Friday the 13th Part 2 (1981)

Sorry, this movie sucks

Sadly Over-hyped

Fantastic!

Best movie ever!

In all fairness to the original Friday the 13th, the enormous success of the franchise really started with the sequel Ft13th Part II. Icon Jason Vorhees makes his first appearance in the sequel and obviously from here on out, Jason goes down into slasher lore as one of the great horror movie characters. Part II is a great film to kick back and collect some 80's nostalgia. However, the film lacks quality writing, has a long-winded recap, a shoddy ode to a Texas Chainsaw Massacre character, and death sequences that are at times poorly executed. Also, Amy Steel, similarly to Adrienne King, didn't showcase a strong screen presence and is not as memorable as other "final girls" in slasher flicks. Aside from its problems, Friday the 13th Part II is an enjoyable film and is followed by a band of horror fans that are a lot more optimistic about the film than I as a viewer.

Still, despite this being a blatant retread of the first (indistinguishable camp counselors gather, they hear horror, they laugh them off, they slowly die), there's still some good stuff here. The deaths are simple and startling, Jason's intro is pretty cool and the last 20 minutes with the "rebirth" of Mrs. Voorhees are schlocky fun.

"Friday the 13th--Part 2" is a worthwhile film for horror fans. True, it's quality is not on par with "The Exorcist", but the film does try to incorporate a deeper context, even some sympathy, around the iconic villain, Jason. The audience is even provided with an idea of how Jason has been surviving in the wilderness. In this sequel, a group of teenage counselors are attending a counselors' training camp near Crystal Lake, five years after the events in the first movie. Jason begins to target the interlopers using a diversity of tools and methods that keep each kill scene fresh. Near the climax of the film, we get to see that he is concealing his face with a burlap sack (the hockey mask doesn't appear until later films) which adds a strong menacing air to the character.One negative, in my opinion, is the extended dream sequence at the beginning of the film composed of snippets from the first film. I know that the purpose behind this was to review what had previously happened, but it seemed pointlessly long unless it was also a means of making the film a bit longer. Also, there were several jump scares which I consider a cheap way of exciting an audience's reaction. I personally prefer a buildup of authentic tension, but that is generally not the way in which 80s slasher films are built.Slasher films like this aren't meant to be thought about too deeply, but I do appreciate the effort to build a stronger story about the villain. Overall, this is a decent sequel and a worthwhile film for classic horror fans.

A rather base, derivative sequel to the effective (if ham-fisted) first Friday. It's less bloody but every bit as violent, with a comically ever-present Jason stalking through the shadows in almost every scene (no matter how distant), seeking hapless teenagers to string up for the vaguest of reasons. He's not quite the icon he'd grow into with later installments - no hockey mask, clunky coveralls, a tuft of long brown hair - but he does a fair job of mixing up the arsenal and he's usually bathed in shadows so we can give that a pass. There isn't much to root for in the bland cast of victims, which checks off stereotypes like a politically-correct Saturday morning cartoon. Even at an economical eighty-seven minutes, I felt like we were spending a bit too much time with these shallow, repetitive supporting characters. Special points for sending the wheelchair-bound counselor down a steep flight of stairs with a gaping head wound, though. Redundant and formulaic, rambling and aimless, it's a little too comfortable with aping the original where it could be seeking broader pastures.