Friday the 13th (2009)

   
Directed by: Marcus Nispel

Written by:
Damien Shannon & Mark Swift

Story by:
Damian Shannon, Mark Swift & Mark Wheaton

Starring:

Jared Padalecki .... Clay Miller
Danielle Panabaker .... Jenna
Aaron Yoo .... Chewie
Amanda Righetti .... Whitney Miller
Travis Van Winkle .... Trent
Derek Mears .... Jason Voorhees
Jonathan Sadowski .... Wade
Julianna Guill .... Bree
Ben Feldman .... Richie
Arlen Escarpeta .... Lawrence
Ryan Hansen .... Nolan
Willa Ford .... Chelsea
Nick Mennell .... Mike
America Olivo .... Amanda

Release Date: Theatrical: February 13, 2009

*Images courtesy at: www.beyondhollywood.com

 

 

 

Rating:

 

On a Friday the 13th in 1980 a surviving camp counsellor at Camp Crystal Lake beheaded a disturbed woman named Pamela Voorhees (Nana Visitor) to save her own life from her in which she blamed the rest of the counsellors for her son Jason's death.
However, young Jason seemed to rise out of the lake and took the remains of his Mom thinking to do her killing like she did for him while not being rescued.

Twenty years have passed and the camp remained closed as a bunch of kids decide to party out at Crystal Lake. One of them tells a campfire story about Jason and his mother claiming that Jason (Derek Mears) is still out there but laugh about it.
Next they are all slayed by this maniac and two of them named Wade (Jonathan Sadowski) and his girfriend Whitney Miller (Amanda Righetti) discovers a broken down house in the middle of nowhere finding a decapitated head and some candles. Jason enters and kills Wade and Whitney is missing.

Six weeks later Whitney's older brother Clay (Jared Padalecki) goes on a search for his sister sending out missing flyers and run into a crowd of partying teens at a corner store whom don't think too fond of him except for an understanding one named Jenna (Danielle Panabaker) whom is concenred and later on he goes to an old lady's house who tells him his sister would be dead by now due to a person who lurks around the area there.
He goes to a lodge as he encounters the same partying teens and the owner of the lodge named Trent (Travis Van Winkle) doesn't make him welcome but Jenna goes on the search with Clay to find his sister while the rest party and go swimming.
Jason is watching all of them as he kills them one by one while Clay and Jenna go to the boarded up Camp Crystal Lake and discover some terrifying secrets there and secret passageways to Jason's domain.

 

The story is fast paced the filmmakers did an impressive job regardless as there's a nice camera shot on a sign saying Camp Crystal Lake in a rainstorm during the beginning with a surviving camp counsellor running away freaking out with Mrs. Voorhees on her tail and then trying to convince her that getting killed will be easier for her than it was for her son as there's a quick battle which looked a little cheesy along with a nice fast action on this camper swinging a machette to her head. Then we have a good camera shot on a young Jason by stooping down towards the corpse and looking at a locket with a nice voice over of his Mom about killing for him and now to kill for her.
There's interesting dark shots on the group of teenagers camping out by putting up their tent and gathering around a bonfire with one of them telling them what had happened there.
We spot a good shot on supporting actor Mike bending down to get something and then a shot on Jason wearing a sack looking over him and then striking his machette.
There's a good shot on Amanda in a sleeping bag tied to a tree being roasted by a bonfire with Richie trying to rescue her and then being caught in a bear trap with great painful expressions.
There's are good shots on both Wade and Whitney Miller trying to explore where Camp Crystal Lake was as well as them exploring a beat up old house. There's a perfect shocked reaction on Wade after spotting a decapitated head with the door slamming on them. Then we have good shots on a machette stabbing through the floor of the house against Wade with the two of them screaming and trying to steer clear.
There's a great struggle with Whitney trying to get Richie free from the bear trap with him telling her to hurry up and a good shot on Jason standing there and then throwing his machette at him with her falling back and screaming.
There's a good scene with Clay Miller looking around an old house at Crystal Lake and knocking on the door with a good jumping moment on a german shepherd barking at the door. Then we have a nice presence on an old lady giving him a nice unfriendly look with him trying to ask her if she's seen this person around holding a flyer of a missing person and she bitterly answers well telling him she'd be dead being around here cause of a person which leaves a terrific impression on the curse at Crystal Lake.
We also have some good shots back and fourth with Clay approaching someone named Donnie working at a machine trying to talk to him over the noise and then catching him by surprise as he has good reactions.
There's a good worried reaction on Donnie going up in an attic and then spotting his female dummy as he does well caressing it. Then a great bumping reaction with Jason grabbing him and Donnie's shocked reaction finding out what he looks like behind the sack over his head with panicking reactions towards him.
There's a good shot on Jason holding a hockey mask in his hands and then putting it over his head looking in a mirror.
We spot a good scene with Nolan driving a motorboat with a good shot on Chelsea waterskiing topless. Then a good shot on an arrow through Nolan's head. There's a nice shot on Chelsea trying to flag down the boat and it run over her. Then a good shot on Jason standing on shore near some tree's staring at her and then taking out his machette with her freaking out and swimming underneath a pier. Good shots on her looking through the peep holes of the pier with him walking around which truly makes you afraid he will find her.
There's some good conversations between Clay and Jenna while exploring the woods at Camp Crystal Lake as well as discovering Jason's house then hiding underneath the house and spotting Jason himself holding a headless corpse which looked very dark and creepy along with a shot on Jenna covering her mouth from screaming.
There's great shots on the two on them running in the forest.
We spot a very corny discussion between Trent and Lawrence getting it on with one another and turning on a camcorder.
A good shot on Jason throwing an axe towards Nolan when he's running away.
Good moment with Trent running towards a road and nearly hit by a tow truck with the truck stopping just sitting there and then he is slowly walking near the vehicle being unsure of the driver as there's a good hand coming out of the window for him to come forward. Then a good shot on the driver getting ready to get out of his car and suddenly BAM! Jason strikes the two of them and the driver speeding away with the corpse attached to his truck. That moment was very chilling and terrifically done.
There's a terrific scene with Jenna trying to free Whitney with her running in and telling them that Jason is coming which causes them to panic more keeping you peeled to make see if they will make it out.
The ending is the scariest direction of them all but I won't give it away.
Bottom line is that I was looking forward to this flick and was satisfied with it as they blend in little bit of the original three movies (Like Mrs. Voorhees only in the very beginning, Jason wearing a sack over his head and then finding his hockey mask along with some teens staying in their own cabin resort at Crystal Lake) but yet made the storyline completely different. The story was a little too fast with what is going on mainly having Jason come in killing one after another but hey in certain sequels like part 6 that was normal. They did a good job on the cinematography making Crystal Lake look dark and gloomy too. There's plenty of adventureous moments too with the Jason chasing after his vicitms along with someone trapped in a metal cell of some sort by Jason too which is a different twist than the original movies as Jason just kills anything that's alive. Also Jason's old hideout looked better desgined and was in fact his actual house when his Mommy was alive with him showing another new change too. The story also explains why Jason killed cause a voice in his head tells him his Mom wants to do so just like she did for him.

