yo-yo, apples or popping popcorn trick directly at the lens. Yippee! Talk about distracting. Oh, and the acting is still terrible.
The film is presented in an anamorphic 2.35:1 widescreen transfer. The 2-D version is a lot cleaner than the 2004 disc, with a lot of specks gone. It’s still relatively dark and has grain, but is noticeably better than the two discs that came before.
When it comes to the 3-D version, this DVD uses an anaglyphic version (required for standard DVD presentations on your TV), so you need those red and blue lenses to watch it (this release includes two very uncomfortable cardboard glasses.) Don’t get your hopes up. The 3-D doesn’t compare to today’s technology and you may enjoy the film more, in 2-D.
New to this edition is a 5.1 track that, as with the new “deluxe” editions of Part 1 and Part 2, isn’t as powerful as I hoped for. The rare channels are seriously underused. The original mono track is available in English, French and Spanish, along with subtitles for each language (also available in Portuguese).
Apart from having both versions of the movie on the same disc, the only other bonus feature is the original theatrical trailer which is presented at 1.78:1 and is anamorphically enhanced. It runs for 2 minutes.
