One of the Best Slashers
Friday the 13th Part IV: The Final Chapter isn’t just one of the best Jason movies. It’s one of the best slasher films of all time. It delivers on all corners. It has a great opening scene, great kills, a great cast of characters, an aggressive killer, and a wonderful setting. This movie also deviates from the previous entries and focuses on outsiders rather than camp counselors.
Here’s the set up. Picking up where Part III left off, Jason’s body is taken to the morgue. He escapes and returns to Crystal Lake. This time he targets a group of six teenagers who rent a house next door to the Jarvis family, which includes Tracy, a single mother, her reserved, teenage daughter Trish, and her twelve-year-old nerdy son, Tommy. A pair of twin sisters, Tina and Terri Moore, show up and join the six teenagers for a weekend of adolescent decadence.
We spend a lot of time with these two groups before the body count starts to rise, at least half of the film. We learn all of their unique quirks, desires, and backstories. The strong bond between the members of the Jarvis family and the bond between the teenagers is shown in vivid detail. It’s hard not to become emotionally invested in these characters. When Jason begins picking them off, you feel it. Watching them die is like watching your own loved ones die.
Favorite Characters
Honestly, I like every character in this movie. But for the sake of time, I’ll narrow down the list and simply discuss my favorites.
Rob: The Badass of Friday the 13th Part IV
Rob Dier is a man on a mission. Remember Sandra from Part II? Well, apparently that was his sister. Ever since she was murdered, he’s been camping in the area. He’s on the hunt for Jason and wants to be the man that ends his reign of terror.
Rob is a tough guy. You can tell he’s the type of individual that has no problem surviving in the wilderness. If he was lost out there, he’d find his way home without a map. It’s a shame Jason snuck up on him in a dark basement. It would’ve been an amazing showdown if he and Jason had a fair fight with the lights on.
Sara: The Sweet One
Sara is so damn cute and sweet. She’s a bit shy and sexually inexperienced. Her innocence makes her a rare breed for a Friday the 13th film. Like Chris Higgins in Part III, she’s another character I wish I could jump in the tv screen and hug.
She brings another rare element to the franchise as well: tender romance. Her relationship with Doug is heart warming, like a love story torn from a 1950s melodrama. The way they look at, smile at, and interact with each other radiates pure affection.
Trish: The Final Girl of Friday the 13th Part IV
Trish, like Sara, is a bit reserved. She’s not a quiet girl, but you can tell she prefers to spend most of her time by herself. Why else would she turn down the offer to go skinny dipping with the rest of the teenagers? Those kind of activities don’t interest her. She’d rather curl up on the couch with a good book and chat with her mother.
She’s tough as hell too. When it’s time to face Jason and protect her brother, she doesn’t shy away from the moment. She’s bold enough to lead Jason into an abandoned house by herself in order to give Tommy a chance to run to safety. She even jumps out of an upstairs window to avoid being killed. Definitely one of my favorite final girls.
Ted: The Funny Asshole
Ted is one of the main sources of humor in this movie. He’s a fool. For one thing, he refers to himself as teddy bear and tries to pick up girls with the line “Wanna give teddy bear a kiss?” He also has an invisible computer he conjures up when his pal, Jimmy, asks for dating advice.
And what’s the best insight this computer delivers? That Jimmy is a dead fuck and this is the source of his lady troubles. Ted, being the clown that he is, teases Jimmy by calling him a dead fuck throughout the rest of the movie. Oh, I almost forgot to mention one more thing. Ted enjoys watching vintage stag films and laughing at them as if they were comedies.
Jimmy: The Funny Eccentric
Mr. Jimbo is another source of humor in this film. He’s the complete opposite of Ted. Whereas Ted is the sex-crazed douchebag, Jimmy is the sex-crazed weirdo. And by weirdo, I mean the type of person who doesn’t quite fit in with the rest of the crew. He’s a bit awkward and very insecure when it comes to dating and desperately wants to improve himself.
He is also one of the worst dancers I have ever seen in my life. While the gang is hanging out, he puts on a rock song and just completely spazzes out. No rhythm. No smooth, graceful movements. It’s a complete uncoordinated mess. But he’s having a good time and so is everyone else in the room and at home watching him.
Favorite Kills of Friday the 13th Part IV
Jason kills with fury in this film. His first victim is Axel, the sleazy coroner. He sneaks up behind him, cuts his throat with a handsaw, and then twists his head around. Yikes! Or how about Doug? He surprises Doug in the shower and crushes his head against the wall with his bare hands! I could go on and on. He throws an ax in Sara’s chest, stabs Paul in the groin with a spear gun during a late night swim, throws Tina out of a window, and jams a corkscrew in Jimmy’s hand before slamming a meat cleaver in his face.
I’m not sure why, but it seemed like Jason had a vendetta with every victim he came in contact with in Part IV. Maybe he was pissed off Chris Higgins got away in the previous film. Or maybe he didn’t like the fact he had to spend time in the freezer in the morgue. I doubt that was a comfortable situation.
Regardless, I’m glad something filled him with rage and made him ruthless in the The Final Chapter. It created a thrilling viewing experience.
