User:Bignole/Friday the 13th (films)

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Reference: Halloween (film) & Night of the Living Dead

Friday the 13th
Friday the 13th movie poster
Directed by	Sean S. Cunningham
Produced by	Sean S. Cunningham
Written by	Victor Miller
Starring	Betsy Palmer Adrienne King Harry Crosby Laurie Bartram Mark Nelson Jeannine Taylor Robbi Morgan Kevin Bacon
Music by	Harry Manfredini
Cinematography	Barry Abrams
Editing by	Bill Freda
Distributed by	Paramount Pictures (North America) Warner Bros. (overseas)
Release date(s)	May 9, 1980
Running time	95 min.
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$550,000 (est.)
Followed by	Friday the 13th Part 2
All Movie Guide profile
IMDb profile

Friday the 13th is a 1980 independent horror film directed by Sean S. Cunningham and written by Victor Miller. The film is set at the fictional Camp Crystal Lake, and stars Betsy Palmer as Mrs. Voorhees and Adrienne King as Alice. The film revolves around a group of teenagers fixing up a campground before its summer children arrive. One-by-one they are murdered by an unseen assailant who has revenge on their mind.

Friday the 13th, inspired by the success of Halloween (1978), was made on an estimated budget of $550,000; panned by film critics, it went on to gross $39.7 million at the box office in the United States.^[1] It also produced over $17 million in rentals,^[1] and the film's box office success led to a long series of sequels.

Contents 1 Production 1.1 Writing 1.2 Casting 1.3 Direction 1.4 Special effects 1.5 Music 2 Cast 3 Plot 4 Reception 4.1 Critical reaction 5 Adaptations 6 Sequels 7 References 8 Further reading 9 External links

[edit] Production

Friday the 13th was produced and directed by Sean S. Cunningham, who had previously worked with filmmaker Wes Craven on the film The Last House on the Left. Cunningham was inspired by the financial success of John Carpenter's Halloween, but also films by Mario Bava.^[2] Like Bava's films, Cunningham wanted Friday the 13th to be shocking, visually stunning, and "[make] you jump out of your seat," but he also wanted to distance himself from The Last House on the Left.^[2] Cunningham felt that Last House was a "ran, painful, cynically-edged film", and that he wanted Friday the 13th to be more of a "roller-coaster ride".^[2]

As Cunningham studied Halloween, he decided to make sure that Friday the 13th was "a real scary movie," one that would terrify audiences and at the same time make them laugh.^[3] At the same time, even Cunningham knew he could not copy John Carpenter, and attempted to find a unique approach to making his film.^[3] Although, one of his main inspirations from Carpenter's film was the title, Halloween. Friday the 13th began its life as nothing more than a title.^[3] Initially, "Long Night at Camp Blood" was the working title during the writing process, but Cunningham believed in his "Friday the 13th" monicker, and quickly rushed out to place an ad in Variety.^[3] Cunningham was worried that someone else owned the rights to the title, and he figured that if there was going to be any lawsuits it would be best to find out immediately.^[3] Cunningham commissioned a New York advertising agency to develop his concept of the Friday the 13th logo, in big block letter, bursting through a pane of glass.^[3] This concept would become the trademark of the franchise's opening titles for the first 4 films.

Cunningham would surround himself with familiar friends when the time came to hire a production crew. Most of them had worked on his previous projects, mostly Here Come the Tigers and Manny's Orphans. Cunningham already had Victor Miller working on the script. After the script was finished, and he had full financial support, Cunningham set out to find the rest of his crew. The most important hiring, since Cunningham knew that Friday was going to be "very gory", was going to be that of special makeup effects expert, Tom Savini.^[4]

As casting was underway, Cunningham and Miner decided to scout locations for their fabled "Crystal Lake". Camp No-Be-Bo-Sco eventually opened their doors to the film makers.^[5] Production was sceduled to begin in mid-September, and last for approximately 30 days, giving the production team an ideal window for making their movie, as the campe only operates from June to August.^[5] For the most part, the camp did not require any additional applications. Miner recalls the camp site being "almost ready-made for the film".^[5]

