Review of Friday the 13th Part 2 (1981) by Kenneth B — 17 Nov 2011

Part 2, the one with Jason in, well the first one with him in. Yes this was Jason's big arrival, if you don't include his brief appearance in the first film. Only he hadn't yet donned the hockey mask, instead he chops and slices his way through a group of teens wearing some kind of rag on his head.

Of course much of the killing is seen from point of view shots, so in a similar manner to the original but we don't really see him in full until a substantial way into the film. With the splicing of various shots from the original at various points it's quite tough to distinguish the two and the novelty has begun to wear thin by this (early) point.

Most of the kills are shot in a stab-then-cut-away manner, nothing is really dwelt upon in terms of gore but likewise there isn't ever any real attempt to develop any suspense. The result is not much better than another 1981 lakeside camp slasher and clear cash-in on the first Friday film, The Burning.

That wasn't a good film and neither is this. By its second instalment the Friday the 13th franchise had already started to run out of ideas. If only they'd thought of sending their killer to the a city like New York or even to space.

Perhaps, in time.