This 8th part in the "Friday the 13th" series, called "Jason Takes Manhattan", sounds like a promising new addition to the Friday movies. In some ways, this movie is actually more creative than the previous sequels. In other ways, the movie misses out on many things.
In this movie, Jason Voorhees is shocked back to life and climbs aboard a cruise ship filled with college students. The ship is heading for New York City, and Jason starts killing most of the people on board. Then later on, some remaining people survive and arrive at New York, with Jason following them...
I must say that I love the very beginning of this movie. There are nice shots of New York City at night, as well as a great 80's song to begin the movie. However, the film doesn't really begin in New York; the scene shifts away to Camp Crystal Lake, where Jason is about to be resurrected by an electric shock from an underwater electric cable.
Later on, the film introduces us to the characters that will board a ship, which Jason climbs aboard as the ship leaves for New York. Most of the film's run time is spent on the ship to explore the characters, while Jason hunts many of them down and starts killing them.
The problem with this time spent on the ship is that it can get pretty boring just seeing the characters do dumb things. Thankfully, Jason kills them off quite well, although in not as good a fashion as in the previous sequels. There was just too much time spent on the ship and on useless characters.
Another problem is the portrayal of New York City, when the few survivors (and Jason) finally get there. New York is a really dangerous place in the movie, with drug dealers and dirty barrels of toxic chemicals everywhere on the docking bays. I have never been in New York, but I'm sure the docks weren't that bad. I guess the film-makers had to make the docking bays look horrible so that the movie can remain a horror film.
There are some good points, though. The idea of Jason being in a big city is fascinating, since Jason can finally get a taste of city life, rather than the usual forests on the outskirts of New Jersey (namely at Camp Crystal Lake). Also, the film seems to have borrowed elements from the "Nightmare on Elm Street" films: The lead female character actually daydreams about a younger Jason in various parts of the movie.
Overall, the best part of the movie is when the action happens in New York City. It's really interesting to see Jason stalking his victims in the Big Apple. If you're a fan of the "Friday the 13th" movies, then you might like this movie. However, don't expect it to be better than the sequels; it's just more creative than the sequels. Fast-forward to the last 30 minutes, when Jason & his victims are in New York City.
I give this movie a 6/10.
In this movie, Jason Voorhees is shocked back to life and climbs aboard a cruise ship filled with college students. The ship is heading for New York City, and Jason starts killing most of the people on board. Then later on, some remaining people survive and arrive at New York, with Jason following them...
I must say that I love the very beginning of this movie. There are nice shots of New York City at night, as well as a great 80's song to begin the movie. However, the film doesn't really begin in New York; the scene shifts away to Camp Crystal Lake, where Jason is about to be resurrected by an electric shock from an underwater electric cable.
Later on, the film introduces us to the characters that will board a ship, which Jason climbs aboard as the ship leaves for New York. Most of the film's run time is spent on the ship to explore the characters, while Jason hunts many of them down and starts killing them.
The problem with this time spent on the ship is that it can get pretty boring just seeing the characters do dumb things. Thankfully, Jason kills them off quite well, although in not as good a fashion as in the previous sequels. There was just too much time spent on the ship and on useless characters.
Another problem is the portrayal of New York City, when the few survivors (and Jason) finally get there. New York is a really dangerous place in the movie, with drug dealers and dirty barrels of toxic chemicals everywhere on the docking bays. I have never been in New York, but I'm sure the docks weren't that bad. I guess the film-makers had to make the docking bays look horrible so that the movie can remain a horror film.
There are some good points, though. The idea of Jason being in a big city is fascinating, since Jason can finally get a taste of city life, rather than the usual forests on the outskirts of New Jersey (namely at Camp Crystal Lake). Also, the film seems to have borrowed elements from the "Nightmare on Elm Street" films: The lead female character actually daydreams about a younger Jason in various parts of the movie.
Overall, the best part of the movie is when the action happens in New York City. It's really interesting to see Jason stalking his victims in the Big Apple. If you're a fan of the "Friday the 13th" movies, then you might like this movie. However, don't expect it to be better than the sequels; it's just more creative than the sequels. Fast-forward to the last 30 minutes, when Jason & his victims are in New York City.
I give this movie a 6/10.