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“You’re doomed! You’re all doomed! ” – Crazy Ralph
Number of Times Seen – 1 (5 Oct 2020)
Brief Synopsis – A group of counselors try to reopen a camp that was closed down after a tragedy twenty years earlier while a serial killer tries to stop them from succeeding in opening up for the summer.
My Take on it – As everyone who knows me is probably already aware, I’m not a fan of movies in the horror genre and stay as far away from them as possible.
On the other hand, I enjoy a good challenge, so when Darren told me that this was the theme for October, how could I refuse?
I’ve heard so much about this movie and its sequels over the years, yet never had the inclination to try and see what it was all about.
The first movies of these kind of series have usually been more grounded, so I chose to see what the film that started the Jason craze was all about.
The premise of the film is one that has been copied so many times over the past 40 years (even by other films in the series as I’ve been told).
The idea of making a slasher film in a summer camp is a great idea and has been reused numerous times because it allows for so much latitude along the way.
The cast is filled with lots of unrecognizable actors but it was great seeing Kevin Bacon in an early role as one of the counselors terrorized by this serial killer.
There are a few nice ‘scare’ moments in this film and the choice to not go too far with the gore worked well.
As I mentioned earlier, I haven’t seen any of the sequels, yet my understanding is that this is the most grounded of all of them and I’m glad that I finally got a chance to see what it was all about.
Bottom Line – Great idea that has been copied over and over during the course of the past 40 years. The idea of a slasher film in a sleep away camp has been reused so often (even in this same series), but they definitely get so much right here. The cast is filled with lots of unknowns, but it’s great seeing Bacon as one of the counselors. The film has a few nice ‘scare’ moments and I liked how they didn’t go overboard with them. I haven’t seen any of the sequels to this film, but my understanding is that this is the most grounded of the lot. Recommended!
MovieRob’s Favorite Trivia – While most of the cast and crew stayed at local hotels during filming, some of the most dedicated, including Tom Savini and Taso N. Stavrakis, stayed at the actual camp site. They had Savini’s Betamax VCR and only a couple of movies, such as Barbarella (1968) and Marathon Man (1976), on videotape to keep themselves entertained so each night they would watch one. To this day Savini says he can recite those movies by heart. (From IMDB)
Rating – Globe Worthy (8/10)