The acting is not too shabby as we have lead actor Jared Padalecki (Clay Miller) as an outsider type looking for his lost sister showing good upsetting reactions and trying to keep calm. He does well with his fearful actions and pumped up energy too. Does very well trying to tell everyone at the cabin there's a killer out there in a certain scene.
Danielle Panabaker
(Jenna) really brings a terrific charm to her part in the film trying to help this fellow out and knew how to act fearful too. She brought out alot to her part. She shows a great reaction answering a cabin door inviting someone in as she does well acting courteous.
Aaron Yoo
(Chewie) seemed to know his part out well playing a teenage clown and brings the odd comedy to his part as well as doing good acting intoxicated. We have some good blocking with him acting drunk and wobbling around a garage.
Amanda Righetti
(Whitney Miller) does the job with her intensity and fears against Jason along with her vengeaful aggressions and can see her working in future horror films along with psychological one's. There's a great screaming reaction on her being chained up in a dark metal room and her pleading the Jason character not to hurt her. A nice aggressive reaction on her when the Jason character is tied to a grinding machine.
Travis Van Winkle
(Nolan) played a perfect sleazy bad ass and arrogant teen in the film playing a total unlikeable character in the film and really knew how to act dominant too in his performance.
Derek Mears
(Jason Voorhees) sure knew his part with his killing and machette wielding throwings too like the actors/stuntmen did in the original one's plus knew how to run fast after his vicitims too.
Arlen Escarpeta (Lawrence) played the perfect lustful bimbo in the film which we all needed in a Friday the 13th or any other slasher flick.

America Olivo flashes her breasts in a tent and is bare breasted while having sex.
Willa Ford
is bare breasted while water skiing.
Arlen Escarpeta is fully breasted while having sex in bed at a cabin briefly exposing her butt as well.

A head is quickly chopped off
An ear is sliced off a teens head
Many stabbings with the machette in the head or body
A headless body is carried by Jason
An arrow is shot in a guys head while driving a motorboat
An axe is stabbed through a teen
Other brutal slayings and lots of blood

We have the perfect low grinding synthesizer playing which sounds very gloomy and similar to the music used in the remake of The Hills Have Eyes along with good cold screeching sounds composed by Steve Jablonsky. He puts on many other dark sounds too and not the creepy classical music used in the original films.

There's a song called "Sister Christian" by Night Ranger which is used in a scene when two campers are about to do a lustful scene in their tent.

Clay: Hey, I'm not from around here, but I'm looking for my sister. She's gone missing.

Jenna: I hope you find her.

Trent: Where the fuck are you, gun?