* Friday the 13th Part III (1982)
Jason Voorhees survives the previous installment to kill again. Unsuspecting Chris Higgins and her friends go on a weekend getaway to her family's old home on Crystal Lake. They have a confrontation with some bikers who end up following them to the house to get revenge. Of course, Jason goes on a killing spree and dons his iconic hockey mask for the first time in the franchise.
Friday the 13th Part III was released in 3D and many scenes take advantage of that. The film as a whole is formulaic and familiar. A group of friends is one by one picked off by Jason until a final girl emerges. The biker gang gives some change of dynamic and shows more characters of color, but they are mostly villainous, threatening our white protagonists and only serve to increase the body count. Shelly, a kind of incel joker, does provide some levity to the film.
Overall, this installment is fine. The standout events are Jason donning the iconic hockey mask and the very end echoing the lake scene from the first film, but with Pamela Voorhees' rotting body. There are some fun kills and the way Jason is stopped is at least new.
My rating: 3/5 fishmuffins
* Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter (1984)
Jason Voorhees somehow survived the previous film to kill again. A group of teens goes to Camp Crystal Lake to party and happen to be next to Trish and her little brother Tommy. Murder, mayhem, and teen drama ensue.
Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter is far from the actual final chapter and is the first movie to feature Tommy, a tragic figure that will fight Jason several times. A lot of the story is steeped in teen drama, but Tommy and his monster masks are a fun addition. The kills are unique with weapons ranging from shower tile to a corkscrew. Crispin Glover does a bizarre, hilarious dance. I didn't really get why Tommy shaved his head in the end (apparently to make Jason mistake him for his younger self) and I found the ending very weak and Tommy portrayed as evil for some reason, counter to later sequels.
Overall, it wasn't my favorite installment and didn't do much to set itself apart from other sequels. Tommy will be a fixture in the series and this story gives future insight into his character and his trauma.
My rating: 2/5 fishmuffins
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