Nothing much has changed at Camp Crystal Lake, the home of dead, but alive, drowned but arisen, human slaughterer Jason Voorhees. Body count. It all comes down to body count.

Evidently the screaming, whooping, clapping, cheering crowds love the same old game with new players. Who will be murdered? When? How? In what order? Will she be naked (because usually females are nude before dying)? Completely naked? Just topless? Or will the beautiful, young victim just have put her top on after a wild sexual romp and then receive “the hack”?


Friday the 13th 2009 is in many ways like every horror flick, loud, thunderous music serves as the driver for a multitude of predictable, noncreative murders of the young and beautiful, by the dead and deformed.

In this chapter, a group of twenty- something’s travel to Trent’s family cabin for the weekend. Per the formula, there are more men than women, this way when the coupling off begins, there are a few guys left to wish they had a girl. Of course, tall, handsome, blonde, rich, haughty and rude Trent is a virtual chick magnet, while the minority actors, Belize born Arlen Escarpeta as Lawrence and New Jersey born, Asian actor, Aaron Yoo as Chewie, were left to puff weed, and wish one of the girls would pay them some attention. At least the Black guy didn’t get killed first, as was the case for many years in the horror movies.

Fright fans will not be disappointed by Director Marcus Nispel’s latest deposit to the terror genre. Frankfurt, German born Nispel, previously known as a music video director, also directed the gruesome Texas Chainsaw Massacre remake in 2003, yet another movie about a deformed, angry slayer hunting down and butchering the unsuspecting and the innocent.

Murder and mayhem fans will not be disappointed with the direct execution action in this Friday the 13th. After a few minutes of back story and a few seconds used to establish a current day story line it is kill, kill, kill.
In keeping with the 21st Century, Jason stopped by the makeover trailer on the way to the set. Everything has changed, Jason 2009 seems taller, stronger, faster, with advanced skills in raw brutality. Watching people get stabbed, crushed, drowned, cut, run over with boats, penetrated with swords, arrows, and machetes is, well, troubling, and unsettling to me personally. Doubly so, as I listened to people cheer. While the music blasted baritone beats, laced with sizzling sounds from string instruments, I questioned my decision to cover this film.

Maybe the mayhem of our real lives; with the status of U.S. in jeopardy, massive job loss, an enormous housing debacle and the whir of economic failure, can only be drowned out and deterred by Hollywood. Why not bring Jason Voorhees who is still serving as Camp Crystal Lake’s mayor, sheriff, judge, jury, sole resident and executioner, onto the scene, to spread unadulterated death and destruction on a stressed out world.

Go ahead, scream!


Director: Marcus Nispel
Starring: Jared Padalecki, Derek Mears, Danielle Panabaker, Amanda Righetti, Travis Van Winkle, Aaron Yoo,
Rated: Rated R for strong bloody violence, some graphic sexual content, language and drug material.
Runtime: 97 min
Studio: Crystal Lake Entertainment