[edit] Writing

The script was written by Victor Miller, who has gone on to write for several television soap operas, including Guiding Light, One Life to Live, and All My Children. Miller had written Cunningham's previous directorial efforts, Here Come the Tigers and Manny's Orphans, the former under the pseudonym Arch McCoy.^[6] Miller, after learning of the success of Halloween from Cunningham, went to the cinema to watch the movie. He returned several times to study the genre itself and the techniques Carpenter used.^[7] Cunningham's initial outline involved teenagers who were in an isolated setting that had not been used before.^[3] He knew from the start that Friday the 13th was going to be very gory.^[3] After the repeated viewings of Halloween, Cunningham and Miller decided that there needed to be a set of rules, most importantly that they needed their isolated location. It was Miller's idea to use a summer camp, more specifically a summer camp that was about to open so that there wouldn't be a worry about all the kids that normally attend camp during the summer.^[7] It was decided that the camp would need some sort of curse, or a past event that haunts the present. This even would eventually become the drowning of young Jason Voorhees. The kids would need to be alone, with no one to help them, and if any of them had sex then they had to die. Miller explained, "sex equals death."^[7] Within a couple of weeks, Miller had completed his first draft. Cunningham liked Miller's script, but felt it could use some dialogue adjustments. Minasian and Scuderi, the film's financial backers, hated the script. Ron Kurz, the film's uncredited writer, explained, "Phil [Scuderi] told me that he was approached by a man named Sean Cunningham, all Sean had to offer was a great-sounding title and a tepid script by Victor Miller."^[7] Kurz would add humour to the script, which he describes as his "forté". After Kurz was finished, and Scuderi was happy with the result, Cunningham was granted an estimated $550,000 to shoot the film.^[7] That wasn't the only changes to Miller's script. As soon as Tom Savini arrived, he and Cunningham agreed that the ending needed something extra.^[8] The idea of Jason appearing at the end of the film was not in the original script, nor was the concept of Jason being deformed. According to Victor Miller, Jason was never a deformed "creature from the "Black Lagoon", but, it is Miller's belief that the ending would have suffered if Jason was "a cute blonde kid who looked like Betsy Palmer at 8 years old." ^[9] Ron Kurz confirms that Miller's version of Jason was that of a normal child, but claims that it was his idea to turn Jason into a "mongoloid creature", and have him jump out at the end of the film.^[10]. According to Tom Savini, "the whole reason for the cliffhanger at the end was I had just seen 'Carrie.' So we thought that we need a 'chair jumper' like that and I said, 'Let's bring in Jason.^[11] In the end

