FRIDAY THE 13th Part VI:

JASON LIVES

MOVIE REVIEW

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MINE GAMES
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BRIANA EVIGAN,
ALEX MERAZ,
ETHAN PECK)

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A SIERRA NEVADA
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UNIVERSAL DEAD
(DOUG JONES,
D.B. SWEENEY,
GARY GRAHAM)

Art Director

THE CRUSADER
(COLIN CUNNINGHAM,
GARY GRAHAM)

Review by
Ken King

FRIDAY THE 13th
SEQUELS

FRIDAY THE 13th PART VI: JASON LIVES

- 1986
USA Release: AUG! 1, 1986
Terror Films Inc.,
Sean S. Cunningham Films, Paramount Pictures
Rating: USA: R

"I've seen enough Horror movies to know that any weirdo wearing a mask is never friendly"

-Lizabeth

What do you get when you take one of the most beloved Horror franchises of all time, throw in Mary Shelly's FRANKENSTEIN, and a heaping dose of a badass soundtrack by the godfather of Shock Rock himself, Alice Cooper (WELCOME TO MY NIGHTMARE, CLASS OF 1984, MONSTER DOG, PRINCE OF DARKNESS, FREDDY'S DEAD: THE FINAL NIGHTMARE, THE ATTIC EXPEDITIONS, DRAGONTOWN, DARK SHADOWS, SUCK)? Why, you only get the best movie in said franchise! Yes, folks! The review for FRIDAY THE 13TH PART VI: JASON LIVES, comin' attcha!

The mid-1980's was a time of big hair, guys looking prettier than girls, glam metal, and the height of the Slasher subgenre. Yes, the new monsters were here to stay. There were scads of flicks, mostly sequels of otherwise established films, during this time consisting of HALLOWEEN (Michael Myers), A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET (Freddy Krueger), CHILD'S PLAY (Chucky), TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE (Leatherface), and of course, FRIDAY THE 13TH. While the others produced some solid films in their respective franchises, it was the latter who really churned out some great ones: Especially JASON LIVES. It saw not only the return of Jason Voorhees (The opening credits with a nod to the legendary James Bond flicks, is totally priceless!) after the disastrous, FRIDAY THE 13TH PART V: A NEW BEGINNING, but his nemesis Tommy Jarvis (Thom Matthews: THE RETURN OF THE LIVING DEAD I & II, MEAN GUNS, SORCERORS) who is out to seek justice once and for all on the son of Elias and Pamela Voorhees.

Sadly, Tommy fails right off the bat to do just that and unwittingly releases Jason Voorhees once again on an unsuspecting world. Jason wastes no time and heads back to his favorite playground: Camp Crystal Lake, where surprise, surprise! There are actual kids attending Summer Camp!

Not since the original FRIDAY THE 13TH have we seen this phenomenon. Even then, they were barely glanced at in the beginning. Here, they are present and accounted for in several scenes! Will miracles never cease to exist? But this deters the supernatural killer not a whit. He will simply work around them. Kids getting a little blood on them won't hurt. They can wash that shit off by using plenty of soap and elbow grease.

Partying and rutting teenagers, on the other hand…

Jason in action

Meanwhile, Tommy Jarvis runs afoul of the local sheriff, Garris (David Kagen: another one with a ton of TV credits such as FREDDY'S NIGHTMARES, ANGEL, BONES, CSI: CRIME SCENE INVESTIGATIONS, HOUSE) who is ready to kick his ass back into next week for coming around hootin' and hollerin' about Jason Voorhees (C. J. Graham: HIGHWAY TO HELL, VENGEANCE). It doesn't help that his daughter, Megan (Jennifer Cooke: V [TV], DEADLY NIGHTMARES, A YEAR IN THE LIFE) has taken a shine to Crystal Lakes renamed, ahem, Forest Green (Sounds like a goddamn cemetery. Should have stuck with Crystal Lake) home to the second most notorious former resident after Mama Voorhees.

No matter what Jarvis says to help matters, his pleas fall on deaf ears. Something just makes fathers, especially those in law enforcement, not apt to have even a thimble full of patience where it comes to those they consider "young punks" trying to woo their daughters. That shit just don't fly with them. They can't wait for you to say or do the wrong thing so they can throw a wrench in your works. Tommy Jarvis especially, is not a candidate for exclusion.

TRIVIA

The only film in the series with no nudity. Director McLoughlin later said the producers wanted it, as they thought the fans had come to expect it of FRIDAY films. Fearing a PG-13 rating, Producers had McLoughlin boost the gore factor to insure an R rating.

Actor John Shepherd, who stars as Tommy Jarvis, became a born-again Christian between sequels and refused to reprise his role. It then went to Thom Matthews (I'm glad this happened. Matthews is by far my favorite incarnation of the character). Christianity's gain is also FRIDAY THE 13th's gain!

Actor Jennifer Cooke is married to Mo Siegel, co-creator and former co-owner, of "Celestial Seasonings Tea Company." [!!!]

At 6'3" Graham is the third tallest Jason. Ted White is second at 6'4". Ken Kirzinger and Derek Mears are first at 6'5".

Even more at IMDb JASON LIVES Trivia

It takes a bit, but when things begin to take a plunge for the worse around the Lake area, then Sheriff Garris and his donut brigade decide to get involved.

Tommy and Megan work out a plan to dispose of Jason and his reign of terror. It's an interesting twist, that I wonder how somebody didn't think of it before. Well played, McLoughlin! Well played.

Director/writer, Tom McLoughlin (FREDDY'S NIGHTMARES [TV], FRIDAY THE 13TH: THE SERIES [TV], SOMETIMES THEY COME BACK, BEHIND THE MASK, THE UNSAID, writing creds: AMAZING STORIES [TV], THEY CAME FROM OUTER SPACE [TV], SHE-WOLF OF LONDON [TV], ONE DARK NIGHT) had a clearer vision than most of what a FRIDAY THE 13TH film must entail. He knew flat out you can't take the material too overly serious and to have fun with it. This is why he brought Alice Cooper into the mix. Sex, drugs (alcohol), and Rock n' Roll, my friends, that's what the 80's were all about. FRIDAY THE 13TH PART VI: JASON LIVES, was a definite product of its time.

Though very extensive, the SFX/Makeup crew can't go without getting a standing ovation for putting this movie together with their attention to detail, inventive kills and top-notch effects. They brought the Crystal Lake Killer once more to life and being the first to introduce us to the monster known as "Zombie Jason." Jason would continue along this particular path until the Marcus Nispel directed FRIDAY THE 13th (2009) reboot.

FINAL THOUGHTS
Yes, this is my absolute favorite film of the series. I find very little wrong with it even if there are some places that are downright silly. That's a large part of its charm. FRIDAY THE 13TH PART VI: JASON LIVES is meant to be a fun, summer popcorn movie and it succeeds immensely on that level. Mandatory viewing for all you Horror nuts out there who love the 80's style of Horror film making. This is one not to be missed.

Five Shriek Girls