Friday the 13th [Blu-Ray] [Region Free] (English audio. English subtitles)

Good film

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.

As a long-time fan of horror movies, revisiting "Friday the 13th" was like stepping back into a chilling time capsule. The film expertly builds tension, immersing viewers in the eerie atmosphere of Camp Crystal Lake. The combination of a haunting score and clever cinematography keeps you on the edge of your seat.One of the standout aspects is its pioneering role in the slasher genre. While it may seem formulaic by today’s standards, it laid the groundwork for countless films that followed. The iconic character of Pamela Voorhees is both memorable and terrifying, proving that sometimes the scariest villains are the ones with a personal vendetta.The DVD quality is decent, capturing the essence of the 80s while not over-clarifying the grainy, raw vibe that adds to the film's charm. Bonus features, like behind-the-scenes content, provide a fascinating glimpse into its production.If you’re looking for a classic horror film that’s both nostalgic and genuinely creepy, this DVD is a great addition to your collection. Just be prepared for a few jump scares and a lot of suspense!

The first Friday the 13th film was a seminal point in film history and to have the killer actually not be the killer was a really great jumping off point for the 80's horror films to go on to greatness.Tom Savini is a legend.

That's what the tag line on the Blu Ray says: The terror before the mask. Ho-hum. I've seen scarier, and certainly better flicks. But let's rewind a little here.First off, let me state that this was my first viewing of this film. Despite being a great horror fan, I somehow made it into my twenties without ever having seen this film or one of its many sequels. And that's probably a good thing--just because I like horror films doesn't mean I like crappy movies with clunky dialogue, bad acting and stupid scripts. Now, don't get me wrong, there is a certain magic to bad films, and I love trashy movies like Army of Darkness or The Lost Boys, but the fact remains that you can't turn a turkey into great cinema (even though it's quite easy to have it metamorphose into a golden goose, as Friday so clearly showcases).When I think Great Horror Movies, I think of The Exorcist, The Omen, The Shining, Straw Dogs (although I'm reluctant to actually call it a horror film), Night of the Living Dead, Dawn of the Dead and so forth. These are THE CLASSICS par excellence. Also, they all date from roughly the same era of Golden Horror Filmmaking--late 1960s, the glorious '70s and early '80s. The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (TTCSM) would be another film worthy of mention. These films have made an undeniable contribution to our culture, and the impact they've had on how we think is quite amazing really. After the cruel scenes of pursuit and murder in TTCSM, it's impossible to ever go home again, in the sense that a deserted farmhouse in the middle of nowhere will never look innocent again, and the weird hitchhiker talking about how they used to slaughter them beeves in the old days ... well, you'd just leave that fellow standing in the roadside dust, where he can slice his palm up to his heart's content.Friday has made a similar impact on our culture, without, however, being of the same quality as the films already mentioned. The lake, the camp, the killer--all these have become very familiar and recognizable elements: you don't even need to have seen the film in order to know them, at least in outline.If you wanted to know which 'modern' horror films I deem essential, I'd have to list The Strangers, The Descent, Hostel 1&2, Cabin Fever (which is an outrageously funny/scary/gory film), 28 Days/Weeks Later ... these just off the top of my head.Now, compared to all these high-quality flicks, Friday doesn't measure up very well. Being patterned after Halloween (which is one of my least favorite horror films ... I find it stupid and annoying) certainly doesn't help. What I find most disappointing about Friday is that the story would have so much potential, if only executed right. Granted, the creators didn't have very high hopes or even ambitions for the film in the first place, but basically all it is is a killer working her way down a list. There's x characters and they all get knocked off one by one. This gets boring right quick, especially as it's always one killing stroke and these helpless guys are done for: they offer up no resistance, no struggle. There's no fight in them. Except for the girl that actually makes it. That is certainly the best part of the film--Blondie (her name escapes me) fleeing from the killer. What makes this so incredibly idiotic, however, is the fact that Blondie actually gets the edge on the homicidal mom three times in a row: she manages to get the killer down but she doesn't finish her off but just runs away. This is were my suspension of disbelief gets stretched past the breaking point. If you want to make sure they're not going to come after you again, you got to make sure they're going to stay down. You do not accomplish this by getting in one good punch and then beating feet for the next dark little hole where you wait for them to catch up with you again. Of course this is the filmmaker's idea of putting their audience on the edge of their seats, but it's a shoddy ploy and, thankfully, it's been more or less dispensed with in contemporary horror films--at least in the better ones. I guess it took films such as Friday and Halloween to get these cheap shots out of their systems but that doesn't make them any more interesting to watch.The most glaring detriment to the quality of Friday is it's lack of characters you, as the audience, can get involved in. They're just these randy numbskulls playing hide the salami in their little lakeside cabins. Time for a good old ho-hum again. Not even their names stick. There's a Jack and a Bill and an Annie or Anne. Bill's the one who gets the arrow in the eye and I think Kevin Bacon is Jack--he gets the arrow in the throat. Oh well. On the other hand, they do try to make each killing unique (disregarding the psychology of serial killers, who for the most part tend to dispatch their victims in the same way). So you get the arrows, the throat-slashing, the axe-in-the-head, the plain old stabbing ... all building up to the beheading, which is surprisingly well done. In fact, I'd venture that the effects are extremely good and do not distract from the film ... they work well enough, even by today's standards (and these standards are really a class of their own, seeing as you can do anything you want with computers nowadays anyway). I'd say the twist at the end is a genuine winner--it's what makes the film memorable. It's also what sets the stage for the slew of sequels which have followed the original.So, Friday. A kind of dated, so-so film containing, however, all the classic elements of scary stories. In Friday, it's a very dark and rainy night, and it's black-cat day to boot. Three stars is a fair rating for this one, I'd say. It's a B movie that has reached cult status and makes for some adequate late-night entertainment ... as befits its nature.

What a classic movie