[edit] Casting

For casing, a New York-based firm was hired to find 8 young actors to play the camp's staff members. The firm was headed by Julie Hughes and Barry Moss.^[12] Cunningham admits that he wasn't looking for "great actors", but anyone that was likable, and appeared to be a responsible camp counselor. Also, the actors would need to look good, read the dialogue somewhat well, and work cheap.^[12] Moss and Hughes were happy to find 4 actors, Kevin Bacon, Laurie Bartram, Peter Brouwer, and Adrienne King, who had previously appeared on soap operas.^[12] King was cast in the role of lead heroine Alice, and Bartram was hired to play Brenda. Kevin Bacon, Mark Nelson and Jeannine Taylor, who had previously known each other, were cast as Jack, Ned, and Marcie respectively.^[12] It's Bacon and Nelson's contention that it was the fact that the three already knew each other that gave them the specific chemistry the casting director was looking for.^[12] The part of Bill was handed over to Harry Crosby, son of Bing Crosby. Robbie Morgan, who played Annie, wasn't even auditioning for a role in the film. While in her office, Hughes just looked a Morgan and proclaimed "you're a camp counselor." The next day Morgon was on the set.^[12] It was Peter Brouwer's girlfriend that helped him land a role on Friday the 13th. After recently being written off the show Love of Life, Brouwer moved back to Connecticut to look for work. Learning that his girlfriend was working as an AD for Friday, Brouwer asked about any openings. Initially told casting was looking for big stars to fill the role of Steve Christy, it wasn't until Sean Cunningham dropped by to deliver a message to Brouwer's girlfriend, and saw him working in a garden, that he was hired.^[12] Estelle Parsons was initially asked to portray the film's killer, Pamela Voorhees, but eventually declined. Her agent cited that the film was too violent, and didn't know what kind of actress would play such a part.^[12] Hughes and Moss sent a copy of the script to Betsy Palmer, in hopes that she would accept the part. Palmer couldn't understand why someone would want her for a part in a horror film, as she had previously starred in films such as Mister Roberts, The Angry Man, and The Tin Star.^[12] Palmer only agreed to play the role because she needed to buy a new car, even when she believed the film to "be a piece of shit."^[12] Ari Lehman, who had previously auditioned for Cunningham's Manny's Orphans, failing to get the part, was determined to land the role of Jason Voorhees. According to Lehman, he went in very intense, to which Cunningham just stated he was perfect for the part.^[12]

[edit] Direction

One of the few things that Cunningham used from The Last House on the Left was to give Friday the 13th a "primitive look and feel." His reasoning behind this was because he knew he would have very little money for the film.^[3] Cunningham wanted to make Friday a "real viewing experience", while at the same time make it entertaining to watch, unlike his work on Last House on the Left.^[3]

Palmer tried to write out some of her own notes about who she thought Mrs. Voorhees was.^[12]

[edit] Special effects

Enjoying the recent success of Dawn of the Dead and Martin, Tom Savini, and his assistant Taso Stavrakis, were hired to do the effects for Friday the 13th with a budget just under $20,000.^[8]

The scene where Bill kills a black snake in one of the cabins was inspired from an experience by Tom Savini. After finding a snake in one of the cabins, Savini decided it would be a good idea to include a scene where a snake is killed.^[12]

[edit] Music

The music was composed by Harry Manfredini, who first met Sean S. Cunningham when he composed the music for Here Come the Tigers and Manny's Orphans.

[edit] Cast

• Betsy Palmer as Mrs. Voorhees:

• Adrienne King as Alice:

• Harry Crosby as Bill:

• Jeannine Taylor as Marcie:

• Robbie Morgan as Annie:

• Kevin Bacon as Jack:

• Laurie Bartram as Brenda:

• Mark Nelson as Ned:

• Peter Brouwer as Steve Christy:

• Rex Everhart as Enos:

• Ronn Carroll as Sgt. Tierney:

• Ron Millkie as Officer Dorf:

• Walt Gorney as Crazy Ralph:

• Ari Lehman as Young Jason:

[edit] Plot

In a brief prologue set in 1958, two summer camp counselors at Camp Crystal Lake sneak away from a camp fire sing-along to have sex. Before they can completely undress, an unseen assailant sneaks into the room and murders them both. The film moves forward to 1979; a young woman named Annie (Robbie Morgan) enters a small diner and asks for directions to Camp Crystal Lake, much to the shock of the restaurant's patrons and staff. A strange old man named Ralph (Walt Gorney) reacts to the news of the camp's reopening by warning Annie that they are "all doomed". Enos (Rex Everhart), a truck driver from the diner, agrees to give Annie a lift halfway to the camp. During the drive, he warns her about the camp, informing her that a young boy drowned in Crystal Lake in 1957, one year before the double murders occurred. After Enos lets her out, Annie hitches another ride in a jeep. The second driver, whose face is never seen, ends up murdering Annie by slashing her throat with a large hunting knife.

