Friday the 13th part 3 (1982) - Review Blitz
Originally published March, 2015.Now we’re getting to the ridiculous stuff. Right off the bat with the opening credits, you know that you’re in for a really stupid movie. The annoying string music by Harry Manfredini that thinks it’s scary is not present for the credits. Instead, we’re treated to a really goofy spooktastic synthesizer track as the credits fly towards the screen in 3D fashion. Yes, this was the Friday the 13thmovie to jump on board the 3D train of the 80's and it definitely makes the movie a whole lot (worse) better.
While Part 2 was the first movie to be laughably bad in certain parts, it still didn't quite reach hilarious levels of terrible. I’m happy to say that Friday the 13th Part 3 reaches those moments, particularly thanks to the awful 3D effects of the era. You can tell that Part 3 is trying to really let you know that it's 3D with numerous shots where something is moving toward the camera, in an awkward and forced way. The best moments, though, are when something is flying toward the screen. While you may not have been able to see the wires on 80's movie screens, or on VHS, you can sure see them now and it looks tremendously terrible. The most memorable moment is when a snake jumps out at the screen early in the film. There are so many wires attached to the thing that it looks like strings dangling off the head of a guitar that the musician was too lazy to trim.
Paramount Pictures
There's not much else I have to say about Part 3 as by this point it's following the formula pretty closely. The one thing I will mention about Part 3 is that it was the first of the series that really starts laying the archetypes on thick. While the second film made it more watchable with a larger cast of corpses, it was a little too large for itself because none of the characters stand out in any way. The first movie had the same issue, with a small cast, with the exclusion of Betsy Palmer and Kevin Bacon before he was famous. The third movie has a cast of characters with the goofy nerd who has a bad sense of humor, the “virgin” with the traumatic past, the stoners, etc. There are still plenty of cast members who manage to fall through the cracks and are forgettable, but at least the cliches give you something to latch onto.
Pros
While they may be cliches, the characters are something more to latch onto than the previous films
The 3D effects are terrible, but they make the movie laughably funny as a result - You can tack the moments it’s obviously trying to be 3D onto the drinking game rules as rule 14
The opening synthesizer track is goofy and silly as hell
The hockey mask makes its appearance for the first time
There’s a good moment at the end where Jason makes a bunch of goofy faces without the mask on, followed by the only point in the movie where it’s kinda creepy and some decent effects are used
This movie is just as goofy as Jason’s face, which is definitely a highlight
Cons
The opening section where Jason is stalking the two store owners takes wayyyyyyy too long and is wrought with crappy jump scares that only add to the frustration that the movie won’t just start already
Some character plot points are pretty pointless and drag on the movie a bit
The ending is very much the same as the first movie with the final scare being rendered moot by some stupid dream excuse thing
Not as much sex/boobs/nudity as the last one.
Final Verdict: Friday the 13th Part 3
If you want a scary movie, this isn't it. If you want a stupid funny movie that is funny for how terrible it is, check this one out. The “3D” is great for not only being terrible at its effect, but also for all the forced perspectives. One of my favorites.
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