Director Adam Marcus' contribution to perhaps the daftest, most illogical and continuity-poor franchise in movie history is getting a deserved whistles and bells 4K UHD double disc release from Arrow.
Why deserved? Because while a number (but not all) of the sequels to Sean Cunningham's seminal FRIDAY THE 13TH (1980) have adopted a rather ho-hum approach to the antics of Jason Voorhees, JASON GOES TO HELL grabs the crazy potential of its scenario and runs with it, hardly pausing for breath until the final audience-pleasing shot.
Crazy axe murderer Jason Voorhees is still up to no good at Crystal Lake despite having been dissolved in toxic waste at the end of the previous sequel, which Marcus was instructed to ignore when writing this (pretty much par for the franchise). He is lured into a trap by a sexy FBI agent (Julie Michaels) and gets blown to pieces. In the first few minutes.
But aha! His still-beating heart is eaten by the coroner assigned to report on all of Jason's bits and somehow he becomes possessed and we're off on another killing spree! But there's more - Jason needs to be properly reborn, plus the bodies he possesses have a habit of wearing out quickly so he has to swap often. He's also being pursued by professional Jason hunter Creighton Duke (a winning performance from X-Files star Stephen Williams) as well as leading man (and Friday the 13th the TV series star) John D LeMay. What's Jason to do? Apart from kill loads of people?
The curious can have all their questions answered (within reason - this is a Friday the 13th film after all) in this double disc set that boasts the R-rated cut on disc one (running time just under 88 minutes) and the unrated cut on disc two (nearly 91 minutes).
'Thanks for buying this film for the fourth time" says Adam Marcus in his brief introduction to both cuts, and Arrow's UHD set is certainly the fourth version to grace the film library here. However, you can now dispense with previous DVD and Blu-ray releases as Arrow's stunning 4K transfer (it really does look excellent) and the extras make this the ultimate version of the film. Disc one includes new interviews with SFX expert Robert Kurtzman (17 minutes), actress Julie Michaels (12 minutes) and good old Harry Manfredini (12 minutes). Extras from a 2020 release of the film include two interviews with director Marcus totalling 48 minutes in all and one with Kane Hodder (28 minutes). There's also 12 minutes of deleted footage with optional commentary, and a one minute tour of the Friday the 13th props museum.
Disc two has the commentary tracks and if you're unfamiliar with them you should start with the archival commentary from Marcus and co-writer Dean Lorey which is as entertaining as it is endearing and will leave you feeling extra love for the film. Then go to the 25th anniversary commentary with Marcus and Crystal Lake Memories author Peter Bracke before finally listening to the most recent track from Michael Felsher and Steve Barton. Finally, Arrow's set comes with a double sided poster, booklet, and a reversible sleeve.
In one of the interviews on here Adam Marcus said he wanted to make a film that was fun. He certainly achieved his aim and if you're a fan of JASON GOES TO HELL you'll also have a great time with all the extras that have been assembled here as well.
Adam Marcus' JASON GOES TO HELL: THE FINAL FRIDAY is out in a dual disc 4K UHD set from Arrow Films on Monday 19th May 2025
No comments:
Post a Comment