At the camp, the other counselors, Ned (Mark Nelson), Jack (Kevin Bacon), Bill (Harry Crosby), Marcie (Jeannine Taylor), Alice (Adrienne King), and Brenda (Laurie Bartram) are refurbishing the cabins and facilities along with the camp's owner, Steve Christy (Peter Brouwer). As a violent storm closes in on the horizon, Steve leaves the campgrounds to get more supplies. The unidentified killer begins to isolate and murder the counselors. Later that evening, Steve returns from town and is also murdered, apparently familiar with his attacker. Alice informs Bill that she saw the lights turn on at the archery range and that she thinks she heard Brenda screaming. Bill and Alice leave the cabin to investigate, and find a bloody axe in Brenda's bed. Attempting to phone the police, they discover the phones are dead and that the cars won't start when they try to leave. When the lights go out all over the camp, Bill goes to check on the power generator. Alice heads out looking for Bill when he doesn't return, and finds his body pinned to a door by several arrows.

Now alone, Alice flees back to the main cabin and hides. After a few moments of silence, Brenda's corpse is hurled through the window. Alice hears a vehicle outside the cabin and, thinking it to be Steve, runs out to warn him. Instead she finds a middle-aged woman who introduces herself as Mrs. Voorhees (Betsy Palmer), an "old friend of the Christys". Alice hysterically tries to tell her about the murders. Mrs. Voorhees expresses horror at the sight of Brenda's body, but she soon reveals herself to be the mother of the boy who drowned in the lake in 1957. Talking mostly to herself, she blames Jason's drowning on the fact that two counselors were having sex and were unaware of Jason's struggling in the lake. Mrs. Voorhees suddenly turns violent and pulls out a large knife, rushing at Alice. A lengthy chase ensues, during which Alice flees her attacker and finds Steve and Annie's bodies in the process. Alice and Mrs. Voorhees have several confrontations, each time with Alice believing she has finally beaten Mrs. Voorhees. During their final fight, Alice manages to decapitate Mrs. Voorhees with her own machete.

[edit] Reception

[edit] Critical reaction

During its initial release, the film was panned by mainstream critics, most notably film critic Gene Siskel.

As of 2006, film review site Rotten Tomatoes calculated a rating of 76% on their tomatometer.^[13]

• Golden Raspberry Awards^[14]

Nominated: Worst Picture

Nominated: Razzie Award for Worst Supporting Actress (Betsy Palmer)

• Mystfest

Nominated: Mystfest Award for Best Film

• This film was #31 on Bravo's 100 Scariest Movie Moments.^[15]

[edit] Adaptations

In 1987, Simon Hawke adapt a novelization of Friday the 13th.^[16] Hawke had previously wrote the novelization of Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Lives in 1986, and would go on to write the novelizations for Friday the 13th Part 2 and Friday the 13th Part 3.^[17][18][19]

[edit] Sequels

See also: Friday the 13th (film series)

Friday the 13th has spawned 9 sequels and a crossover with another horror franchise. Of these sequels, none have been directed by Sean S. Cunningham, nor written by Victor Miller. Every sequel has received a larger budget than the original Friday the 13th, and failed to earn as much at the box office. Also, all of the sequels have revolved around Jason Voorhees, the son of Pamela Voorhees, being the killer. This was to the chagrin of the original crew, namely Miller, Savini and Cunningham, who felt that Jason was never intended to be more than a victim.^{[9][citation needed]}

[edit] References

[edit] Further reading

• Bracke, Peter. Crystal Lake Memories: The Complete History of Friday the 13th. United Kingdom: Titon Books, 2006. ISBN 1845763432
• Grove, David. Making Friday The 13th: The Legend Of Camp Blood. Fab Press, 2005. ISBN 1903254310

[edit] External links

• Friday the 13th at the Internet Movie Database
• Friday the 13th at Rotten Tomatoes
• Friday the 13th at Box Office Mojo
• Film page at the Camp Crystal Lake web site
• Interview with Betsy Palmer on the podcast The Future And You (includes anecdotes about working on Friday the 13th)